The day following the capture of notorious narco-terrorist and ex-Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro by elite U.S. forces in Caracas, Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared that Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed Lebanese terrorist group, would cease its operations in Venezuela.
Hezbollah, supported by the Iranian regime, is infamous for orchestrating the 1983 bombings in Beirut: the U.S. embassy attack that claimed 63 lives, and the Marine barracks bombing which resulted in the deaths of 241 U.S. military personnel.
During an appearance on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” Rubio stated, “It’s straightforward. In the 21st century, under the Trump administration, we will not tolerate a nation like Venezuela in our hemisphere becoming a hub for Hezbollah, Iran, and other malign influences. This will not be allowed.” On NBC’s “Meet the Press,” he reiterated that for Venezuela, this means, “No more presence of Iran or Hezbollah there.”
Members of Hezbollah salute and wave the group’s flags at a funeral for comrades killed in an Israeli strike in southern Lebanon on April 17, 2024. (AFP via Getty Images)
Walid Phares, a seasoned advisor to U.S. presidential candidates and a Hezbollah expert, shared with Fox News Digital that “Hezbollah has maintained a long-standing presence in Venezuela, posing a significant security threat in Latin America, especially post the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. Hezbollah’s foothold in Venezuela began in the mid-1980s, drawing recruits from the local Lebanese diaspora.”
He explained that Hezbollah’s influence expanded significantly after the late Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez solidified his power in 2002. “During this era, Hezbollah’s visibility increased, with some members reportedly gaining entry into Venezuelan state institutions, including security agencies, often by acquiring Venezuelan passports and legal documentation. This development enabled Hezbollah-linked networks to proliferate throughout Latin America, reaching countries such as Brazil, Argentina, and Chile, and allegedly extending to the U.S.–Mexico border.”
Phares said, “Hezbollah is believed to maintain a substantial presence across Venezuela, including command-and-control elements in Caracas. Margarita Island has been frequently cited in open-source reporting as a logistical hub used for activities ranging from financial operations to intelligence gathering and alleged narcotics trafficking. Additional public reporting has suggested Venezuelan cooperation with Iranian and Hezbollah-linked operations targeting Iranian dissidents abroad, including attempted kidnappings and intimidation campaigns in the Western Hemisphere.”
Trump monitors mission to capture Maduro from a secure location at his Mar-a-Lago estate. CIA Director John Ratcliffe, left, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, right, sit beside him. (Donald J Trump via Truth Social )
The U.S.-designated terrorist organization Hezbollah lashed out at the U.S. after it captured Maduro. Hezbollah said it “condemns the terrorist aggression and American thuggery against the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela” and “further affirms its full solidarity with Venezuela — its people, presidency and government — in confronting this American aggression and arrogance.”
The thorny challenge of how to purge the Venezuelan state and society of embedded Hezbollah operatives was addressed by Phares. He said, “One option would be to rely on a post-Maduro transitional authority that has pledged to dismantle terrorist networks. In practice, however, it is likely that U.S. intelligence and counterterrorism agencies would play a leading role in identifying and disrupting pro-Iranian networks operating within Venezuelan territory.”
Matthew Levitt, a scholar on Hezbollah from the Washington Institute, told Fox News Digital, “It will all come down to what kind of regime comes next. Trump’s statements leave that wide open. There is, however, an opportunity to address the long-standing Hezbollah presence in Venezuela, and the strategic relationship between Venezuela and Iran more broadly.”
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro (L) meets the Supreme Leader of Iran, Ali Khamenei during his visit in Tehran, Iran on Oct. 22, 2016. (Pool / Supreme Leader Press Office/Anadolu Agency/Getty Image)
Carrie Filipetti, executive director of the Vandenberg Coalition and a deputy assistant secretary of state during Trump’s first administration, told Fox News Digital, “Among the many ways in which the Iranian regime and Maduro regime coordinated until Maduro’s arrest was providing a safe haven for Hezbollah fighters. Hezbollah took advantage of the lack of rule of law in Venezuela and parts of Latin America more generally to engage in money laundering connected to the drug trade. They are also believed to have used connections within the Maduro regime to secure Venezuelan passports for members of Hezbollah.”
“It isn’t a surprise that the plot to kidnap Iranian American journalist Masih Alinejad involved taking her by speedboat to Caracas,” she noted. “Hezbollah and Iran knew, under Maduro, they could operate with impunity there, spread anti-American propaganda and plan anti-American attacks. Whether there are any implications for the Maduro-Hezbollah relationship now that Maduro is gone will depend on whether regime insiders are allowed to remain in power or not.”
