But others noted that the group did not launch any such effort during the monthlong war with Israel. Instead, it has continued to use hundreds of millions of dollars from Iran to operate a de facto government and deliver social services to the Lebanese. Any terrorist attack would hurt its developing political posture, which remains one of the most important differences between Hezbollah and al-Qaida.
"With al-Qaida, there is no political legitimacy, even though they've tried," said Roger Cressey, a former White House counterterrorism official during the Clinton and Bush administrations. "It's a movement driven by violence more than anything else."
Cressey and others said the leaders of Hezbollah might be disinclined to lose an important financing vehicle such as the United States. Beyond that risk, a terrorist attack would draw the ire of the American public and international community.
