In response to strikes from the United States and Israel over the weekend, Iran has targeted US military bases in several West Asian nations, widening the spread of the war.Israel, on the other hand, has turned to Lebanon, its northern neighbour. On Monday (March 3), the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) stated that its troops were “operating in southern Lebanon” to target the militant organisation Hezbollah, which also holds representation in Lebanon’s government. A few strikes have also been reported in capital Beirut.For its part, Hezbollah has launched missiles “in response to the criminal Israeli aggression that targeted dozens of Lebanese cities,” according to a statement, as cited by CNN. The group stated that it was aiming for radar sites and control rooms at an Israeli airbase, even as the Lebanese government said it was banning Hezbollah’s military activities.The conflict between Hezbollah and Israel is not new, with Hezbollah once pushing the militarily stronger Israel out of Lebanese territory. The think tank Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) has called it as “The world’s most heavily armed non-state actor, with a large and diverse stockpile of unguided artillery rockets, as well as ballistic, antiair, antitank, and antiship missiles.”In the aftermath of Hamas’s October 7 attacks, Israel targeted Hezbollah’s top leadership. Here is what to know about their history and the renewed fighting.Nakba, Cold War as fertile groundThe establishment of the state of Israel in 1948 was accompanied by the violent displacement of more than 750,000 Palestinian Arabs in the event known as the Nakba, or catastrophe. Many displaced people fled to the north, towards Lebanon. Lebanon and Israel on a map of West Asia. (UN)Lebanon had a large Christian population (estimated to be more than 40% of the total at present), and conflicts between the Palestinians and Christian militias were fuelled by Soviet support for the Arabs and US backing for the Christian coalition.Story continues below this adIn the 1960s and 70s, militants affiliated with the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) began to build a base in southern Lebanon as a launchpad for attacks on Israeli towns.In 1978, in response to a massacre of Israelis near Tel Aviv by Palestinian militants based in Lebanon, Israel invaded south Lebanon. In a short war, Israeli forces pushed the PLO back from south Lebanon, creating a buffer north of Israel. But the attacks from Lebanon continued, and four years later, Israel mounted another invasion, intending this time to drive the PLO out of Lebanon altogether. The IDF, along with its Lebanese Christian allies, laid siege to Beirut, forcing the evacuation of PLO leaders.Also Read | The story of Hassan Nasrallah, leader of Hezbollah for three decadesBy 1985, Israel had withdrawn from most of Lebanon but maintained a 15 to 20 km-wide security zone in south Lebanon to prevent cross-border attacks. This area was patrolled by the South Lebanon Army (SLA), a Christian militia allied with Israel. However, this occupation became a lengthy entanglement that fuelled resistance from various groups and created conditions that led to the rise of Hezbollah.Hezbollah, the “Party of God”, was formed in the early 1980s in response to the Israeli occupation of Lebanon. It received support from Ayatollah Khomeini’s regime (not to be confused with Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in the recent US-Israeli attacks). Iran saw this as an opportunity to export the ideals of the Islamic revolution and challenge Israel’s dominance.Story continues below this adThe group’s initial goal was to resist Israeli occupation, but as it strengthened, its objectives expanded to establishing a theocratic state in Lebanon, similar to the one in Iran following the Islamic Revolution of 1979. It also aimed to oppose Western influence in the region, wrote Augustus Richard Norton in Hezbollah: A Short History (2007).In 1996, a 17-day campaign by the IDF, codenamed “Operation Grapes of Wrath”, became a key moment in the Israel-Hezbollah war. Israel advanced militarily, but the campaign resulted in major civilian casualties, fuelling support for Hezbollah.In his paper ‘Hezbollah and the Arab Spring’ (Contemporary Review of the Middle East, 2014), political scientist Joseph Alagha wrote that Hezbollah’s ability to deliver social services such as healthcare and education won it substantial support among Lebanon’s marginalised Shiite population, particularly in the south.Researcher Daniel Byman noted that Hezbollah’s use of civilian areas for military operations made it difficult for Israel to retaliate without collateral damage. (A High Price: The Triumphs and Failures of Israeli Counterterrorism, 2011)Later conflict and the concerns nowStory continues below this adBy the late 1990s, Israel’s presence in south Lebanon had become unsustainable. The Israeli public had grown weary of its costs. Hezbollah, meanwhile, carried on a war of attrition. Its forces thus unilaterally withdrew in 2000.In 2006, Hezbollah killed three Israeli soldiers and abducted two others, demanding that Israel return Lebanese prisoners in exchange. After Israel launched an attack, around 1,200 Lebanese and 159 Israelis were killed. The high human cost and the fact that Hezbollah could not be eliminated drew criticism within Israel.Explained | In exploding pagers in Lebanon, how supply chain tampering has emerged as prime suspectThe government-appointed Winograd Commission said that the government did not consider options for de-escalation, and some of its goals for the military offensive were unclear.Over time, the Israel-Hezbollah conflict has shaped West Asia in multiple ways. Hezbollah, the crown jewel of Iran’s overseas military operations, has developed significant military capability and has become, in the words of Norton, “the spearhead of resistance against Israel”.Story continues below this adIts success has inspired other militant groups. In Hezbollah: The Global Footprint of Lebanon’s Party of God (2013), Matthew Levitt described how its tactics, particularly its guerrilla warfare and rocket attacks, were adopted by Palestinian groups and other Iran-backed militias. The group also carried out suicide bombings.Subsequently, many Western governments characterised it as a terrorist organisation, as did the Gulf Cooperation Council, which includes six West Asian countries: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE.Fast forward to October 7. Seeing Iran-backed groups like Hezbollah and Hamas as threats to its security, Israel launched attacks on Lebanon soon after. Hezbollah also said it would target Israel to avenge the killings in Gaza.Since then, Israel has successfully targeted senior members of the Hezbollah leadership, including the chief, Hassan Nasrallah. In 2024, Israel set up pagers used by Hezbollah members to explode, leading to around 40 deaths and over 3,000 injuries. In September that year, Israel invaded south Lebanon again, but a ceasefire was signed in November. Israel has since occupied five positions in southern Lebanon.Story continues below this adDespite its weakening, Hezbollah’s dominant position in Lebanon comes from a relatively weak Lebanese state, and a formidable arsenal built up over the years. Reuters has reported that at least 30,000 displaced people have sought protection in shelters in Lebanon since Monday, as another threat to relative peace is looming once more.