By Laurence F. Sanford

China, in its unrestricted warfare against the United States, is following the ancient Indian proverb, “The enemy of my enemy is my friend.” Islamic jihadist organizations, such as Iran, Hamas, and Hezbollah, that are enemies of the United States and Western Civilization are, therefore, friends of China.

Hezbollah (Party of God) is a Shiite Muslim political party and militant terror group based in Lebanon. Hezbollah controls southern Lebanon, which borders northern Israel. Hezbollah is armed with over 130,000 Iranian rockets and other military equipment, which are buried in a vast network of tunnels built in Hezbollah-controlled territory, similar to tunnels built in Gaza by Hamas.

Founded in 1982 by Shiite clerics during the 15-year Lebanese Civil War, Hezbollah was and is backed by Shia Iran to fight Zionist occupation for the purpose of driving Israel from existence. “From the river to the sea” is a favorite refrain, meaning Arabs will solely occupy present-day Israel, and the Jews are no more.

Over the years, Hezbollah evolved from being a shadowy paramilitary group to playing a leading role in Lebanon’s politics. In 1992, eight Hezbollah members were elected to Lebanon’s parliament. By 2022, it held 13 seats. The group’s grasp on Lebanon extends to a shadow economy it controls and social service entities it dominates.

Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah’s secretary-general, spoke on November 3, 2023, for the first time since the October 7 Hamas terror attacks that killed, raped, and tortured 1,400 Jews in southern Israel. Nasrallah said he didn’t plan on waging a wide-scale attack on Israel at this time but that more actions from different fronts would be taken in the coming days. Hezbollah and Israel have been engaging in tit-for-tat exchanges of fire across Israel’s northern border.

Not only is Hezbollah a proxy for Iran, but U.S. officials report that Russia’s Wagner Group is planning to provide Hezbollah with the Russian SA-22 antiaircraft missile and gun system to intercept aircraft. The U.S. has stationed two aircraft carriers off the coast of Lebanon and Israel to hopefully forestall any major Hezbollah attack on Israel.

The SA-22 system is already in place in Syria and would be transferred to Hezbollah if President Assad of Syria concurs. Assad is an ally of Russia’s Vladimir Putin. Hezbollah fighters and Wagner mercenaries have fought in Syria to support Assad against dissidents.

As Iran has increased its military support to Russia in the Ukraine war with drones and other equipment, Russia has increased its collaboration with Iran in supplying sophisticated military technology. Iran also supplies Hezbollah with money and arms.

Hezbollah is just one of many Islamic terror groups intent on waging jihad on the United States and Western Civilization. “Jihad” in Arabic means “struggle” with multiple meanings. One meaning is in reference to inner struggle, but in the larger and more common sense, it refers to armed struggle against the infidel. Islam, in history, was spread by the sword.

Jews have always been a target for jihadists, as Islam’s Quran and Hadiths specifically write, “Oh Muslim, oh servant of Allah, there is a Jew hiding behind me — come and kill him.” There are other anti-Jewish sayings in Islamic writings and traditions.

Hezbollah is also active in Latin America in its jihad against Jews and American Civilization. Hezbollah, in coordination with Iran, has built a global network that engages in illicit financial and terrorist activities. Venezuela is considered a forward operating base for Iran and Hezbollah, as it has the approval of the Maduro government to conduct drug and political subversion in neighboring countries. China and Russia are also active in Venezuela.

The tri-border area (TBA) of Paraguay, Argentina, and Brazil is a money-laundering environment that generates an average of $12 billion a year for Hezbollah, Hamas, and al Qaeda. With a large Arab population, TBA’s illicit activities include money laundering, drugs, counterfeiting, and funding of terrorist organizations.

In 1992, Hezbollah bombed Israel’s embassy in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and two years later blew up a Jewish cultural center, resulting in the deaths of 85 people and wounding more than 200. In 1997, the United States declared Hezbollah a terrorist organization.

Summary

China is endorsing the Hamas/Hezbollah propaganda that the Israelis are occupiers, that Israel should return to the pre-1967 war borders, and that Israel should cease fire and not continue fighting in Gaza to remove Hamas. Israel’s name is now omitted on digital maps by Chinese tech giants Alibaba and Baidu, although the maps show the borders. Muslim nations have oil and gas to sell to China, but Israel does not. Islam has 1.9 billion followers; Judaism has 14 million followers.

Islamic jihadist organizations are waging a religious war against infidels. This war is taking place against infidels in Western Civilization, Indian Civilization, and African nations.

Israel is an outpost of democracy and Western Civilization in Muslim West Asia (Middle East). Iran and its proxy Hezbollah call for “Death to America” and “Death to Israel” not as a slogan but as a policy. America is the “Great Satan” and Israel is the “Little Satan.”

Action

Words matter, but actions speak louder. If a country doesn’t carry a big stick, then its words do not matter. The United States should:

• Recognize that China is the head of the serpent out to kill America.
• Recognize that Islamic jihadists are mutual friends of China.
• Revitalize our economy so that America has the industrial capacity to strengthen our military.
• Rid the military of woke and DIE Marxist racist ideologies.
• Terminate all funding to organizations, including the UN, that support Palestinian causes.
• Enforce U.S. immigration policies and deport anarchists.
• Not admit Palestinian refugees.
• Ban TikTok, which is Chinese digital fentanyl to American culture.

Laurence F. Sanford is a senior analyst at the American Security Council Foundation.