On this week’s “Unauthorized Disclosure” podcast, host Rania Khalek interviews Amal Saad, a professor of political science at Lebanese University and the author of “Hezbollah: Politics and Religion.”

Hezbollah recently liberated a part of Lebanon near the Syria-Lebanon border that was controlled by al Qaida. It also established a deal, which allowed militants and refugees to return to Syria in exchange for prisoners and the bodies of Hezbollah fighters and others who were killed. There is one more area to liberate from terrorists, and Hezbollah will likely collaborate with the Lebanese government to clear out this area.

Saad joins the show to talk about Hezbollah and its role as a resistance army in Lebanon. She describes Hezbollah’s history of protecting what it sees as the “Resistance Axis,” countries in the Middle East which challenge the U.S. and Israel. She addresses the notion of sectarianism around the so-called Shia crescent and outlines the reality on the ground — some of the demographics of people who face violence and oppression for their identity and need help to survive.

Later in the episode, Saad and Khalek break down some of the key misperceptions the left has about identity, terrorism, and resistance in countries like Lebanon.

To listen to the entire episode, click the above player or go here.