Hezbollah sets red line for US-Iran war

Tens of millions of dollars in new cash from Tehran are flowing into Hezbollah as the group prepares for a potential return to war. Lebanese security sources say this latest infusion follows an earlier transfer of roughly $200 million from Iran. The funds are being used to buy explosives and manufacture drones designed to fly into the security zone along the Israeli border.

The rebuilding effort began after a pause in hostilities that started in June. Two Lebanese security sources told Reuters that Hezbollah has spent at least three months restoring its command and control structures, which collapsed during key battles earlier this year. Although the group's media office denied that its systems had broken down, three other security officials familiar with the operations confirmed the restoration work is underway.

The group is also repositioning its forces. KAN news reported last month that Hezbollah operatives have maintained a presence in pilot zones in southern Lebanon. They are gathering intelligence and recuperating their fighting ability while waiting for the next phase of the conflict.

A senior Lebanese official outlined the specific condition under which Hezbollah would join a renewed fight between the United States and Iran. The group will only engage if the survival of the Iranian regime is at stake. That threshold was crossed in February, when Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in a joint US-Israeli strike on February 28.

The official noted that this dynamic was known to Washington before the war escalated. "We knew earlier this year, when the war in the region first broke out, that Hezbollah would join the fighting if [late Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali] Khamenei were killed," the anonymous source said. "We even informed the Americans about it."

Diplomatic moves are also shaping the backdrop for this buildup. President Donald Trump reportedly pledged to secure a full Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon if Beirut joins the Abraham Accords. A senior Gulf diplomatic source told the Lebanese newspaper Ad-Diyar that these are official commitments, though the White House has not publicly confirmed the deal. The report did not specify when the promises were made or set a timetable for implementation.

Israeli officials pushed back against the withdrawal idea. Senior leaders insisted that Israel would not pull its forces out before Hezbollah was disarmed. In Washington, a State Department spokesman said the US would continue to squeeze Hezbollah's finances through sanctions. A Treasury spokesperson added that Iran is running out of ways to move money.