From Ground Zero to Beirut: 911 and U.S. Lebanon Shift

After 25 years since the September 11, 2001 attacks, a return to American security doctrine has revealed how Washington shifted from pursuing individual terrorists to holding accountable states that fund or harbor armed groups, such as Iran and Hezbollah, after 2005. Iran was not directly accused of executing the attacks, but evidence pointed to facilitating the movement of al-Qaeda members through Iran prior to September 11. Additionally, Iran's past associations with terrorism, such as the 1996 Khobar Towers bombing, contributed to redefining the concept of "state sponsorship of terrorism" and developing the American doctrine, which now considers those who host or support armed groups as threats on the same level as the perpetrators of the attacks. Following the assassination of Rafiq Hariri, Lebanon was reimagined as a battleground in an regional conflict linking Iran’s support for Hezbollah with a struggle for political control. The United States views Hezbollah as an Iranian tool enabling Tehran to influence Lebanon and the wider region. This reflects a shift in the nature of power in the Middle East—from direct state actions to networks combining state, proxy, weaponry, and politics. This transformation indicates that external support for armed actors, not just the acts of violence themselves, has become a fundamental threat, significantly impacting regional relations.

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