Ronen Bergman
Hezbollah’s cells in Venezuela are part of the organization’s apparatus dedicated to attacks overseas. It is also known as the “Special Operations Command.”
For years, this apparatus operated overseas under Imad Mugniyah’s command. Today, the apparatus is headed by the man who served as Mugniyah’s deputy, Talal Hamiyeh.
Based on in-depth research performed by Israeli and American intelligence arms, the cell that carried out the attacks in Argentina was one of dozens of sleeper cells deployed by Hizbullah and the al-Quds force of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards worldwide, including in the United States and Europe.
Some of these cells were deployed in South America, where large communities of Lebanese Shiites, some of whom support Hezbollah, can be found. Many of them live in towns that serve as focal points of the drug and arms trade.
In Venezuela, Hezbollah cells are mostly found in the centers of the oil industry, which brings in workers from the Middle East.
