Slovenia declares Hezbollah a terrorist group 'in its entirety'
Slovenia declares Hezbollah a terrorist group 'in its entirety'
Hezbollah's political wing has been banned by Slovenia.
2 min read
Both Hezbollah's political and military wings have been banned by Slovenia [Getty]
Slovenia has banned Lebanese Islamist movement Hezbollah "in its entirety", with both its political and military wings now forbidden in the Central European country.
Ljubljana said Hezbollah would now be treated as "a criminal and terrorist organization posing a threat to peace and security", a government statement read.
"Hezbollah's activities are intertwined with organized crime and the conduct of terrorist or paramilitary activities on a global scale," the statement added, according to The Times of Israel.
It follows a report from the Slovenian foreign ministry's "Permanent Coordination Group for Restrictive Measures" which looked into Hezbollah's "activities and mode of operation".
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Slovenia decided to follow the US and a number of other European countries and banned the organisation in its entirety.
While Hezbollah's military faction is widely considered illegal, most EU members have not banned Hezbollah's political wing due to its significant role in Lebanese politics.
Slovenia joins five other EU countries - Germany, the Netherlands, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania - as well as the UK, in treating the organisation's political wing as illegal.
Israel, a long-time adversary of the organisation, welcomed the move by Ljubljana.
"This decision joins decisions made in recent months by governments in Europe and Latin American. Hezbollah is an organization that first and foremost hurts Lebanese citizens themselves and takes them hostage to serve Iran's interests," said Israel's Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi in a statement.
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