Thread by @Levitt_Matt

Ep 5 of ‘Breaking Hezbollah’s Golden Rule’ dropped today. We start by discussing #Hezbollah’s shadow war with the West, foiled attacks in #Cyprus, a bus bombing in #Bulgaria, and LH’s shifting modus operandi
@WashInstitute
A thread ...
washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysi…

2. On Feb 12, 2008, Imad #Mughniyeh was killed in a joint @CIA -Mossad op near Damascus. A bomb was placed in his car’s spare tire. Fearing he would be next, #Hezbollah secretary-general Hassan #Nasrallah warned Israel to expect an “open war”

3. #Hezbollah was desperate to avenge Mughniyeh’s death. The problem was, they weren’t very successful. Operations in Azerbaijan, Egypt, Greece, Turkey, and West Africa were all foiled
washingtoninstitute.org/hezbollahinter…

4. Frustrated Iranian officials determined changes needed to be made. They shifted #Hezbollah ‘s operational focus from high-level hardened targets—embassies & diplomats—to soft targets— Israeli tourists & civilians traveling abroad

5. In 2009, #Hezbollah sent a Swedish-Lebanese dual citizen & well-trained operative, Hossam Yaacoub, to #Cyprus to act as a courier across Europe & conduct surveillance. His dual citizenship gave Hezbollah access to the #EU
washingtoninstitute.org/hezbollahinter…

6. On Yaacoub’s 4th trip to #Cyprus in July 2012, local authorities were waiting for him shortly after his surveillance mission at the #Larnaca airport. Ep 5 guest Carter Burwell & his team were sent to Cyprus to assist with the investigation
washingtoninstitute.org/hezbollahinter…

7. Ep5 guest Carter Burwell is the former Counselor to the Secretary of @USTreasury re Terrorism & Financial Intelligence. Burwell previously served as Asst @USAttorneys in the National Security & International Crimes Unit @TheJusticeDept
debevoise.com/carterburwell?…

8. During his interviews with Cypriot authorities, Yaacoub kept changing his story. Eventually, he admitted to being an active member of #Hezbollah. He had been instructed to record flights coming from #Israel & find restaurants serving kosher food
washingtoninstitute.org/hezbollahinter…

9. Yaacoub surveilled a specific parking lot behind a hospital. Based on this surveillance and his tracking of Jewish restaurants, tourist hotels, & Israeli flights, it looks like authorities thwarted a devastating #Hezbollah attack in #Cyprus
washingtoninstitute.org/hezbollahinter…

10. Ep5 guest Magnus Norell @navahoscout explains why #Hezbollah likely chose #Cyprus as its target. He notes Cyprus is not very far from #Lebanon, it has poor airport & harbor security, & it’s in #Europe. The primary message was to cause fear

11. Podcast guest Magnus Norell @navahoscout is a senior policy advisor at @EFDBrussels and an adjunct scholar @WashInstitute. From 1997-2000, he helped create a back channel between #Hezbollah & #Israel to facilitate the Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon
europeandemocracy.eu/author/dr-magn…

12. Yaacoub was charged in 2013 with participating in an organized crime group & preparing a criminal act & was sentenced to 4 years in prison. But after serving 2.5 years of his sentence, he was granted early release & deported to Sweden
washingtoninstitute.org/hezbollahinter…

13. Just 11 days after Yaacoub’s arrest in 2012, another #Hezbollah operative bombed an Israeli tour bus in the seashore town of Burgas, #Bulgaria. The explosion killed 5 Israelis & the Bulgarian bus driver & wounded 32
washingtoninstitute.org/hezbollahinter…

14. After years of failures, #Hezbollah finally carried out an attack. Yet, the operation didn’t go as planned. Mohammad Hassan El-Husseini, the operative who died in the attack, was not supposed to be a suicide bomber. The bomb was detonated early, in the pod we explain why

15. Authorities determined that Husseini’s co-conspirators were Canadian-Lebanese citizen Hassan al-Hajj Hassan & Australian-Lebanese citizen Meliad Farah. Both operatives used fake IDs & traveled through several countries before arriving in #Bulgaria
washingtoninstitute.org/hezbollahinter…

16. However, the #BulgariaBombing operatives made a series of tactical mistakes. Ep5 guest @nmladenov explains their boarding passes, passports, and hotel details were quite easy to trace, suggesting the bombing in Bulgaria was a rushed job.
washingtoninstitute.org/hezbollahinter…