Such doubts and fears have not gone, but criticising Hizbullah in public has become a taboo.
Non-state actors ideologically aligned to Hizbullah, such as the Muslim Brotherhood, may well get stronger.
To many it is a proxy war between Hizbullah's main sponsor, Iran, and America.
Without the security zone, Israel had no buffer between its civilian population and Hizbullah.
An eventual ceasefire left Hizbullah claiming victory and Israel's generals and politicians locked in recrimination.
What could make Hizbullah and its large group of Shia Muslim supporters accept the new restrictions?
By going after Hizbullah now, Egypt is legitimizing both their criticism and the Netanyahu government itself.
Israel itches to rid itself of the prickling menace of Hizbullah's big rocket arsenal.
Through Mexico, Hizbullah members and other terror operatives are able to enter the US relatively easily.
Israel initially relied on air power to attack Hizbullah's rocket-launching crews, and killed hundreds of civilians.
If the swap works, and the border stays calm, Hizbullah will find itself facing hard choices.
But outside pressure on Hizbullah to disarm has recently coincided with growing dissent among Shias themselves.
Western governments should hold their noses and offer formal contacts with both Hizbullah and Hamas.
ECONOMIST: Can Hamas and Hizbullah be domesticated via the ballot box?
UNIFIL's help they are perfectly capable of disarming Hizbullah and preventing any attacks across the border.
As for Hizbullah, it is poised to launch a witch-hunt against its domestic opponents.
Thirteen years ago, Iran ordered its terror arm Hizbullah to attack the AMIA building.
In one village, a row between Hizbullah and Amal guerrillas left three of them dead.
On Wednesday, Hamas leaders flew to Beirut to pay their respects to Hizbullah chief Hassan Nasrallah.
Since the war ended, UNIFIL forces have done nothing to prevent Hizbullah's massive rearmament.
Hizbullah MP Muhammad Ra'ad said earlier this month that the proxy army will "hunt down, " collaborators.
Since last August's cease-fire, under Iranian direction Hizbullah has operated on three levels at once.
But as Hizbullah showed, advanced hardware is no longer a guarantee of military supremacy.
Another example of how army meddling goes awry is Hizbullah, Turkey's deadliest home-grown Islamic terrorist outfit.
Yemen's president, Ali Abdullah Saleh, says members of Lebanon's Iran-backed Hizbullah militia are teaching them.
This came after the Israelis released a Lebanese-born man accused of spying for Hizbullah.
In 2003, Chavez appointed Tarek el-Aissami, a known Hizbullah member to head the country's passport agency.
Hizbullah has an arsenal of guided missiles capable of hitting Tel Aviv and beyond.
CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: South Korea, North Korea, Israel & Iran
Iran's proxies - from Hizbullah to al Qaida to Hamas - operate best in weak states.
Under UNIFIL's blind eye, Iran and Syria have tripled the size of Hizbullah's missile arsenal.
And Lebanese Christian voters did not reject Hizbullah because Obama is president of the United States.
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