Germany outlaws Hezbollah, raids mosques and local leaders’ homes
German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer ordered that Hezbollah’s activities be banned due to violations of criminal law, he announced on Thursday.
Police in North Rhine-Westphalia, Bremen and Berlin began searches in mosques and residences tied to Hezbollah, “due to their financial support and propaganda for the terrorist organization,” after the ban was announced at 6 a.m.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the decision, saying that “all peace-seeking countries must denounce terrorist organizations and not give them any direct or indirect aid.”
The prime minister pointed out that the US, Canada, UK, Australia and several Latin American countries have taken similar steps.
Israel and the United States have long pushed for Germany to ban the Shi’ite terrorist group. Germany previously drew a distinction between Hezbollah’s political arm and its military units, which fought alongside President Bashar Assad’s army in Syria.
Hezbollah symbols may not be used publicly in any assembly, or in print, audio and visual material in Germany, and its assets will be confiscated “to the benefit of the Federal Republic of Germany,” the Interior Ministry’s press release read.
The ban is because Hezbollah is a terrorist group, and also because it “calls for the violent elimination of the State of Israel and questions the right of the State of Israel to exist.
“The organization is therefore fundamentally against the concept of international understanding, regardless of whether it presents itself as a political, social or military structure,” the ministry said.
“Its violent denial of the right to exist of the State of Israel also fundamentally opposes Germany’s national ethos,” another Interior Ministry document states.
The order allows German authorities to “use all available instruments of the rule of law to crack down” on Hezbollah and its German sub-organization, the statement reads.
Foreign Minister Israel Katz praised the decision, saying it is “very important and values-based.”
Banning Hezbollah is “significant in the world battle against terror,” Katz added. “I want to express my appreciation to the German government for this step and am certain many governments in the Middle East and victims of Hezbollah’s terrorism share my gratitude.”
Katz called on additional European states and the EU to follow Germany’s lead and say that “Hezbollah, its military and political arms, is a terrorist organization and must be treated that way.”
“This is a welcome, much-anticipated and significant German decision,” said American Jewish Committee head David Harris. “We now hope other European nations will take a close look at Germany’s decision and reach the same conclusion about the true nature of Hezbollah.”
Yesh Atid-Telem leader Yair Lapid, who has long advocated for European countries to ban Hezbollah, praised Germany on Twitter.
“This is an important step in the fight against terror, and the time has come for all of Europe to follow Germany, the Netherlands and the UK,” Lapid wrote. “The money Hezbollah raises abroad turns into weapons against Israel. This requires an international effort and it is good that Germany is committed to it.”
Security officials believe that up to 1,050 people in Germany are associated with Hezbollah.
The German Interior Ministry explained that there is no “Hezbollah Germany,” but its followers in the country meet at local mosques and try to keep their association secret to avoid detection by the authorities. However, supporters – especially the younger ones – declare themselves as such on social media and online forums, using the terrorist group’s symbols.
In addition, Hezbollah has used Germany as a base for recruitment and fundraising.
Ministry documents quote Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and others at length in demonstrating the Shi’ite terrorist group’s aim of destroying Israel.
The ban includes images of Hezbollah symbols that may not be displayed. First is its yellow flag with a green logo and a stylized text of the word “Hezbollah” with a hand grasping a gun. Another is the Imam al-Mahdi Scouts, the Hezbollah youth movement, which looks similar to the international scouts’ fleur-de-lis logo, but with a hand and a Lebanese cedar on it.
On a trip to Berlin last year, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said he hoped Germany would follow Britain in banning Hezbollah. The UK introduced legislation in February of last year that classified Hezbollah as a terrorist organization.
Following Berlin’s announcement, lawmakers from the European parliaments, legislatures across Europe, the US Congress and Canada’s parliament signed a letter calling on the EU to follow suit.
The letter reads: “Following the 2012 suicide bombing in Bulgaria that killed six people, the EU banned only Hezbollah’s so-called military wing, stopping short of confronting the terror group with the full force of its sanctions mechanism. We thus urge the EU to end this false distinction between ‘military’ and ‘political’ arms – a distinction Hezbollah itself dismisses – and ban the entire organization,” the text read in part.
The letter was initiated by leaders of Transatlantic Friends of Israel, a group in the European Parliament committed to strengthening the trilateral partnership of the US, Israel and Europe: MEPs Lukas Mandl (EPP, Austria), Anna Michelle Asimakopoulou (EPP, Greece), Petras Austrevicius (Renew Europe, Lithuania), Carmen Avram (S&D, Romania), Dietmar Köster (S&D, Germany), and Alexandr Vondra (ECR, Czech Republic).
Among the US signatories are Reps. Ted Deutch (D-Florida, 22nd district); Eliot Engel (D-New York 16th), chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs; and Michael McCaul (R-Texas 10th), the committee’s ranking member.
Reuters contributed to this report.