Summary
Owen Bennett Jones looks at the Shia movement Hezbollah which has a big following in Lebanon but is regarded by some in the West as a terrorist organisation. It has a militia with more weapons than many European armies and wants Islamic rule but is in government with Christian allies. The British government draws a distinction between Hezbollah's military and political wings whereas the Americans do not. The French government would like to see Hezbollah disarm but do not regard them as terrorists. How the West sees the organisation and how it sees itself is central to stability in the Middle East but what exactly is Hezbollah and is it heading for another war with Israel?
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Just before this BBC podcast gets underway, here's something you may not know. |
| 0:04.7 | My name's Linda Davies and I Commission Podcasts for BBC Sounds. |
| 0:08.5 | As you'd expect, at the BBC we make podcasts of the very highest quality featuring the most knowledgeable experts and genuinely engaging voices. |
| 0:18.0 | What you may not know is that the BBC makes podcasts about all kinds of things like pop stars, |
| 0:24.6 | poltergeist, cricket, and conspiracy theories and that's just a few examples. |
| 0:29.7 | If you'd like to discover something a little bit unexpected, find your next podcast over at BBC |
| 0:35.4 | Sounds. |
| 0:36.4 | Thank you for listening to this podcast of Analysis. |
| 0:39.8 | In this edition, Owen Bennett Jones asks what exactly is the Lebanese southern Beirut, Lebanon. They're sitting on some plastic chairs, |
| 1:09.0 | they're sitting on some plastic chairs listening to some stout, |
| 1:12.0 | middle-aged bearded men belt out their repertoire. |
| 1:20.0 | The choir looks like any other but they're singing for Hezbollah an organization |
| 1:28.0 | which for years has fought Israel. |
| 1:37.0 | Bombs flying during the war in Lebanon between Hezbollah and Israel in 2006, they fought for 34 days. Over a thousand people were killed, most of |
| 1:46.2 | them Lebanese. I've been reporting from Beirut for the BBC over the last nine |
| 1:51.0 | months and I'm struck by just how many people here are |
| 1:54.0 | expecting another much bigger confrontation. Why do they think that? And are they |
| 1:59.6 | right? Whilst much is known about Israel, Hezbollah is more difficult to classify. |
| 2:05.0 | It's a militia with more weapons than many European armies. |
| 2:09.0 | It wants Islamic rule, but is in government with Christian allies. |
| 2:14.0 | Depending how you look at it, it's a resistance movement or a terrorist group. |
| 2:19.0 | In US law, it's a terrorist organization. |
... |
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