Describe the four phases of the structural change of Hezbollah. What was the outcome of the last phase?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

• After introducing suicide bombers in its initial phase, Hezbollah struck U.S. Marines and the French army in October 1983, forcing a withdrawal of a multinational peacekeeping force.
• The marine barracks bombing resulted in the deaths of 200 marines, and a second suicide bomber killed 50 French soldiers.
• In its second phase, Hezbollah's leadership launched a kidnapping campaign in Beirut.
• Westerners, especially Americans, were taken hostage, but Hezbollah always denied any affiliation with the group conducting the operation.
• Tactics were extremely effective in the first two phases.
• Suicide actions and other bombings disrupted Lebanon. The U.S. embassy was targeted for a bomb attack, and Hezbollah managed to kill the top six CIA operatives in the Middle East.
• Two of Hezbollah's kidnappings were simply designed to murder the victims.
• Hezbollah kidnapped, tortured, and murdered the CIA station chief in Beirut, as well as a marine colonel working for the United Nations.
• This strategy made the group extremely effective.
• The third phase of Hezbollah's metamorphosis came in 1990
• Taking over the organization after the death of Musawi, Nasrallah created a regional militia by 1990 . In 1991 many of Lebanon's roving paramilitary groups signed a peace treaty, but Hezbollah retained its weapons and revolutionary philosophy and became the primary paramilitary force in southern Lebanon.
• It claimed to be a legitimate guerrilla force, resisting the Israeli occupation of the area.
• Hezbollah's militia, however, soon found itself in trouble. Squabbling broke out among various groups, and Hezbollah was forced to fight Syria and Islamic Amal. Diplomatic pressure increased for the release of hostages.
• Nasrallah took bold steps in response. He sought peace with the Syrians, and with Syrian approval, Western hostages were gradually released.
• Hezbollah's militia began to operate in the open, and it stepped up its campaign against the Israelis in Lebanon.
• Hezbollah joined the Lebanese political process.
• Hezbollah's fourth phase brought the organization from the shadows.
• Its militia, while operating as a guerrilla force, repeatedly struck the Israelis in Lebanon.
• The success of this action brought political payoffs, and by 1995 Hezbollah developed strong political bases of support in parts of Beirut, the Bekaa Valley, and its stronghold in southern Lebanon.
• It created a vast organization of social services, including schools, hospitals, and public works.
• This final change worked; in 1998 Hezbollah won a number of seats in Beirut while maintaining control of the south.