The war in Iran has reached Lebanon now that Hezbollah has entered the conflict.
Hezbollah has functioned as a parallel power within Lebanon, with its clinics, schools and military, asserting a level of influence that some say overshadows the state itself.
When news broke of the assassination of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on Feb. 28, 2026, it triggered yet another war in Lebanon.
In response to the U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran, Hezbollah launched retaliatory strikes despite the Lebanese government’s official ban on the group’s military activities, ending a fragile two-year ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel.
Hezbollah, an armed Shiite Muslim political group, has often been described as a “state within a state” in Lebanon. Yet, analysts interviewed by Atlas Broadcasting indicated that Hezbollah is a dominant presence in the country.
"I think Hezbollah is no longer a state within the state. Hezbollah is the Lebanese state," argues Makram Rabah, Associate Professor at the American University of Beirut, who's specialized in Lebanese affairs.
He said the old dynamic of a “parallel” authority only existed when Syria controlled Lebanon. "When you talk about the deep state now, you are referring to Hezbollah,” he told Atlas Broadcasting.
Yeghia Tashjian, a researcher and regional analyst, notes that while the group is dominant, its presence remains "inconsistent" and faces unprecedented challenges from internal opposition and the 2026 war.
Attacking Hezbollah’s public image
Hezbollah’s media office issued a statement this month warning that “enemies of the resistance” are attempting to “incite sectarian strife” and “inflame public sentiment” through unflattering videos.
Calling Hezbollah “a proxy of Iran,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently told “60 Minutes” that the group is a terrorist organization that has “held Lebanon hostage.”
“We have no quarrel with Lebanon… But you have this foreign body, this Iranian-backed terrorist organization that hijacked the country,” Netanyahu said. “So we’ve had to go into Lebanon to prevent a repeat of the invasion of Gaza,” he said, recalling Hamas’ attack in October 2023.
If the regime in Iran collapses, Netanyahu said, “the terrorist proxy network that Iran built collapses…”
In a message to Hezbollah's leadership on April 1, Iran’s supreme leader said: "I firmly declare that the consistent policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran… is based on continuing to support the resistance against the Zionist-American enemy."
Lebanon criticizes IRGC
Israeli strikes in 2024 led to losses among the group’s leadership, but Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) rebuilt Hezbollah's military command, Reuters wrote.
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has publicly criticized the Guards for directing Hezbollah’s military operations.
Rabah, the professor in Beirut, said, “The IRGC are giving direct orders without going through Hezbollah’s political echelon. Assassinations like that of [Hezbollah leader] Hassan Nasrallah [in 2024] created the impression that all the strings lead back to Persian orders directing the organisation.”
The U.S.-brokered ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel that took effect in mid-April remains fragile, with reported violations including Israeli strikes on targets in Lebanon. A round of talks between the United States, Israel and Lebanon is set for May 14 and 15.
Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem this week said his group would not surrender and called for an end to direct negotiations between Lebanon and Israel, The Jerusalem Post reported. He claimed that Israel and the United States plan to annex part of Lebanon for a ‘Greater Israel,’” the newspaper said..
Economics of dependency
Some 1.2 million people were displaced and Beirut’s southern suburbs were reduced to ruins by Israeli strikes. Still, there has been no visible revolt by Lebanon’s Shia Muslims against Hezbollah. “Accountability is not part of the culture because they are seen as a guardian of the community,” Rabah suggests.
“It's important to think about the services and patronage Hezbollah provides to understand that the group’s importance to its supporters goes beyond weapons and beyond ideology,” David Wood, Lebanon senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, told Atlas Broadcasting.
“While some support Hezbollah ideologically, others do so purely for the services,” he added.
Tashjian agrees that Hezbollah’s armed faction is firmly established, with support not only found in the Shia community. “It’s ideologically justified by the resistance theme, and supported by Iran, making quick or complete disarmament improbable,” he told Atlas Broadcasting.
As the Lebanese Lira faces total collapse and 55 health centers were forced to close this April, civilians are resorting to Hezbollah’s social and financial institutions. With 1.24 million people now facing acute food insecurity, Hezbollah’s clinics and schools are considered important services.
The dependency on Hezbollah for basic needs is a calculated strategy in Rabah’s view. "Hezbollah has systematically tried to make Lebanon poorer so it can make its dollar more potent in a way. Initially, it allowed the Shiites operating within its circles to benefit from the financial crisis,” he said.
Tens of thousands of civilians turn to banking systems like Hezbollah’s Al-Qard al-Hassan and social welfare arms.
Wood noted that it is common for Lebanese political parties to provide services for constituents, though “Hezbollah may have the most advanced strategy.”
“But of course, a lot of these services relied on money from outside the country,” he added. Iran has funded Hezbollah, but the group has also relied on money from the Lebanese diaspora in various parts of the world.
Taking back control
The Lebanese government has attempted to reassert its authority by implementing disarmament plans led by the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF), but experts argue that the army need to be equipped to enforce such a plan.
“This plan cannot be implemented without internal consensus and regional backup,” Tashjian notes. “The army needs to be equipped with heavy weapons and to be deployed in the south to guard the borders,” he added.
He also says Hezbollah’s disarmament “should be viewed from a regional dimension,” that is, a broader agreement between the United States and Iran, and a security agreement that would prevent Israel from attacking Lebanon and require it to withdraw from its territory.
“Although the government’s recent decision could gradually diminish Hezbollah’s influence, its efficacy is constrained,” Tashjian added, due to the support it receives ideologically.
Rabah suggests. “The Lebanese army, regardless of what they say, will not split if it confronts Hezbollah; it will split if it continues to avoid confronting Hezbollah,” Rabah said.
Regardless, there are signs of a shift. The government’s tasking of the LAF to establish a state monopoly on weapons is a "crucial" step, according to Rabah. “The international community now knows that Lebanon is no longer willing to give the group political cover,” he concluded.
