Lebanese Hezbollah goes to great lengths to publicize its overt, social, and political activities and to conceal its covert terrorist, militant, and criminal pursuits. In the words of one operative, Hezbollah's "Golden Rule" is this: The Less You Know, the Better.
In this podcast, terrorism scholar Matthew Levitt sets out to break this rule by shining a bright spotlight on Hezbollah's global terrorist and criminal activities. Levitt has been following Lebanese Hezbollah for almost three decades in and out of government. He's written books, given expert testimony, and literally mapped Hezbollah's worldwide illicit activities in an online interactive map and timeline. (https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/hezbollahinteractivemap)
Listen as Levitt tracks Hezbollah's evolution over the years and its operations across the globe from Lebanon to Kuwait, across Europe and Asia, then on to the Western Hemisphere from Buenos Aires to New York. Along the way, he'll speak with law enforcement officers, intelligence agents, government officials, and world-class experts from around the globe, each of whom has first-person experience confronting Hezbollah and uncovering things the group would much prefer nobody ever heard about.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Lebanese Hezbollah goes to great lengths to publicize its overt, social, and political activities and to conceal its covert terrorist, militant, and criminal pursuits. In the words of one operative, Hezbollah's "Golden Rule" is this: The Less You Know, the Better.
In this podcast, terrorism scholar Matthew Levitt sets out to break this rule by shining a bright spotlight on Hezbollah's global terrorist and criminal activities. Levitt has been following Lebanese Hezbollah for almost three decades in and out of government. He's written books, given expert testimony, and literally mapped Hezbollah's worldwide illicit activities in an online interactive map and timeline. (https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/hezbollahinteractivemap)
Listen as Levitt tracks Hezbollah's evolution over the years and its operations across the globe from Lebanon to Kuwait, across Europe and Asia, then on to the Western Hemisphere from Buenos Aires to New York. Along the way, he'll speak with law enforcement officers, intelligence agents, government officials, and world-class experts from around the globe, each of whom has first-person experience confronting Hezbollah and uncovering things the group would much prefer nobody ever heard about.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In Charlotte, North Carolina, a gang of Hezbollah criminals smuggled cigarettes across state lines to raise funds. But on Thursday nights, they gathered and watched Hezbollah martyrdom videos. When the FBI began to surveil the group, agents saw the men conducting firearms training and feared they could “go operational” at any time. The ensuing investigation, dubbed Operation Smokescreen, exposed the inner workings of a Hezbollah network in the American heartland.
Guests:
Robert Clifford, former FBI special agent
Frederick Fife, former FBI special agent and current major in the New Jersey State Police
Breaking Hezbollah’s Golden Rule is hosted Dr. Matthew Levitt from the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
It is produced by Anouk Millet from Earshot Strategies, and written by Dr. Levitt and Lauren Fredericks, a Washington Institute research assistant.
Explore my map and timeline of Hezbollah’s Worldwide activities.
For a full transcript of the episode, a list of sources, recommended reading, and information on our guests, visit our website.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
