Hezbollah 1985–88 War of the Camps. However, Hezbollah's early primary focus was ending Israel's occupation of southern Lebanon following Israel's 1982 invasion and siege of Beirut. Amal, the main Lebanese Shia political group, initiated guerrilla warfare. In 2006, former Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak stated, "When we entered Lebanon … there was no Hezbollah. We were accepted with perfumed rice and flowers by the Shia in the south. It was our presence there that created Hezbollah". Hezbollah waged an asymmetric war using suicide attacks against the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Israeli targets outside of Lebanon. Hezbollah is reputed to have
Bayt al-Mal (Hezbollah) Company for Finance and Investment to secure loans and finance business deals for Hezbollah companies. According to Mr. Stuart Levey, U.S. Department of Treasury's Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence (TFI),"Bayt al-Mal functions as Hezbollah's unofficial treasury, holding and investing its assets and serving as intermediaries between the terrorist group and mainstream banks." The central headquarters of Bayt al-Mal was located in Hezbollah's stronghold in Beirut's southern suburbs. Bayt al-Mal (Hezbollah) Hezbollah Bayt al-Mal, AKA Hezbollah Bayt al-Mal Lil Muslimeen, is a Hezbollah-controlled organization that performs financial services for the organization. In Arabic, the term is used as "House