海角大神

Sidelined in Gaza war, Hezbollah fighters yearn for victory over Israel

The casket of the Hezbollah commander killed in an Israeli strike is carried to his grave in this small village with determined devotion by his fellow fighters. They have tears in their eyes, and sweat from the heat and exertion. On the hand of one reaching to hold on is tattooed a grenade.

But it is Hassan Yehya Naameh鈥檚 family who put the lifelong Hezbollah member to rest, starting with his seven-year-old daughter, Hana. She wears a camouflage uniform and is carried ahead of the cortege, amid raised arms, anti-Israel chants, and waving banners of the Lebanese Shiite militia.

As a Hezbollah honor guard presides over the ceremony 鈥� each fighter smeared with camouflage face paint 鈥撀爐ributes are given and Hana holds a portrait of her father as she rests, in a final farewell, on his flag-draped casket.

About 330 fighters have been killed across southern Lebanon since Iran-backed Hezbollah escalated its conflict with Israel to support Palestinian Hamas militants, who attacked from Gaza last Oct. 7. Hezbollah has signaled it will stop its campaign if Israel ends its Gaza offensive.

But this fallen fighter, a unit commander, is portrayed as a triumphant hero, cut down 鈥渙n the road to Jerusalem鈥� while 鈥渄efending the cause.鈥� His burial, beside half a dozen others killed fighting for Hezbollah in previous wars, speaks to the long-term mindset of the Middle East鈥檚 most powerful Shiite militia 鈥� and how it views the current conflict with Israel as another data point in the inevitable demise of the Jewish state.

Indeed, as the sun sets over this hilltop ceremony in southern Lebanon, the strength of the sentiments indicates the scale of the challenge to Israel should it 鈥� or should Hezbollah, which is known to be magnitudes stronger than Hamas 鈥� ever decide to engage in all-out war.

There is much anger directed at Israel at this funeral. But for Hezbollah and the Shiite Muslim true believers here, there is added inspiration drawn from the legend of a historical battle 14 centuries ago, when Imam Hussein became the 鈥淟ord of the Martyrs鈥� by fighting for a just cause despite impossible odds.

Death in battle is cast as something to aspire to, a sacrifice worthy of celebration, not of sorrow.

鈥淢y son Hassan, the soul of God, congratulations to you, from us 鈥� you got your wish, this rank [of martyrdom] you just achieved,鈥� said the Hezbollah commander鈥檚 father, Yehya Naameh, repeatedly thanking God for 鈥渢his great gift of martyrdom with my own son.鈥�

The cost to Lebanon

Admired as such devotion can be in some quarters, Hezbollah fighters are torn between an ideological imperative to fight what they consider Israeli occupation of Arab lands, and not triggering a full-blown war that would flatten southern Lebanon.

Hezbollah鈥檚 fighters say they want to fight 鈥撀爋ften to grasp the 鈥済ift鈥� of martyrdom, as Mr. Naameh did 鈥撀燼nd that Israel鈥檚 failure so far to crush Hamas in Gaza after eight months of battle shows its relative weakness. Already Israel and Hezbollah have been exchanging some 13,000 projectiles a month across the Lebanon-Israel border, according to United Nations peacekeeping forces.

Hezbollah is the most powerful arm of the Iran-led 鈥淎xis of Resistance.鈥� Yet Iran, which analysts say has veto power over Hezbollah鈥檚 decision to launch an all-out war, is faced with a litany of its own internal problems, and has made clear its desire to avoid a broader war.

And in Lebanon, questions are being raised about the cost of the extensive destruction already wrought; about the price paid by 90,000 displaced citizens; and whether Lebanon can add a full-blown conflict to chronic, impoverishing economic and political woes.

鈥淯ntil now, we did not hear any mother or father of a martyr say, 鈥楬ezbollah destroyed my family,鈥欌�� says a senior Hezbollah missile specialist when asked about pushback among some Lebanese. 鈥淪o we still have the people鈥檚 support.

鈥淲e are not in a carnival, we are not having a party here; we are in a state of war,鈥� says the specialist, who would not give his name.

In the last full-scale Hezbollah-Israel war in 2006, at least 250 combatants and more than 1,100 civilians were killed in Lebanon, with some 121 military and 44 civilian deaths in Israel, in 34 days of combat.

Despite the escalation over the past eight months, which have seen the deepest and most consequential Hezbollah-Israel strikes since 2006, both sides have deliberately taken steps to avoid an out-of-control spiral of violence.

鈥淚t鈥檚 tearing me apart鈥�

The result is a conundrum for Hezbollah: As it watches Hamas locked in battle with its arch-enemy, it has so far played only a secondary role 鈥� a trajectory that has angered some Hezbollah fighters who trained for years for what they were told was an inevitable 鈥渇inal鈥� decisive fight against Israel.

鈥淧ersonally, it doesn鈥檛 matter how I feel, because I receive orders from the higher command center,鈥� says the missile specialist, who speaks with calm confidence. 鈥淏ut since you asked 鈥� I am experiencing frustration, because it is not a full-fledged war. ... I am ready to fight 鈥� we are all ready to fight. It鈥檚 killing me, it鈥檚 tearing me apart that we are not in full-scale action with the Israelis.鈥�

Still, Hezbollah is gaining insight into Israeli capabilities from the fight in Gaza. It has done little to dent the brash confidence of a militia that today boasts an arsenal of at least 150,000 rockets and missiles.

Noted often during interviews with three Hezbollah veterans is the example of north Gaza鈥檚 Jabaliya refugee camp. Israel struck it repeatedly with large bombs early in the conflict, destroyed entire residential blocks, and then declared the area cleared 鈥撀爋nly to be attacked by Hamas again from it last month.

鈥淲e鈥檙e talking about Hamas here, small Hamas,鈥� says the Hezbollah missile specialist, laughing. 鈥淭hey are giving the Israelis hell, and [Israeli Prime Minister] Netanyahu keeps claiming victory after victory. 鈥� They can鈥檛 take Jabaliya, and they talk about us? We are the cream of the resistance. Imagine what we can do.鈥�

Still, the cost to Hezbollah has already been high, and Israeli targeting can be precise. The day before Mr. Naameh鈥檚 funeral, for example, this correspondent visited the 海角大神 Lebanese border town of Rmaich.

That day, at 2:21 p.m. in the direction of the nearby Shiite village of Maroun al-Ras, Israeli forces fired a single rocket or shell that sent a large plume of smoke into the air. Hours later, Hezbollah announced that the strike killed Mr. Naameh and another fighter.

鈥淯ntil now, the rules are still under control, but we can鈥檛 be more patient than we are now,鈥� says a ranking Hezbollah officer who gave the name Ahmad, contacted in a small village in southern Lebanon. He applauds the Hamas attack, but says it was a 鈥渟trategic miscalculation鈥� that Hamas did not share the timing with Hezbollah, so that both could have simultaneously 鈥渢aken more ground and killed more Israelis together.鈥�

Victory is an article of faith

But there is also a practical rationale for taking careful decisions, says Ahmad.

鈥淭he reason we don鈥檛 escalate right now with a harder, larger scale war, is because we have specialists who study the economic well-being of the people of the south, our supporters, and ask: Are they ready for this, or not?鈥� says the veteran Hezbollah officer. 鈥淲e can鈥檛 just jump in and launch a full-scale war, knowing our people don鈥檛 know where their next piece of bread is coming from.鈥�

鈥淵es, we can do it now,鈥� says Ahmad. 鈥淏ut we are waiting for the right moment, for our people to be in the right shape.鈥�

Calculations could change, but for Hezbollah confidence in eventual 鈥渧ictory鈥� is an article of faith, no matter the timeline.

鈥淚f we make our decision to go in, we are going in and we are not going back 鈥� we are not Hamas,鈥� says a thick-set veteran Hezbollah fighter of 22 years, who gave the pseudonym Jihad. 鈥淭he Israelis are going to regret it, and they are going to wish their war stayed with Hamas.

鈥淲e believe the Israelis are intruders; that鈥檚 not their country. We can fight 20 wars, and win once, and consider ourselves winners,鈥� says Jihad. 鈥淚srael can never continue this way. 鈥� They are the ones who are going to end up without a country, not us.鈥�