Analysts weigh in on ramifications of report UK Home Secretary planning to blacklist Lebanese group’s military wing
A British push to fully ban Hizbullah could have a domino effect throughout Europe, analysts say. On Tuesday, the Jewish Chronicle reported that United Kingdom Home Secretary Sajid Javid would ban the Lebanese Shiite group’s political wing by the end of 2018. The report, citing an unnamed senior Conservative source, claimed that Javid has vowed to take “decisive action” against Hizbullah, which is backed by Iran.
“I think that this is a very important step,” Oded Eran, a Senior Researcher at Israel’s Institute for National Security Studies and former Israeli ambassador to the European Union, told The Media Line. “There is no doubt that beyond being a military power in Lebanon, Hizbullah has become a very important political player. It is quite clear to everyone that Hizbullah became the long arm of Iran in Lebanon itself and in the region.”
The decision reportedly came following last weekend’s anti-Zionist “Quds Day” march through central London, in which some protesters waved the bright yellow Hizbullah flag. Though viewed entirely as a terrorist group by the United States, Canada, Israel, the Netherlands and the Arab League, only the military wing of the Shiite organization is outlawed in other EU member states.
“It is important that the international community take a very clear stance on how it views Hizbullah because as long as the group is not boycotted in a clear way, it is legitimized in Lebanon,” Eran explained, adding that the ban could lead other European nations to follow suit.
“It is important that a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council [Britain] makes a clear point on this issue,” he noted. “As a former ambassador to the EU, I can tell you that [Hizbullah members] appeared quite often in Brussels to speak to parliamentarians in the EU Parliament, whether in an official capacity or not.”
Hizbullah, which was founded by Tehran in 1982 after the Lebanon-Israel war, was initially led by Muslim clerics with the help of Ayatollah Khomeini. Since 1992, it has been headed by Hassan Nasrallah and its ideology is deeply rooted in Islamic fundamentalism which includes anti-Israel and anti-U.S. sentiment.
“It’s beyond comprehension that England and Europe—with the exception of The Netherlands—have not fully proscribed Hizbullah as a terrorist organization,” Benjamin Weinthal, a Research Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, asserted to The Media Line. “If the ban kicks in, it could have far-reaching consequences on Hizbullah’s activity in the UK and also set a very significant precedent for other western European countries.”
Weinthal qualified, however, that it remains unclear whether the ban will actually be implemented, but he did highlight a recent push in the UK against the Lebanese group. He also noted such a move would exert significant pressure on Germany, where Hizbullah is permitted to operate in full view.
“In Germany, there are 950 [Hizbullah] operatives who fundraise and recruit new members,” Weinthal asserted, adding the group was gaining in strength there and sending money back to Lebanon. “The Germans have been the most reluctant to ban all of Hizbullah, to the great frustration of Israel and the United States.”
The EU decided to classify Hezbollah’s military wing as a terrorist entity only in 2013, after the Lebanese organization attacked a bus in Burgas, Bulgaria carrying Israeli tourists, resulting in the deaths of five Israelis as well as the Bulgarian driver.
Jonathan Sacerdoti, a British analyst specializing in extremism, said that while the upcoming ban in Britain remains unconfirmed, Home Secretary Javid is the right person to push it forward as he is widely considered to be “a good friend of Israel.”
“If there’s anyone who’s going to make this move he seems a good candidate,” Sacerdoti affirmed to The Media Line. “This is something which needs urgent attention, because it’s rather ridiculous to see Hizbullah flags being flown on the streets of London after controversy abounded when people flew ISIS flags.”
Unlike both Eran and Weinthal, though, Sacerdoti is unsure such a move will lead to similar action across the continent.
“Europe still has to come to grips with the nature of the problem it has,” he argued. “Some would call it a threat [that] there are people who openly support groups which are determined to kill minorities, even majorities in Europe. Paris has seen numerous terror attacks, for example.”
The UK-based analyst also remains skeptical that the government will move forward with the blacklisting, noting that there has yet to be an official response to the Jewish Chronicle report.
“Until we hear some words from the Home Office or any other department of government, we really have no indication that this is going to happen,” Sacerdoti cautioned.
“I’m not really sure this is a high priority.”