‘The threat in the hemisphere’: the securitization movement in the Triple Frontier and the case of Hezbollah

Abstract

In 1997, the US designated Hezbollah, a Lebanese political and armed actor, as a terrorist organization. The decision was shaped by political and economic factors and considered internationally non-consensual. Since the War on Terror began in 2001, the US has pressured Latin American countries to adopt such a designation. Allegations of Hezbollah’s activities in the region primarily focus on the Triple Frontier Area (Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay). Grounded in critical terrorism studies and the securitization theory, this article proposes the hypothesis that US imperialist interests have used Hezbollah as a pretext to increase regional monitoring and control, while advancing broader strategies of containment and sanctions against Hezbollah’s main ally, Iran. The effort to label Hezbollah as a terrorist organization is therefore linked to the expansion of the US-led Global War on Terror agenda, and its attempt to contain and delegitimize anti-hegemonic actors. Using qualitative and historical-documentary analysis, this research adopts a case study approach focused on the three countries of the triple frontier. Based on primary and secondary sources, findings reveal that Hezbollah’s securitization efforts in these cases have been shaped by US economic and political interference through local specificities.