EU blacklists Hezbollah 'military wing'

European Union foreign ministers on Monday put the military wing of the Lebanese Shia group Hezbollah on its list of terrorist organisations despite Lebanon warning against such a move. At the same time, analysts voiced doubts about the effectiveness of the measure, questioning if Hezbollah really can be broken down into separate parts for punishment or reward. Britain, which had pressed long and hard for the decision, had no misgivings however that the EU was doing the right thing.
"In reaching this agreement, the EU has sent a clear message that it stands united against terrorism," British Foreign Secretary William Hague said at the end of the one-day ministers' talks. Asked about the difficulty of targeting Hezbollah's military wing alone, he conceded it would not be straightforward. "We will have to distinguish as best we can" between the various parts, he said, suggesting military and administrative sections could be identified.
Hague also said he recognised that "Hezbollah has a political role in Lebanon but violence is unacceptable". To get the agreement, ministers had to overcome reservations in some member states that it would further destabilise Lebanon where the Iranian-backed militant group plays a key role in politics and has dominated the government since 2011.
Accordingly, EU political and economic ties with Lebanon will be fully maintained in a delicate balancing act. It is also only the military wing that is affected, after it was blamed for a deadly attack on Israeli tourists in Bulgaria last year. In March, a Hezbollah operative was also convicted in Cyprus of plotting a similar attack. Monday's political decision will be given legal form within days and most likely result in sanctions such as an asset freeze.
The EU adopted a terror and sanctions regime in late 2001 after the September 11 attacks in the United States so as to target individuals and groups. As of last year, there were 25 groups named, among them several Palestinian entities, FARC, the Colombian insurgent movement, and Peru's Shining Path. On Thursday, Lebanon asked Brussels not to blacklist Hezbollah on the grounds the militant group was an "essential component of Lebanese society".