Hezbollah

Ostensibly, this is yet another book about the Hizballah organization, joining the long list of already-published works.1 These works began to appear several decades ago when the organization's star began to rise, and it became a major actor in Lebanon and in the Middle East as a whole. However, as the author states, the goal of this book is not merely to tell the story of the organization's rise to prominence as a kind of update or addition to the many existing studies. Rather, it proposes to offer a unique perspective that seeks to provide a key to understanding the secret of how Hizballah succeeded in transforming itself from an armed and violent underground group in the early 1980s into a major political and social, as well as military, actor in Lebanon and the surrounding region.The answer to this question could shed light not only on the organization's past, but also on its future, as well as that of the Lebanese state in which it operates. There are those who argue that the organization's aim is to turn Lebanon into an Islamic republic closely linked to the Islamic Republic of Iran. This view is countered by the leaders of Hizballah and others who assert that it is a genuinely Lebanese organization, fully integrated into the social fabric of the country. As the author, Adham Saouli, points out, the former group views Hizballah's political conduct as a mask to conceal its real motives and long-range aims, while the latter group claims that the organization's behavior reflects what it really is.This is the mystery of the Hizballah organization that Saouli's study seeks to solve. He sets out to do so by analyzing the path the organization has followed, using the theoretical tools provided by the discipline of sociology, in particular the prism of the organization's “socialization process.” This term refers to the ongoing social and cultural experience that bestows upon an individual (or group, organization, or state) patterns, rules, and cultural values that come into play in the society, as well as in the geographical and political environment in which the subject lives (or exists). In the case of an individual, the socialization process is a basic and even critical process in the shaping of his or her personality, emotional conduct, and patterns of thought as a member of society. For the purposes of his study, Saouli argues that the same can be said for the Hizballah organization as a member of and an actor in Lebanese society, as well as in the Arab, Shiʿi, and Muslim worlds, and the Middle East as a whole (of which Israel is also a member).In this connection, the author explains: My overarching aim is to present a historical sociology of Hezbollah that traces the movement's socialization process from its early days up until 2017. This is, however, not a history of the movement. The purpose of this process-tracing ... is to examine the origins of Hezbollah, the causes of its socialization process and the effects this process had on Hezbollah's political goals, its social image and ethical foundations. (8) According to Saouli, the socialization process is what made the organization what it is, and it is by way of this concept that we must understand the path taken by the organization. From the beginning, it contained the seeds of the crises and the obstacles facing the organization throughout its evolution. As the author explains: I conceptualize Hezbollah as an armed political movement.... I argue that war-making with Israel—not the ideal of establishing an Islamic state—has motivated Hezbollah socialization process.... Religio-political doctrine and war-making with Israel have also shaped Hezbollah's perception of and socialization in the international sphere. (8–9) The author returns to this conclusion in his final chapter: Hezbollah, this book has found, is in many ways a product of war-making: it makes war, and war makes it what it is and what it will become. War-making with a powerful state, Israel, has shaped Hezbollah's socialization process, in both Lebanon and the region, transforming it into one of the most vigilant, disciplined, politically sophisticated and militarily powerful organizations in the world. Rivalry with Israel has transformed Hezbollah into a state-like organization, albeit one that cannot gain recognition due to its location in another recognized state—Lebanon. To understand Hezbollah's war-making with Israel, one can tweak Imam ʿAli's saying (which many Muslims reiterate) on friendship “Tell me who you befriend, I tell you who you are” into “Tell me who you fight, I tell you who you are.” (207) Nevertheless, it is important to emphasize that Saouli notes quite correctly that Hizballah's religious doctrine is not just a tool intended for serving its ends and interests, nor is it merely the fruit of the socialization process the organization has undergone. As the author states: But I have also found that understanding Hezbollah, its identity and goals requires a closer look at the movement's religio-political doctrine: the set of beliefs that make and motivate Hezbollah. These I argued are not only instruments that Hezbollah utilizes, they are at the heart of Hezbollah's being. (207)Hezbollah: Socialisation and its Tragic Ironies includes the following chapters: “Introduction: Mask or Mirror,” which explains the dilemmas Hizballah poses for observers seeking to understand the path it has taken; “On Socialisation and Its Discontents,” a theoretical discussion of the concept “socialization”; “Being Hezbollah,” a description of the path the organization has taken, beginning with its first appearance in Lebanon in the 1980s; “Hezbollah Makes War, War Makes Hezbollah,” a description of Hizballah's struggle for survival against its enemies at home, but mainly against Israel, which reached a peak with the Israeli withdrawal from south Lebanon in May 2000 and another peak with the Second Lebanon War in the summer 2006; “War-Making as International Socialisation,” a chapter that deals with the organization's struggle to acquire social and political status in the Lebanese, Arab, and international arenas; and last, “Tragic Ironies,” which shows how the developments described in the previous chapter led inevitably to Hizballah's becoming a militant power in Lebanon's political struggles domestically and the Arab world's struggles internationally.The events addressed in the chapter, “Tragic Ironies,” began with the crisis of May 2008, during which Hizballah warriors turned their weapons against their Lebanese brethren and took control of West Beirut by force. Later, during the 2010s, Hezbollah became involved in the war in Syria. It joined forces with Shiʿi Iran in support of Bashar al-Asad's regime and against the Syrian rebels, who were mostly Sunni Muslim. Hezbollah also gave its support to the Shiʿi Muslim groups that benefitted from Iranian backing in their struggles in Iraq, Yemen, and even the Gulf States.It may be said in this context that Hizballah's involvement in the conflicts in Lebanon and abroad clearly testified to its strength as an organization. At the same time, however, its image was eroded. That is, the organization paid a significant price for its successes, as the title of Saouli's book, Hezbollah: Socialisation and its Tragic Ironies, implies. The path taken by the organization not only brought it to the top, but also, ironically, presented serious obstacles. That is, a tragic barrier or gap was created between the organization and its goals, especially in the realm of its relations with the other religious communities in Lebanon and the Arab world in general, especially the Sunnis. Saouli states in this connection: Purposeful socialization has consequences, both intended and unintended. Hezbollah's socialization illustrates the limits political actors have over the world they want to inhabit. Socializing in anarchical orders reveals Hezbollah's limited control over how rivals will interpret its actions or how they will reconstruct its identity to suit their interests. Socialization also reveals that the orders that enabled Hezbollah's rise also entrap the movement in strategic dilemmas that generate ethical and political tensions. In chapter 5, Tragic Ironies, I identify three interrelated discontents that Hezbollah's socialization has generated: security paradoxes, conformity and ethical dilemmas. (35) The author returns to these ideas when he draws his conclusions toward the end of the book: But I also suggested that socialization, despite an actor's best intentions, leads to unintended outcomes that shape and affect the participants' worldviews, reputation and political behavior. For a movement that once (wrongly) believed that it was “above politics”—religiously committed and too focused on war-making with Israel to be embroiled in petty and corrupt politics—Hezbollah's socialization in Lebanon and the region must have formed a shock to the party's understanding of itself and its mission. It is ironic for Hezbollah, which believed in Islamic unity, to have entered into a bloody conflict with its Shiʿa brothers in Amal, then Syria, with which it shared political goals, and then Lebanese rivals against whom it promised not to raise arms. But Hezbollah was seeking survival and attempting to realize its goals within orders not of its own choosing, and ones that have brought it to the heart of Lebanese politics, both shaping and being shaped by them. (208) Regarding his book's possible contribution to the field of sociology, Adham Saouli states: Finally, what are the main theoretical and scholarly implications of this study? This study has drawn on the rich intellectual tradition of historical sociology (HS). HS locates actors (such as Hezbollah) within their context. It attempts to understand the genesis of actors, their motivations and the constraints and opportunities they face as they try to realize their goals. It takes history seriously so to show how actors socializes over time in contexts not of their own choosing. This socialization places actors in relation to others, events and goals. It reveals both the intended goals of actors and the unintended outcomes that they may generate. (214) Be that as it may, Hezbollah: Socialisation and Its Tragic Ironies does not look to the future or offer any suggestions or forecasts about it. Still, the book does contain some interesting insights into the options now facing Hizballah and its limited choices, given the Gordian knot binding the organization to Iran. As the author points out, “Having secured, for the medium to long term, a strong position in Lebanon, Hezbollah will continue to use it as a springboard to advance its and Iran's strategy in the region” (212). However, from here on out, what happens will depend upon what Iran and Shiʿi communities of Lebanon and the surrounding countries do.In conclusion, this is an important and interesting book that should be read by anyone wanting to understand the Hizballah phenomenon. The reader will find keys to understanding the path the organization has taken, its worldview, its behavior, and the sources of its success in recent decades, as well as the difficulties and challenges confronting it at present

Islam · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Social organization · Social science · Sociology · History · Islamic Studies and History · Law · Middle East Politics and Society · Terrorism, Counterterrorism, and Political Violence

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