After the recent "beeper attack" and the assassination of senior officials last Friday - including the leadership of the Radwan force - Hezbollah's Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah is facing another severe blow in the form of heavy pressure from field commanders who fear for their lives.
Prof. Amatzya Baram, a Middle East affairs researcher, commented on Nasrallah's situation in an interview with the 'Maariv' website: "The organization's field commanders now know they are a clear target, and that Israel knows too much about what's happening inside the organization."
Baram stated: "The field commanders feel tremendous humiliation from the beeper explosions, the assassinations, and the understanding that they could be next. This situation leads to increasing pressure on Nasrallah to take significant actions against Israel, despite his personal opposition to overall escalation."
Baram clarifies that Nasrallah is in a predicament because "he doesn't want a full-scale war, but the pressures from below, from the field commanders, are only increasing. He added that the numerous pressures and fear of internal rebellion in the organization are pushing Nasrallah to decide to escalate the campaign against Israel, even though he knows he's not prepared for it now, especially after the assassination of 15 of his commanders.
Nasrallah may find himself forced to respond to internal pressures to maintain the support of his commanders. The assassination of 15 senior commanders already makes it difficult for him to continue his hesitant line - and requires him to respond in a very significant way.
This development suggests a growing internal tension within Hezbollah, potentially forcing Nasrallah into a more aggressive stance against Israel despite his reservations.
