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A brief history of Hezbollah - with Dr. Matthew Levitt

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Much like our earlier episode on the history of Hamas, today we look at the history of Hezbollah, an even greater threat to Israel than Hamas. Our guest is Dr. Matthew Levitt.

Matt is the director of the Program on Counterterrorism and Intelligence at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. He served as deputy assistant secretary for intelligence and analysis at the U.S. Department of the Treasury. During his tenure at Treasury, he played a central role in efforts to protect the U.S. financial system from abuse and to deny terrorists, weapons proliferators, and other rogue actors the ability to finance threats to U.S. national security. He later served as a counterterrorism advisor to the special envoy for Middle East regional security. Previously, Matt was a counterterrorism intelligence analyst at the FBI, where he provided tactical and strategic analytical support for counterterrorism operations, focusing on fundraising and logistical support networks for Middle Eastern terrorist groups.

He is the author of several books and monographs, including Hamas: Politics, Charity and Terrorism in the Service of Jihad (Yale University Press, 2006), Negotiating Under Fire: Preserving Peace Talks in the Face of Terror Attacks (Rowman & Littlefield, 2008), and Hezbollah: The Global Footprint of Lebanon's Party of God (Georgetown University Press, 2013). He is the host of the podcast series, Breaking Hezbollah's Golden Rule.

The quotes we discussed in the introduction can be found here:

- The entire statement by Rachel Goldberg-Polin at the U.N. -- https://www.ynetnews.com/article/rkn7vvif6

-The audio recording released by the IDF -- https://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-publishes-audio-of-hamas-terrorist-calling-family-to-brag-of-killing-jews/

Host:
Dan Senor

Discussion (2)

  • Quintus Sertorius@BillGollier

    Mr. Senor…your podcasts (as Commentary) have been indispensable during this horrendous event. My only question…why are so many reports by the Wall Street Journal, NYT, Dispatch, et al so absolutely idiotic on what is really going on from a historical stand point. Why won’t they listen to you??? Drives me nuts…the Palestinians in Gaza are in a humanitarian crisis because of Hamas and their policies…the lack of historical knowledge by so called experts…including historians is just mind blowing!!

    Thanks again!!

  • colleenb@colleenb
    ReplyingtoQuintus Sertorius

    Quintus Sertorius (View Comment):

    Mr. Senor…your podcasts (as Commentary) have been indispensable during this horrendous event. My only question…why are so many reports by the Wall Street Journal, NYT, Dispatch, et al so absolutely idiotic on what is really going on from a historical stand point. Why won’t they listen to you??? Drives me nuts…the Palestinians in Gaza are in a humanitarian crisis because of Hamas and their policies…the lack of historical knowledge by so called experts…including historians is just mind blowing!!

    Thanks again!!

    QS: Thanks for recommending this interview. It's depressing but important to know the facts. I am now going to listen to more of Mr. Senor's interviews.