EU puts Hezbollah military wing on terrorist list

The European Union Thursday officially announced that is has added the Hizbollah Military Wing to the EU's list of entities, groups and persons involved in terrorist acts, as agreed at the Foreign Affairs Council on 22 July. Entities on the EU terrorist list are targeted with an asset freeze and subject to enhanced police and judicial cooperation between member states in related enquiries and proceedings, said an EU statement. The legal acts were adopted by written procedure today and will be published in tomorrow's EU Official Journal, it added. In a separate statement, the Council and the European Commission underlined that the decision to blacklist the Hizbollah Military Wing to combat terrorism does not prevent the continuation of dialogue with all political parties in Lebanon. In addition, the Council and the Commission said they agreed that the decision does not affect legitimate financial transfers to Lebanon and the delivery of assistance, including humanitarian assistance, from the European Union and its Member States in Lebanon. The Union remains fully committed to the stability of Lebanon, it stressed and added that this decision will be reviewed on a six-monthly basis.