When Claire Sterling published The Terror Network in 1981, it established a new standard for a previously misunderstood topic. In her work she identified two major purposes for terrorism: 1) to terrorize the target victims, and 2) provoke a response considered so over the top by the victim that public perceptions would flip the victim into the perpetrator and the perpetrator into the victim. The book, now translated into 22 languages, is recognized as a standard for anyone interested in terror studies and helped make sense of a growing problem.

Back in the 1980’s experts classified terror as either Black or Red. Red was on the left and Black was on the right. Groups such as the Baader Meinhof Gang, Dutch Red Help, or the Japanese Red Army grabbed headlines with kidnappings, killings, and even airplane hijackings.

Sometimes the groups acted within their own organizations to commit terror attacks against European industrial or governmental leaders. They were also known to cross-recruit to other like-minded organizations, such as the Japanese Red Army who attacked Lod Airport in Israel in 1973. Islamic terror attacks by such groups as the PLO or Black September became household names with such tragic attacks on the Israeli athletes during the Munich Olympics in 1972 or a string of plane hijackings before that.

Forty-five years later, one might argue that nothing has changed. Maybe the names have, but the essence of terror remains the same, especially antisemitic terror. Most recently, college campuses across America exploded into the headlines with antisemitic activity. Additionally, international anti-Jewish and anti-Israel protests, and violence became normalized for television and social media. Within the past few years, a new term crept into our vocabulary. It is known to those who chase such stories as the Red Green Alliance. It is new, yet it is old.

This emerging entity combines elements of hard left political ideologies, Islamic terror, social justice causes and a growing relationship with international drug trafficking.

Hezbollah, Venezuela, and China – Funding Terror Through the International Drug Trade

Hezbollah has grabbed plenty of headlines in recent years as Israel’s primary antagonist in Lebanon. The terror group, an outgrowth of Palestinian radicalism from the late 1970’s entrenched itself on Israel’s northern border leaving many border towns vacant. After a long history of attacking Israel, Hezbollah again announced its presence again on October 8, right after its Gaza compatriots, Hamas, attacked Israel on October 7, 2023.

Over the years, Hezbollah has grown into a formidable enemy, funded by Iran, and is deeply engrained in Lebanon’s federal government.

According to a March 2005 Rand Corporation Report, Hezbollah uses drug trafficking networks to fund its terror activities.

“Hezbollah's presence in the Americas is primarily motivated by fundraising for its global and Levant-based activities although the organization has also demonstrated a capacity for targeting Israeli and U.S. interests in the region. The Levant refers to the Eastern Mediterranean region encompassing Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Israel, and the Palestinian authorities. Hezbollah, based in Lebanon, maintains significant influence throughout this region.”

The Red Green Alliance poses immense danger to international Jewry as well as the State of Israel and Western Civilization. In a lengthy report by the Reut Institute (cited above), Item 14 says this:

“The strategic partnership between the radical left and political Islam, known as the red-green alliance, emerged in Europe, but it has migrated to the US in recent years. Despite the differences and even the opposites between these streams, their cooperation is deep and anchored in an intellectual and philosophical effort to legitimize it. The red-green alliance agenda in Europe includes clear anti-Western, anti-American, and anti-Zionist elements. In the US, this cooperation is accelerated as part of trend of intersectionality”

One aspect of this growing menace is its attraction, even partnership, with left leading progressive identity politics and “intersectionality” which often conflates movements such as Black Lives Matter with the Free Palestine and numerous other anti-Zionist positions. For example, during racial unrest in Ferguson Missouri in 2014, which coincided with Operation Protective Edge (a previous war with Hamas in Gaza), the report says this,

“Since the Ferguson unrest, which occurred at the same time as the fighting between Israel and Hamas during Operation Protective Edge (2014), organizations with an anti- Israel agenda became an integral part of the coalition of minorities. Since then, the support in the coalition for the boycott campaign against Israel has grown, especially among African- American and Latino communities.”

Added to this troubling trend are the alliances forged between international drug cartels and Hezbollah. Most recently, Venezuela’s strongman Nicholas Maduro aligned with Middle East terrorists on common interests. Iran International published this article in September 2025 detailing the relationship between these two allies. Here’s an excerpt:

“Brian Townsend, a retired DEA special agent, called last week’s US maritime strike near Venezuela “a decisive blow against narco-terrorists.” He said Hezbollah’s role is pivotal yet often out of view.

“They don’t get their hands dirty. Instead, they launder and provide networks to help cartels send money through the Middle East. Simply, they take a cut from the drug trade, which then funds their operations in the Middle East,” he said, adding that Hezbollah has become “a main finance and money launderer for narco-terrorism groups like Tren de Aragua.”

Although Maduro was arrested in a raid on the Presidential Palace in Venezuela earlier in 2006, these alliances remain in place. One estimate says Hezbollah receives more than $1 Billion from illicit drug money and other sources. The Jerusalem Post reports:

“For context, the US Government estimates that Hezbollah’s yearly budget exceeds $1 billion, 30% of which is obtained from global illicit activities. Hezbollah’s financial operations span multiple continents and include money laundering schemes in Europe, drug trafficking in Latin America, Africa, and Europe, trade in blood diamonds in Africa, and oil smuggling in the Middle East.”

So where does this leave us?

We’ve learned that America cannot be everywhere at once. It has limits to its show of military power. Israel, while demonstrating impressive reach in the recent war against Iran, can only do so much as well. As believers, we share what we know, become involved as much as we can in civic affairs, and keep learning.

So, we remain resolute in our lives. We work patiently to share the good news of the Messiah, working with one soul at a time. Knowing our history, our Bible, and being like the men of Issachar, always knowing what Israel should do.

As depressing as this may seem, we do have hope. Yeshua, in Matthew 6:25 counsels us:

 “For this reason, I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is life not more than food, and the body more than clothing?”

The full passage makes it clear that we are not to worry about anything. Yes, life brings on its stressors and we all feel it.

We must continue to speak up, stand up and expose the lies of the enemy, but we also know that for those who don’t know Yeshua personally, the political horizon looks very bleak. It falls on us to reach out to those who need hope and introduce them to the only viable option; a personal relationship with the God of the universes through the sacrificial atonement of His only begotten Son Yeshua of Nazareth.

The final verse in this passage says:

“But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be provided to you.”

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