The Axis of Resistance (Mihwar al-Muqawama) is the informal alignment of states and non-state actors that defines itself in opposition to Israeli and American influence in the Middle East. Its core members are Iran, Syria (under the Assads), Hezbollah in Lebanon, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and Hamas. The concept emerged from the specific alliance between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Assad regime established in 1979–80, in which shared opposition to Israel and the United States overcame the apparent paradox of a secular Ba’athist state and a revolutionary Shia theocracy acting as strategic partners. The alliance deepened through Iran’s support for Hezbollah (founded 1982), which Syria facilitated by providing the geographic corridor through which Iranian weapons and funds reached Lebanon. The Axis represents a form of regional alignment whose coherence is defined primarily by shared enemies rather than positive ideological commonalities. The Syrian civil war severely tested the Axis: Iranian forces and Hezbollah fighters fought alongside the Assad regime to sustain it. The fall of Assad in December 2024 severed Syria’s role in the Axis, removing the geographic link between Iran and Hezbollah and dealing what Iranian officials acknowledged was a significant strategic blow.
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