Running Head: HAMAS, HEZBOLLAH, AND AL QAEDA THREAT 1

Hamas, Hezbollah, and Al Qaeda:

Which is the Greatest Threat to the Domestic Security of the United States of America

Michael Yatskievych

University of Texas at El Paso

HAMAS, HEZBOLLAH, AND AL QAEDA THREAT

Abstract

This report will explore several facets of today’s most prominent terrorist

organizations including Hamas, Hezbollah, and Al Qaeda and how each is a threat to the

domestic security of the United States of America. Among the specific facts to be

addressed will be: a brief history of each organization, their ideologies, descriptions of

their base of operations locations, leadership structure, and sources of funding.

Additional information, such as the forecasted future of each organization, will be

combined to make a logical prediction as to which terrorist group poses the greatest threat

to the security of not only the domestic security of the United States but also of the

regions that are associated with the activities of each of these organizations.

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HAMAS, HEZBOLLAH, AND AL QAEDA THREAT

Hamas, Hezbollah, and Al Qaeda:

Which is the Greatest Threat to the Domestic Security of the United States of America

Terrorism has garnered the collective attention of the citizens throughout the

United States resulting in a state of vigilance that demands domestic security to rigidly

maintain public safety and prevent the occurrence of terrorist foul play. This report will

uncover the distinguishing characteristics of three prominent terrorist groups: Hamas,

Hezbollah, and Al Qaeda. These distinctive attributes of each organization found in this

report includes: organization ideology, leadership structure, location of base of

operations, and sources of funding. By identifying these top eminent terrorist networks

that are responsible for receiving the majority of the world’s radical activism attention a

greater understanding of each group can be made. In addition, the combined information

of each terrorist group will also yield a prospective answer to the question as to which

organization is the greatest threat to not only the United States but to the regions

surrounding these factions as well as the rest of the world.

Hamas

Hamas, an acronym in Arabic (Harakat al-Muqawamah al-Islamiyya) meaning

“Islamic Resistance Movement” or literally translated as “courage and bravery” or “zeal”

(Eyespy, 2010), is an Islamist-Fundamentalist organization that is identified as a terrorist

organization that has been deemed as national security threat by many nations around the

world including: the United States, European Union, Israel, Canada, Japan, the United

Kingdom and Australia (Guardia, 2003). Although this organization is considered young,

founded in late 1987, its roots can be traced as far back as the to the Muslim

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HAMAS, HEZBOLLAH, AND AL QAEDA THREAT

Brotherhood’s golden years during the 1970’s (ADL, 2003). Since their inception Hamas

has been advocating for the expulsion of foreign inhabitants that are colonizing what is

deemed rightfully as the property of Palestine. In short, the primary objective of Hamas

is to “bring about an end to the State of Israel” (Halevy, 2008).

Figure 1. Hamas Flag- Wikipedia: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b3/Flag_of_Hamas.svg

Hamas, like many other fundamentalist groups in the Middle East, have

demonstrated their plight by employing violent terrorist tactics such as suicide bombings,

assassinations, and kidnappings. However, unlike many other Islamist groups that aim to

resist Israel and its western adversaries, “Hamas has traditionally confined its violent

activities to the local arena comprising Israel, the Gaza Strip, and the West Bank.”

(Levitt, 2007). Although citizens of western countries have been caught in the crossfire

of Hamas activity this organization has not taken its violent campaign abroad targeting

Israeli diplomats or Western allies.

The reasoning for such acts of violence are stemmed from the tenant of

Palestinian Nationalism. Hamas and their fight to reclaim and secure disputed lands what

were once considered sacredly Palestinian has made this organization originating in

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HAMAS, HEZBOLLAH, AND AL QAEDA THREAT

guerilla foundations become a major contender in regional politics where it defied the

authority of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) and as of the December 2005

Palestine elections is now a majority in the legislature.

Figure 2: Hamas Logo- GlobalSecurity.org

The new introduction of Hamas into mainstream politics has transformed this

organization into a state funded entity with included inherent risks. The increasing size

of this group yields greater allocations of finances and social projects, as well as

realignment in the leadership structure. Currently, Hamas is led by Ismail Haiyeh, the

Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority (IHT, 2008). Not only is it the responsibility

of Haiyeh to be the voice of Hamas he is also accountable for delegating the members of

Hamas in the Palestinian legislature, allocating money to the party, and organizing group

action not only inside Palestine but also to other Hamas harboring allies such as Syria and

Iran.

Hamas continues to maintain its political position by collecting funds. The

money used to fund the fight against Israel is generated mostly from friendly Islamic

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HAMAS, HEZBOLLAH, AND AL QAEDA THREAT

supporters, additional funds are collected from state coffers, primarily Syria and Iran.

Many western collective aid as well; “there are four central Hamas charity funds in the

West: Great Britain - The Palestine Relief and Development Fund (Interpal); U.S.A. - the

Holy Land Foundation; Germany - the Al Aqsa Foundation, with branches in Belgium

and Holland; France - Comite de Bienfaisance et Solidarite avec la Palestine.” (Eyespy,

1997). Although Hamas prides itself for its capacity to manage itself internally it could

not survive without the aid of allies outside of Palestine. This external leadership makes

Hamas accountable to leaders outside of its domain and liable to clerics in Iran and Syria

(CSS, 2006). As Hamas becomes more powerful their potential for terrorist activities

outside of the Palestinian theater increases. Thus, the domestic threat to the public safety

of the United States, as well as the world, increases as Hamas becomes more rich and

powerful.

Figure 3: Map of West Bank and Palestine- http://www.ccmep.org/delegations/maps/palestine.html#2

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HAMAS, HEZBOLLAH, AND AL QAEDA THREAT

Hezbollah

Hezbollah, or the “Party of God”, is a Shi'a Islamist political and paramilitary

organization based in Lebanon (Brew, 2003). Unlike its Hamas, which is almost an

exclusively Sunni institution, Hezbollah is not categorized by most countries as a terrorist

group, but rather as a resistance movement that aids in the benefit of local constituents.

Similar to Hamas, Hezbollah also has young roots that date only as far back as the early

1980s where Israel encroached upon Lebanon during the Lebanese civil war (BBC,

2008).

The ideology of Hezbollah originated from its manifesto issued by Sheik Ibrahim

al-Aminin 1985. The following is an excerpt from the manifesto that dictates the mission

of Hezbollah.

We are the sons of the umma (Muslim community) ...

... We are an ummah linked to the Muslims of the whole world by the solid

doctrinal and religious connection of Islam, whose message God wanted to be

fulfilled by the Seal of the Prophets, i.e., Prophet Muhammad. ... 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...(Jerusalem, 1988).

Figure 4. Flag of Hezbollah: Wikipedia- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Flag_of_Hezbollah.svg

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HAMAS, HEZBOLLAH, AND AL QAEDA THREAT

This testament that was initially aimed to create a fundamental Islamic state but

has currently waned in lieu for a more socio-political movement where a multi-cultural

integration with Shi’a foundations (BBC, 2008). However, this presence a degree of

confusion as Hezbollah was largely formed by Shi’a fundamentalist leader Ayatollah

Khomeini and Iran Islamic Revolution leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. The

Lebenonization of the area has become more political and less confrontational in regards

to guerilla methods. In order to continue to appease its leaders and maintain is highly

respected public relations via implementing social projects such as to schools, hospitals,

and humanitarian aid Hezbollah needs to maintain its flow of capital.

Figure 5. Map of Hezbollah Territory: GlobalSecurity.org

Hezbollah receives its money from multiple taps. Primarily, just like Hamas,

funds are acquired from sympathetic donations and manipulated investment portfolios.

Sources of funds also include aid from Iran. Monetary benefits from Iran came only

through private charities, not state endorsed transfers. These charities include health

care, education and the support of war widows (Washington Post, 2004).

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HAMAS, HEZBOLLAH, AND AL QAEDA THREAT

Other lines of money are also affiliated with Hezbollah. Their ingenuity to

procuring more money is a fascinating marvel as these methods are not conventional and

are also counter-intuitive to their ideology. For example, Hezbollah is notorious for

printing counterfeit U.S. dollars. In addition, according to the U.S. Naval War College

Hezbollah extorted more than $10 million dollars in Paraguay. Other forms of finance

procurement include Lebanese-Mexican immigrant smuggling into the United States and

selling black market cigarettes. Just as with Hamas, the increased potential of financial

power is directly related to the potential of international risk.

Al Qaeda

http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/para/al-qaida.htm

https://0-www.hsdl.org.lib.utep.edu/?view&doc=117710&coll=limited

http://0-web.ebscohost.com.lib.utep.edu/ehost/detail?vid=1&hid=112&sid=befb14d7-8b26-4320-b4bd-33aa4b8370cc%40sessionmgr111&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#db=a9h&AN=48134873

http://www.cfr.org/publication/21347/alqaedas_financial_pressures.html

https://0-www.hsdl.org.lib.utep.edu/?view&doc=5361&coll=limited

https://0-www.hsdl.org.lib.utep.edu/?view&doc=79723&coll=limited

http://www.ask.com/wiki/Al-Qaeda

http://www.infoplease.com/spot/al-qaeda-terrorism.html

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HAMAS, HEZBOLLAH, AND AL QAEDA THREAT

Figure 6. Photo of Al Qaeda primary leader Bin Laden : Agence France-Presse

Figure 8. Al Qaeda Map of the World- http://www.towncalleddobson.com/?p=786

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HAMAS, HEZBOLLAH, AND AL QAEDA THREAT

Figure 7. Flag of Al Qaeda Iraq- Wikipedia: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/35/Flag_of_al-Qaeda_in_Iraq.svg

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HAMAS, HEZBOLLAH, AND AL QAEDA THREAT

References

Al-Aminin, Ibrahim (1988). The Hizballah Program. The Jerusalem Quarterly, number

Forty-Eight, Fall 1988. http://www.standwithus.com/pdfs/flyers/hezbollah_

program.pdf. Retreived September 20, 2010.

Anti-Defamation League: ADL. (2006). Hamas Fact Sheet. http://www.adl.org/main_

israel/hamas_facts.html. Retrieved September 20, 2010.

Brew, Nigel. Hezbollah in Profile. (2003). Research Note no. 42 2002-03. Australian

Parlimentary Library. http://www.aph.gov.au/Library/pubs/rn/2002

03/03rn42.htm. Retrieved September 20, 2010.

British Broadcasting Company: BBC. Who are Hezbollah. BBC News. 2008-05-21.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4314423.stm. Retrieved September 20,

2010.

Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center at the Center for Special Studies (C.S.S).

(2006). Profile of the Hamas movement. http://www.terrorism

info.org.il/malam_multimedia/English/eng_n/pdf/hamas_e0206.pdf. Retrieved

September 20, 2010.

Eyespy. (1997). Hamas. http://www.eyespymag.com/hamas.html. Retrieved September

20, 2010.

Guardia, Anton La (September 12, 2003). "Telegraph.UK". London:

Telegraph.co.uk: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/

1441311/Hamas-is-added-to-EUs-blacklist-of-terror.html. Retrieved September

20, 2010.

Halvey, Efraim. (2008). Israel’s Hamas Portfolio. Israel Journal of Foreign Affairs

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Volume 2 Chapter 3. http://israelcfr.com/documents/issue6_hamas.pdf.

Retrieved September 20, 2010.

International Herald Tribune: IHT. (2008). http://www.nytimes.com. Retrieved

September 20, 2010.

Levitt, Mathew. (2007). Could Hamas Target theWest? The Washington Institute for

Near East Policy. Yale University Press. Retrieved September 20, 2010.

Washington Post. (December 20, 2004). Lebanese Wary of a Rising Hezbollah.

Retrieved September 20, 2010.

Illustrations:

Figure 1. Hamas Flag- Wikipedia: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/

b/b3/Flag_of_Hamas.svg. Retreived September 20, 2010.

Figure 2: Hamas Logo- GlobalSecurity.org. Retreived September 20, 2010.

Figure 3: Map of West Bank and Palestine- http://www.ccmep.org/delegations/

maps/palestine.html#2. Retreived September 20, 2010.

Figure 4. Flag of Hezbollah: Wikipedia- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Flag_of_

Hezbollah.svg. Retreived September 20, 2010.

Figure 5. Map of Hezbollah Territory: GlobalSecurity.org. Retreived September 20,

2010.

Figure 6. Photo of Al Qaeda primary leader Bin Laden : Agence France-Presse.

Retreived September 20, 2010.

Figure 7. Flag of Al Qaeda Iraq- Wikipedia: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/

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HAMAS, HEZBOLLAH, AND AL QAEDA THREAT

commons/3/35/Flag_of_al-Qaeda_in_Iraq.svg. Retreived September 20, 2010.

Figure 8. Al Qaeda Map of the World- http://www.towncalleddobson.com/?p=786.

Retreived September 20, 2010.

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