Financial shortages and a struggle for survival: Hezbollah weighs rearmament against support for its popular base
Israeli assessments suggest Hezbollah has entered a critical phase, facing a particularly difficult balancing act as its finances deteriorate. Domestic resources are dwindling, while external funding channels have been cut off, particularly those from Iran, which is itself facing a crippling US economic blockade.
A report by Israel’s Alma Research and Education Center examines the organisation’s current position. It says Hezbollah is conducting a broad influence campaign intended to establish a central narrative blaming the state and government for failing to meet the social and economic needs of those affected by Israel’s war.
At the same time, according to the report, Hezbollah portrays itself as supporting displaced Lebanese residents, providing housing and living assistance, and demonstrating progress on reconstruction.
The report notes, however, that no precise estimates are available of the assistance actually being provided, either in terms of the amount each eligible recipient receives or the number of beneficiaries who will ultimately obtain payments.
Amid Hezbollah’s financial difficulties, particularly the significant obstacles to transferring funds to the organisation in Lebanon, two competing priorities have emerged. According to the report, Hezbollah is clearly prioritising resources for rebuilding its military capabilities over financial assistance to its popular support base.
Nevertheless, the organisation also has a clear interest in restoring its position as a direct source of funding for that constituency.
The Alma centre argues that Hezbollah is seeking to reconcile these priorities by providing limited financial assistance while surrounding it with an extensive publicity and influence campaign. The scale of that campaign does not necessarily reflect the amount of money actually distributed, which the centre assesses as “limited”.
The report notes that on 4 November, Hezbollah announced the first phase of its “Promise and Commitment” campaign in the “Jabal Amel I” area, south of the Litani River.
Salman Harb, the area’s media official, said specialised committees had assessed damage and classified those eligible for assistance covering household contents and alternative accommodation.
According to the report, four centres were announced for distributing payment vouchers: Selaa for the Bint Jbeil sector, Qana for the Qana sector, Abbassiyeh for the coastal sector, and Maaroub for the Al-Hujeir sector.
Harb said the campaign covered tens of thousands of housing units and accused the authorities of neglecting those affected.
The report adds that this announcement followed the programme’s launch in other sectors. On 2 November, reports citing a Hezbollah statement indicated that payment vouchers were being distributed in the Nabatieh sector, within the “Jabal Amel II” area. Operations had also expanded to include a centre in the town of Sharqiyeh.
Hezbollah had begun implementing the programme in Beirut, its southern suburbs and the Mount Lebanon region on 26 October.
The report explains that Hezbollah presented the campaign in its statement as an expression of its commitment to owners of damaged homes and to those who had borne the costs of “supporting the resistance”, as the organisation put it.
