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Brussels' Hizbullah Excuses Are Running Out

(Wall Street Journal-Europe) Daniel Schwammenthal - How could adding Hizbullah to the EU's terror list possibly be the wrong thing to do? Over the past 30 years, the "Party of God" has murdered hundreds of people around the world and therefore has long belonged on the EU's terror list. In recent years Hizbullah has been able to raise funds, recruit new members and even send operatives from Europe to Israel for attacks there, but refrained from carrying out attacks in Europe. Leaving the Burgas bombing unsanctioned would send the message that it is OK to carry out terror attacks, even in Europe - as long as the victims are Israelis. Hizbullah is the single most destabilizing factor in Lebanon, constituting a state within a state, with its own army. The group is using Lebanon's population as human shields by hiding weapons in or near residential structures. Its support for the Assad regime is, by itself, reason to blacklist it. Weakening Hizbullah would advance the EU's policy goals in the Middle East: It would be a blow to Assad's regime and would increase the chances of seeing a truly democratic Lebanon emerge. It would also be a blow against Iran and the rejectionist forces that work against Israeli-Palestinian peace. The writer is director of the AJC Transatlantic Institute in Brussels.
2013-02-07 00:00:00
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