How Iran's IRGC rebooted Lebanon's Hezbollah to be ready for war

Iran's Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) rebuilt Hezbollah's military command after it was mauled by Israel in 2024, plugging gaps with Iranian officers ​before restructuring the Lebanese group and laying plans for the war it is now waging in support of Tehran, two people familiar with these IRGC activities said.

The overhaul was the first of ‌its kind for Hezbollah, a Shi'ite Muslim group founded by the IRGC in 1982, pointing to a hands-on approach after the blows of the 2024 war, including the killing of its leader Hassan Nasrallah and other top commanders.

Iran's investment paid off, getting Hezbollah back on its feet in time to enter the war in the Middle East on Tehran's side after it was attacked by the United States and Israel.

Reuters reported earlier in March that Hezbollah had seen another war as inevitable and spent months readying itself. This article sheds light on the IRGC's ​role in these preparations, based on accounts from six sources who spoke on condition of anonymity as well as an expert on Hezbollah.

The IRGC, deeply involved in Hezbollah since it was established, sent officers to ​retrain its fighters and oversee rearmament, the two sources familiar with IRGC activities said.

They said IRGC officers also reshaped Hezbollah command structures that had been breached by Israeli ⁠intelligence - a factor that had helped Israel kill many Hezbollah leaders.

An Israeli military spokesperson said on March 12 that Hezbollah remains a relevant and dangerous force despite the damage Israel has inflicted on it over the last three years.

Hezbollah has ​fired hundreds of missiles at Israel since it entered the regional war on March 2, prompting an Israeli offensive that has killed more than 1,000 people in Lebanon. Hezbollah fighters are battling Israeli soldiers who have seized ground in the south.

It ​has yet to be seen how Hezbollah, its power still below the peak levels seen a few years ago, would fare in the event of a full-scale Israeli invasion.

Hezbollah's media office, Iran's Foreign Ministry and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Netanyahu said in January that Hezbollah was making efforts to rearm and rebuild its infrastructure with Iranian support.