Britain’s Foreign Secretary presses the EU to have Hizbullah put on its list of terrorist organizations.
By Elad Benari, Canada
Britain’s Foreign Secretary William Hague on Friday urged the European Union to place the military branch of the Lebanese-based Hizbullah on its list of terrorist organizations, AFP reported.
British Foreign Secretary William Hague
Reuters
“I would like to see the EU designate and sanction the military wing of Hizbullah,” Hague was quoted as having said in response to a question on arriving for talks with his EU counterparts.
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, however, appeared to suggest this was not possible now.
“There is a request but there are judicial considerations,” Fabius said, adding, “An organization can be placed on the list of terrorist organizations when judicial proceedings have been filed against it as such, which is not the case currently.:
AFP noted that Britain is one of few countries to have blacklisted either parts or all of Hizbullah. Israel has been pressing hard for the entire organization to be blacklisted since July’s terror attack against Israeli tourists in Burgas, Bulgaria.
Following the attack, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman asked European governments to place Hizbullah on their lists of terror organizations.
The EU, however, rejected Israel’s request on the grounds that “there is no consensus on the issue, because Hizbullah also has an active political arm.”
View original Arutz Sheva publication at: http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/159752#.UEphwpY2fmI
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