An associate of a senior Hezbollah operative is thought to have been on the same flight, although this may have been a coincidence.

* 1985 – Hezbollah is founded.

Hezbollah (, literally " Party of Allah " or " Party of God ") is a Shi ' a Islamic militant group and political party based in Lebanon.

Hezbollah maintains strong support among Lebanon's Shi ' a population, and is able to mobilize demonstrations of hundreds of thousands.

In the 1990s, Hezbollah transformed from a revolutionary group into a political one, in a process which is described as the Lebanonisation of Hezbollah.

Whether the Islamic Jihad Organization ( IJO ) was a nom de guerre used by Hezbollah or a separate organization, is disputed.

... As for our culture, it is based on the Holy Quran, the Sunna and the legal rulings of the faqih who is our source of imitation ...</ div > Hezbollah follows the Islamic Shi ' a theology developed by Iranian revolutionary leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.

According to Hezbollah's Deputy-General, Na ' im Qasim, the struggle against Israel is a core belief of Hezbollah and the central rationale of Hezbollah's existence.

Hezbollah says that its continued hostilities against Israel are justified as reciprocal to Israeli operations against Lebanon and as retaliation for what they claim is Israel's occupation of Lebanese territory.

Medical care is also cheaper than in most of the country's private hospitals and free for Hezbollah members.

Lebanese Shiites " see Hezbollah as a political movement and a social service provider as much as it is a militia.

Lebanon ’ s majority Shi ' a Islam in Lebanon | Shi ’ a areas as of July 2006, where Hezbollah is most prominent.

Hezbollah alongside with Amal is one of two major political parties in Lebanon that represent the Shiite Muslims.

Al-Manar, the self-proclaimed " Station of the Resistance ," ( qanat al-muqawama ) is a key player in what Hezbollah calls its " psychological warfare against the Zionist enemy " and an integral part of Hezbollah's plan to spread its message to the entire Arab world.

Hezbollah has a military branch known as Al-Muqawama al-Islamiyya (" The Islamic Resistance ") and is the possible sponsor of a number of lesser-known militant groups, some of which may be little more than fronts for Hezbollah itself, including the Organization of the Oppressed, the Revolutionary Justice Organization, the Organization of Right Against Wrong, and Followers of the Prophet Muhammad.

It has been estimated by Mustafa Alani, security director at the Dubai-based Gulf Research Centre that Hezbollah's military force is made up of about 1, 000 full-time Hezbollah members, along with a further 6, 000 – 10, 000 volunteers.

It was reported that Hezbollah is in possession of Scud missiles that were provided to them by Syria.

According to various reports, Hezbollah is armed with anti-tank guided missiles, namely, the Russian-made AT-3 Sagger, AT-4 Spigot, AT-5 Spandrel, AT-13 Saxhorn-2 ' Metis-M ', АТ-14 Spriggan ' Kornet '; Iranian-made Ra ' ad ( version of AT-3 Sagger ), Towsan ( version of AT-5 Spandrel ), Toophan ( version of BGM-71 TOW ); and European-made MILAN missiles.

" Gates added that Hezbollah is possibly armed with chemical or biological weapons, as well as anti-ship missiles with a range of that could threaten U. S. ships.

As of July 2012, " Hezbollah is ... reported to have up to 50, 000 missiles — more than three times the 13, 000 it reportedly held when it began launching rockets at Israel six years ago, leading to the Second Lebanon War.

Benjamin said, " Hezbollah maintains a presence in Europe and its recent activities demonstrate that it is not constrained by concerns about collateral damage or political fallout that could result from conducting operations there ... We assess that Hezbollah could attack in Europe or elsewhere at any time with little or no warning " and that Hezbollah has " stepped up terrorist campaigns around the world.

Hezbollah leaders have also made numerous statements calling for the destruction of the state of Israel, which they refer to as the " Zionist entity ".

Hezbollah regards cultural, political, and religious freedoms in Lebanon as sanctified, although it does not extend these values to groups who have relations with Israel.

At the beginning many Hezbollah leaders have maintained that the movement was " not an organization, for its members carry no cards and bear no specific responsibilities ," and that the movement does not have " a clearly defined organizational structure.

" Nowadays, as Hezbollah scholar Magnus Ranstorp reports, Hezbollah does indeed have a formal governing structure, and in keeping with the principle of Guardianship of the Islamic Jurists ( velayat-e faqih ), it " concentrate ... all authority and powers " in its religious leaders, whose decisions then " flow from the ulama down the entire community.

" Hezbollah also rewards its guerilla members who have been wounded in battle by taking them to Hezbollah-run amusement parks.

Since then both Israel and Hezbollah have asserted that the organization has gained in military strength.

" In 2009, a Hezbollah commander ( speaking on condition of anonymity ) said, " e have far more rockets and missiles than we did in 2006.

Countries below have officially listed Hezbollah in at least some part as a terrorist organization.

However, relations have diminished due to ongoing sectarian clashes between Iraq's Sunni and Shia Muslim branches, and the Lebanese Government's support of Hezbollah.

The Islamic Republic has also maintained its hold on power in Iran in spite of the US economic sanctions, and has created or assisted like-minded Shia Islamist groups in Iraq ( SCIRI ) and Lebanon ( Hezbollah ), ( two Muslim countries that also have large Shiite populations ).

) Lebanon's Shiites, on the other hand, have long supported the Syrian presence, as has the Hezbollah militia group and political party.

Both Hezbollah and Israel have violated the Blue Line more than once, according to the UN.

The most common pattern of violence have been border incursions by the Hezbollah into the Shebaa Farms area, and then Israeli air strikes into southern Lebanon.

The UN Secretary-General has urged " all governments that have influence on Hezbollah to deter it from any further actions which could increase the tension in the area ".

Meanwhile, Hezbollah leader Nasrallah called for a " massive popular gathering " on Tuesday against UN Resolution 1559 saying " The resistance will not give up its arms ... because Lebanon needs the resistance to defend it ", and added " all the articles of UN resolution give free services to the Israeli enemy who should have been made accountable for his crimes and now finds that he is being rewarded for his crimes and achieves all its demands ".

Over the next seven years Iran is estimated to have spent an estimated $ 5 to $ 10 million US per month on Hezbollah, although the organization is now said to have become more self-sufficient.

She argues that organizations and political bodies in the Mideast like Hamas and Hezbollah " have a greater interest in maintaining a state of hostility with Israel than in improving the lives of the people they claim to represent ".

Pelosi asserts that civilians on both sides of the border " have been put at risk by the aggression of Hamas and Hezbollah " in part for their use of " civilians as shields by concealing weapons in civilian areas ".

It has been asserted by Mansoor Ijaz that in 1996 while the Clinton Administration had begun pursuit of the policy, the Sudanese government allegedly offered to arrest and extradite Bin Laden as well as to provide the United States detailed intelligence information about growing militant organizations in the region, including Hezbollah and Hamas, and that U. S. authorities allegedly rejected each offer, despite knowing of bin Laden's involvement in bombings on American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.

The ideology of Hezbollah has been summarized as Shi ' i radicalism.

Although Hezbollah originally aimed to transform Lebanon into a formal Faqihi Islamic republic, this goal has been abandoned in favor of a more inclusive approach.

From the inception of Hezbollah to the present, the elimination of the State of Israel has been one of Hezbollah's primary goals.

The US estimates that Iran has been giving Hezbollah about US $ 60 – 100 million per year in financial assistance.

Hezbollah has been one the main parties of March 8 Alliance since March 2005.

Hezbollah denies involvement in any attack, though it has been accused of some or all of these attacks:

Since 1990, Hezbollah has been accused of the following attacks and attempted attacks.

Hezbollah has been involved in several cases of armed conflict with Israel:

Hezbollah and many analysts considered this a victory for the movement, and since then its popularity has been boosted in Lebanon.

One of the most effective weapons deployed by Hezbollah has been the C-802 anti-ship missile.

Leaked cables from American diplomats suggest that the United States has been trying unsuccessfully to prevent Syria from " supplying arms to Hezbollah in Lebanon ", and that Hezbollah has " amassed a huge stockpile ( of arms ) since its 2006 war with Israel "; the arms were described as " increasingly sophisticated.

Hezbollah has also been the target of bomb attacks and kidnappings.

But United States intelligence officials speculate that there has been contact between Hezbollah and low-level al-Qaeda figures who fled Afghanistan for Lebanon.

It is " likely that the notion of suicide bombing " was inspired by Hezbollah as al-Zawahiri had been to Iran to raise money, and had sent his underling Ali Mohamed, " among others, to Lebanon to train with Hezbollah ".

The PFLP-GC has not been involved in major attacks on Israeli targets since the early 1990s, but it has reportedly cooperated with the Hezbollah guerrillas in South Lebanon.