Alwaght-Britain's Labour Party has voiced its official objection to the move by the country's Home Secretary Sajid Javid to have Lebanese resistance group Hezbollah proscribed as a terrorist organization.
Already approved by Parliament, the House of Lords is widely expected to back the decision which would see support for Hezbollah punishable by up to 10 years in jail.
The Labour Party has called on the government to justify its decision to fully ban the Lebanese political group Hezbollah.
A Labour spokesperson questioned what evidence existed to prompt extending the ban which has applied to parts of the group since 2001 and its military wing since 2008.
"The Home Office has previously ruled that there was not sufficient evidence that the political wing of Hezbollah fell foul of proscription criteria, a position confirmed by ministers in the House of Commons last year," said the spokesperson, shortly before the vote. "Ministers have not yet provided any clear evidence to suggest this has changed."
He also warned that the ban could affect diplomatic relations with Lebanon.
Last month, Hezbollah gained three cabinet positions in the Lebanese government, including the health ministry, following months of political wrangling after elections.
Lebanon's Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil also commented on the decision during a joint news conference with EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, where he downplayed the decision’s effect on Lebanon. “Us in Lebanon, we have gotten used to this from other countries,” he said.
“If the whole world stood and said that the resistance [Hezbollah] is a terrorist [group], this doesn’t make it a terrorist group for the Lebanese and as long as the land is occupied, the resistance is going to be embraced by the state institutions and the people,” he added.
Mogherini said the UK’s stance on Hezbollah was a sovereign matter and did not affect the EU’s attitude toward the party.
