Targeting Hezbollah’s Broader Ecosystem of Power

Feb 3, 2026
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Also published in House Foreign Affairs Committee
About the Authors
Hanin Ghaddar
Hanin Ghaddar

Hanin Ghaddar is the Friedmann Senior Fellow at The Washington Institute's Rubin Family Arab Politics Program, where she focuses on Shia politics throughout the Levant.

Articles & Testimony

The ongoing disarmament process is crucial, but completing it will be impossible without more attention to Hezbollah’s cash economy, judicial interference, political intimidation, and other elements of domestic power.

The following is an excerpt from testimony submitted to the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa. To read the full testimony, download the PDF on this page.

While much of the current international focus is on Hezbollah’s possession of weapons, these assets are just one part of a wider ecosystem that enables the group to maintain power within state institutions, ensure a continued cash flow into its coffers, and rebuild its broken military infrastructure. This ecosystem is what keeps Hezbollah alive today—if the group loses its cash flow and influence within the state, it will not be able to sustain its arsenal. Hence, even as all eyes are on the disarmament process carried out by the Lebanese Armed Forces, Hezbollah has been quietly focused on other tools. Despite domestic and regional challenges, it has managed to maintain the financial and political foundation needed for its survival. Hezbollah’s plan thus far has been threefold...

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