Hezbollah Image Of Invincibility Is Being Threatened

There are a number of events that are chipping away at the impression of strength that Hezbollah works hard at maintaining. Besides the indictment of Hezbollah for their participation in the assassination of Hariri, there is the unrest in Syria which is distracting one of their benefactors, Iran may not be able to fund Hezbollah in the fashion they are accustomed, Hezbollah's own financial situation is weakening and now there are explosions in Hezbollah-controlled areas:

An explosion in the Hezbollah-controlled area of Dahiyeh last week gave birth to a host of speculation. Initially brushed off as a gas canister explosion by Hezbollah’s media relations department, which also stated that no one was injured, suspicions were raised by heightened security measures taken in the aftermath of the blast. Hezbollah members reportedly forbade locals from loitering in the area and repaired the apartment where the blast took place in the immediate aftermath of the explosion. Meanwhile Lockman Slim, founder of NGO Hayya Bina and a Dahiyeh resident, told NOW Lebanon that “phones were no longer working in the area.”

If Hezbollah cannot protect the areas they are supposed to have control over, what kind of resistance group are they suppose to be? Another indication of an internal weakening inside Hezbollah are allegations that Hezbollah members are spying for the CIA. Now Lebanon is reporting that Hezbollah arrested more than 50 members--including three sons of high-ranking commanders--on suspicion of treason, transferring some to Tehran to be questioned. This does not bode well for the terrorist group:

[Journalist Mustapha] Fahs believes that this is nothing new, and that there is already “chaos on the level of social security, [including] thefts, drugs and abuse by thugs among each other in Dahiyeh itself,” which, he said, is damaging to the party since “it reflects that Hezbollah does not have control over its own area and its own security.”

All this comes at a time that Hezbollah is supposed to be threatening an attack on Israel, in part perhaps to give Iran some breathing room from the perpetually assumed attack by Israel on Iran's nuclear facilities. Come to think of it, Iran cannot be too happy about cracks in Hezbollah's image either.

 Technorati Tag: Iran and Lebanon and Hezbollah.