Iran, Hezbollah, Multifaceted Threat to Latin America

The presence and activities of Iran and Hezbollah in Latin America are deeply concerning because of their multifaceted operations in the region, as well as their strategies, objectives and implications for regional and global security, Mexican lawyer and writer specializing in Middle East geopolitical dynamics Ilan Eichner said in a late June op-ed for The Times of Israel.

“Hezbollah’s priorities in Latin America are closely linked to Iran’s geopolitical interests. One of the most important of these is generating revenue through illicit activities such as drug trafficking, smuggling and money laundering, with the aim of obtaining essential resources to maintain its operations in the Middle East and thus reduce its financial dependence on Iran,” Eichner said. Dialogue on August 19. “Hezbollah is engaged in intelligence networks and operations in the region, creating logistical and operational support structures that can be ‘woken up’ to carry out terrorist actions when they need them.”

According to experts, Hezbollah, an Islamist movement with one of the most powerful paramilitary forces in the Middle East, carries out much of its illegal activities in the triple borders of South America: the first is the Triple Border between Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay, with its neural center in Ciudad del Este. The second is the triple border of the Andes, consisting of Chile, Peru and Bolivia. And the third is the maritime border between Colón, Panama; Maicao, Colombia; and Punto Fijo, Venezuela, Argentine newspaper The nation reported on July 24.

“In addition, Hezbollah uses networks for the trafficking and smuggling of goods, weapons, and illicit substances, with the Tri-Border region being the main strategic point for these operations,” Eichner added. “The profits made in this area are integrated into the formal Iranian economy through their front companies.”

On August 15, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed sanctions on one of Hezbollah’s business networks for its involvement in the shipment of Iranian goods, such as oil and liquefied gas, to Yemen and the United Arab Emirates, with the support of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

“We must never forget that Hezbollah is the first line of defense of the Islamic Republic of Iran. And if necessary, it can activate its cells to carry out attacks for its geopolitical interests,” Joseph Humire, executive director of the Washington-based think tank Center for a Secure Free Society, told German broadcaster DW“We need more allies in Latin America who take this threat very seriously. Not only in the fight against terrorism, but also in the fight against transnational organized crime.”

Although authoritarian governments with strong populist components differ in terms of the basic ideologies of their projects, they tend to connect with each other, Esther Shabot, a sociologist and specialist in Jewish studies at the Ibero-American University of Mexico, told the Mexican newspaper Excelsior“Iran focuses its diplomatic and military efforts on certain weak countries in Latin America, such as Venezuela.”

“Hezbollah uses a number of very sophisticated methods to launder money and conceal the origins of its funds,” Eichner said. “Among the most prominent mechanisms are front companies that operate as legitimate businesses, such as electronics stores, supermarkets, and currency exchanges, which serve both to launder money from illicit activities and to finance activities linked to radical Islamic terrorism; or to expand its influence in the region through social welfare activities or the payment of bribes to government officials.”

“Iran and Hezbollah’s ties to Venezuela’s dictatorship jeopardize regional security by helping Maduro’s regime stay in power,” Henry Ziemer, a fellow at the Americas Program at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Dialogue“Iran’s role in supplying military equipment and Hezbollah’s role in training Venezuelan paramilitary ‘colectivos’ demonstrate how both actors work together to support authoritarian regimes by repressing their own citizens and threatening their neighbors, particularly in the case of Venezuela’s ongoing provocations against Guyana.”

Iran has supported Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela after the July 28 elections, which have been condemned as fraudulent by many leaders worldwide, Venezuelan media said. Primicia reported on August 5.

“Venezuela is a key element of this relationship, as former Venezuelan Vice President Tareck El Aissami (of Syrian-Lebanese descent) helped connect Hezbollah operatives to lucrative drug trafficking operations, as well as money laundering through the Colombian company Importadora Silvania,” Ziemer said. “As the Maduro regime intensifies its crackdown in response to citizen pressure for democratic change, the importance of criminal proceeds and the role of Hezbollah and Iran in helping to evade sanctions can only increase in the near future.”

In the case of Argentina, which suffered two attacks by Hezbollah in the 1990s, President Javier Milei was warned of a possible Iranian attack in early August, the Spanish newspaper reported The country reported.

“Hezbollah is constantly building infrastructures in different places that they can detonate when they see fit. A clear example of this strategy is the AMIA bombing in Argentina in 1994,” Eichner said. “That attack was the result of long and meticulous planning, laying the necessary groundwork, without knowing that it would end in an attack of that magnitude.”

As tensions in the Middle East rise, Argentina’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Religious Affairs is advising Argentine citizens to avoid traveling to Lebanon.

“The planning and potential execution of terrorist activities by these actors pose a direct threat to the security of countries in the hemisphere. It is crucial to keep in mind that Hezbollah’s operations, often supported by local corruption and institutional weakness, exacerbate governance problems and undermine the rule of law,” Eichner added. “It is crucial to emphasize the need for greater international cooperation to counter these threats, as well as the strengthening of legal frameworks in the region that enable more robust action against Hezbollah’s illicit activities.”