Hezbollah spends three months rebuilding drone capacity with new Iranian cash
Lebanese security officials say the group received tens of millions of dollars from Tehran to restore command structures and produce explosives for drones.
By Mateo Thompson ·
Hezbollah has spent the last three months preparing for a potential return to war with Israel.
The group received a new infusion of cash from Iran to fund its rearmament, according to Lebanese security personnel briefed on the activity.
This new funding sits on top of roughly $200 million that Hezbollah previously secured from Tehran, a sum Reuters reported earlier this month.
The money is going toward specific military needs, including the purchase of explosives and the production of drones capable of flying into the southern security zone occupied by Israeli forces.
Hezbollah was founded by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in 1982. Since 2024, two wars with Israel have killed thousands of its fighters and destroyed much of its arsenal.
Despite these losses, the group remains committed to attacking Israel. It has used the pause in fighting since June to rebuild its operations.
Security officials say the group is repairing command-and-control structures that collapsed during key battles. One source noted that these systems broke down in critical areas, though Hezbollah's media office rejected the idea that its systems had failed.
Israel's military declined to comment. Iran's permanent mission to the United Nations in Geneva did not immediately respond to questions. A US State Department spokesman said Washington would continue to strangle Hezbollah's finances through sanctions.
A US Treasury spokesperson stated that Iran was running out of money and methods to move it.
The rearmament effort takes place against a backdrop of rising tensions in the Middle East, sparked by the US-Israeli war with Iran that began in February.
Hezbollah attacked Israel on March 2 in support of Iran. That move triggered an Israeli response that led to the evacuation of many Shi'ite Muslims from southern Lebanon.
Hostilities largely stopped over the summer after an interim deal included a Lebanon ceasefire and talks mediated by Washington. Full-scale fighting has not resumed since the US-Iran deal collapsed, though Israel continues to strike targets in the south.
