Critics who have been blasting Hezbollah for its involvement in the Syrian conflict have outlined an array of fears regarding the consequences of the Iran-backed terror group’s actions.

The regional consequences of the group’s actions – Hezbollah risks creating a crescent of Sunni-Shiit conflict from the Mediteranean coast into Iraq – have been outlined by everyone from prominent Arab journalists to anti-semitic, genocidal Sunni clerics. Within Syria the group has ben attempting to redraw the ethnic map to serve Iranian interests.

And within Lebanon, Hezbollah seems willing to risk becoming a target – and to risk dragging the country into sectarian conflict – in order to continue battling in Syria. Opposition forces seeking to overthrow the Bashar al-Assad regime have threatened to bring the fight back to Hezbollah’s home turf in Lebanon. Hezbollah has brushed off the threats.

A week ago an explosion ripped through a Hezbollah stronghold in southern Beirut. On Tuesday, a Hezollah convoy was attacked traveling toward Syria:

The injured men were Hezbollah security officials travelling in a convoy of two vehicles heading towards Syria. A barrage of gunfire hit the convoy after the blast, security sources said. It was not immediately clear who was behind the attack, but Syrian Sunni rebel groups have threatened to strike Hezbollah in Lebanon following the group’s military intervention in Syria on the side of President Bashar al-Assad.

Hezbollah’s willingness to destabilize Lebanon on behalf of Iran has become a critical argument in debates over whether the European Union should designate the group. E.U. members who have been resisting calls to blacklist Hezbollah have insisted that the group is a legitimate part of Lebanon’s political landscape, and that banning it may destabilize the country. Analysts have pointedly emphasized that the group’s existence, strength, and behavior directly contribute to Lebanese instability.

[Photo: Israel Defense Forces / Wiki Commons]