The Iranian-backed Hezbollah ("Party of

The Iranian-backed Hezbollah ("Party of God") militiamen, the largest of the Shi'ite Islamic fundamentalist parties in Lebanon, parade 12 November 1989 in southern suburb of west Beirut celebrating the first anniversary of a suicide attack against Israeli soldiers in Kfarkila, South Lebanon. Hezbollah's armed militia was believed to number c. 5000 in 1990. The group has been associated in particular with the kidnapping of Westerners to advance its political aims, and is still in conflict with Israeli forces since the 1982 invasion of Lebanon. AFP PHOTO RAMZI HAIDAR (Photo credit should read RAMZI HAIDAR/AFP via Getty Images)