British Government Urged to Enforce Hezbollah Ban
by Benjamin Kerstein

A UNIFIL vehicle drives past a Hezbollah flag in the southern Lebanese village of Khiam, near the border with Israel, July 28, 2020. Photo: Reuters / Aziz Taher.
A group of British MPs wrote to UK Security Minister James Brokenshire this week urging him to ramp up enforcement of the country’s ban on the Iran‐backed, Lebanon‐based Hezbollah organization.
Hezbollah’s “armed wing” has been banned in the UK for some time, but its “political wing” was permitted to operate until last year when the government instituted a blanket prohibition on the group.
The Telegraph reported that the MPs’ letter expressed particular concern over the fact that the government lacked important data on Hezbollah, such as on its collaborators in Britain, which could render the ban ineffective.
The MPs wrote, “The United Kingdom has the finest intelligence agencies in the world and the British people can remain confident that the government will continue to prioritize their safety.”
“However, the display of flags and other symbols of illegal organizations in public spaces by fellow British citizens, such as on political marches or on social media, is evident and offensive to ordinary people,” they added, referencing the annual “Quds Day” marches, in which pro-Hezbollah demonstrators parade on British streets.
The letter was signed by Conservative MPs Andrew Rosindell, Sir Graham Brady, Theresa Villiers, and Matthew Offord; along with Labour MP Stephen McCabe, the head of Labour Friends of Israel.
The Democratic Unionist MP Jeffrey Donaldson and peer Lord Kilclooney were also signatories.