Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan thanks the British government for blacklisting Lebanon’s Hezbollah as a terrorist organization, including its political wing.
In a statement, Erdan says that he discussed the issue before with Britain’s Home Secretary Sajid Javid, and told him it was “an important way to combat the group’s murderous agenda. We cannot allow terrorist groups to hide behind the veil of a legitimate political or government entity.”
A draft order laid in the UK Parliament today will ban membership of Hezbollah, alongside two other groups. Subject to Parliament’s approval, the order will go into effect on Friday and being a member, or inviting support for Hezbollah will be a criminal offense, carrying a sentence of up to 10 years in prison.
Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan speaks at a ceremony for a new municipal police station in Beit Shemesh, January 7, 2019. (Yaakov Lederman/Flash90)
Hezbollah made electoral gains in Lebanon last year and now has three ministers in the government. The US and others accuse the group of destabilizing the region through its military intervention in Syria on the side of President Bashar Assad’s government.
There was no immediate comment from Hezbollah officials in Beirut.
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