The myth of Hezbollah has been shattered

I was born and raised in Lebanon. Like many of my generation, I lived through the horrors of the Lebanese Civil War. I witnessed firsthand the devastation, displacement and societal fractures that tore through the country.

It was in the 1980s, in the midst of this turmoil, that Hezbollah emerged — a group that promised to resist Israeli occupation and liberate Lebanon. For many, Hezbollah became a symbol of resistance, a beacon of strength for a war-weary and marginalized population, particularly within the Shia community. I saw it rise, slowly gaining power and embedding itself in Lebanon’s political, military and social fabric.

But after nearly four decades of its existence and two decades of its total dominance of the country, it is clear that Hezbollah’s power is built on a foundation of false morality and what can only be described as miserable impotence in the face of Israel.

For all of its rhetoric about protecting Lebanon from Israeli aggression, Hezbollah’s actions in recent years have done more to destabilize the country than to safeguard it. And now, with Israel’s recent infiltration and systematic dismantling of Hezbollah’s military apparatus, the cracks in its image are more visible than ever.

Over the last few days, Israel has executed a series of devastating strikes that have exposed the fragility of Hezbollah’s once-feared military machine. From exploding pagers and walkie talkies to targeted airstrikes that have decimated Hezbollah’s command council, the group’s forces have been shattered.

After months of relentless attrition — hundreds of fighters killed, thousands of airstrikes launched — it is clear that Hezbollah’s military might is not what it once claimed. This is not merely a setback; it is the unraveling of the myth that Hezbollah is a true threat to Israel or Lebanon’s ultimate protector.

Hezbollah has long cloaked itself in a narrative of superiority, claiming that its military presence outside of Lebanese governmental authority — as a resistance force — is justified in the name of defending Lebanon. Yet what we are seeing now is the exposure of its miserable impotence. Despite its bravado, Hezbollah could not shield itself from the very adversary it vowed to resist. How can it claim to protect Lebanon when its own ranks are in such disarray, and its leadership is being methodically dismantled?

This failure is not just military; it is moral. For decades, Hezbollah has justified its stranglehold on Lebanon by arguing that it alone could defend the country, using this narrative to justify its heavy involvement in Lebanese politics, its militarization of the state, and its regional interventions, all of which have brought nothing but suffering to Lebanon.

But when faced with a direct and sustained challenge, Hezbollah has failed to fulfill the role it specifically claimed to hold sacred.

The Lebanese people deserve better than this false morality — this promise of protection that has always been conditional, always at the expense of Lebanon’s sovereignty and peace. Hezbollah is, in reality, a militia serving its own agenda and that of its foreign backer, Iran, rather than a force dedicated to the well-being of Lebanon. Its failure to shield itself from Israel’s attacks underscores a deeper truth: Hezbollah’s vision for Lebanon is one that keeps the country locked in a perpetual state of war, instability and fear.

Now, as Hezbollah scrambles to salvage what remains of its structure, the Lebanese must ask themselves whether this is genuinely the future they want for the country. For too long, Hezbollah has monopolized the narrative of resistance, using it to justify endless confrontations and the destructive militarization of Lebanese society. But the myth of Hezbollah’s invincibility has now been shattered. The group’s inability to protect even itself exposes the lie at the heart of its promises.

Lebanon is at a crossroads. Hezbollah’s impotence in the face of Israeli aggression reveals not only its military vulnerability but its moral bankruptcy. The Lebanese people can no longer afford to be held hostage by a group whose interests lie not in peace or prosperity but in the perpetuation of conflict.

As Hezbollah’s facade crumbles, Lebanon must seize the opportunity to reclaim its sovereignty and build a future free from the shadow of a militia that has brought more destruction than defense.

The time has come for a new narrative — one that prioritizes the well-being of the Lebanese people over the ambitions of a group that has failed to live up to its promises.

Hezbollah’s myth of invincibility is dead. Now, it is up to the Lebanese people in general, and the Shia community in particular, to chart a new course for the country that embraces peace, sovereignty and authentic moral leadership.

David Ramadan, Ed.D. is a Lebanese-American who was elected and served in the Virginia House of Delegates. He is a professor of practice at the Schar School at George Mason University and a scholar at the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia.