The German parliament has passed a non-binding resolution to encourage the government to ban the Lebanon-based Hezbollah terrorist group.
The Bundestag voted overwhelmingly for the resolution with no parties voting against the measure, although the populist Alternative for Germany (AfD), along with the Greens and the far-left Die Linke, abstained from voting, the Times of Israel reports.
The new resolution, which was backed by Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the Social Democrats (SPD), which form the current government, stated that the German government must ban Hezbollah activity in Germany.
The decree calls on the government to impose “an activity ban against Hezbollah in order not to tolerate any activity in Germany by representatives of the organisation, which opposes the principle of international understanding”.
While Israeli Ambassador to Germany Jeremy Issacharoff along with Israel’s Foreign Minister Israel Katz welcomed the resolution, others have been critical, including members of the AfD who had previously introduced a resolution to ban Hezbollah that failed to pass in the parliament earlier in the year.
Petr Bystron, who serves as Speaker of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) on the Foreign Policy Committee, said: “This is just a watered-down version of the bill the AfD submitted to outlaw Hezbollah on June 6th. Due to our constant pressure, the Merkel government has been forced to react. The result is a totally ineffective version, which falls short of a ban on this terror group.”
“Hezbollah membership will still be legal in Germany. So the AfD cannot support this bill. We will recommend our MPs abstain. The Merkel government is allowing Germany to become a major finance and recruiting centre for Islamic terror. This must stop,” he added.
Last month, German magazine Der Spiegel claimed that the government was preparing to ban Hezbollah, along with the public use of its symbols. The claims were later denied by an interior ministry spokesman.
United States Ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell has also been a major proponent of banning Hezbollah in Germany, saying in November: “It is time to designate the Iran proxy Hezbollah a terrorist organisation throughout Europe.”
Grenell reacted to the new resolution on Thursday saying: “Huge Breaking News…. Thank you to our German partners!”