Marise Payne considers proscribing Hezbollah

Canberra will “carefully examine” criminal behaviour by Hezbollah, after the UK said it would proscribe the group.

Marise Payne will consider proscribing Hezbollah. Picture: Kym Smith.

The Australian government will “carefully examine” criminal behaviour by Hezbollah, after the UK government announced it intended to declare the group in its entirety as a terrorist organisation.

Australia has only proscribed the Lebanese-based group’s “External Security Organisation” — and not its military or political wings — as a terrorist organisation. This is despite parliament’s intelligence committee claiming that “adequate evidence” was not provided about why the designation should not be broadened when the listing was reviewed last year.

This week, UK Home Secretary Sajid Javid moved to have Hezbollah as a whole listed as a proscribed group, which would see anyone being either a member or supporter face up to 10 years’ imprisonment.

“Hezbollah is continuing in its attempts to destabilise the fragile situation in the Middle East — and we are no longer able to distinguish between their already banned military wing and the political party,” Mr Javid said. “Because of this, I have taken the decision to proscribe the group in its entirety.”

Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne said she would speak to her UK counterpart Jeremy Hunt about the moves and whether they should be considered in Canberra.

“We have measures in place as you know, particularly in relation to the ESO and threshold around criminal behaviour but I would want to look at that carefully with my colleagues,” Senator Payne told the Nine Network’s Sydney Morning Herald in London.

Colin Rubenstein, the executive director from the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council, seized on the UK government’s comments to call for the federal government to outlaw the group.

“Australia’s current limited terrorist listing of Hezbollah’s ‘External Security Organisation’ is ineffective and insufficient,” Dr Rubenstein said. “For years, AIJAC has called on the Australian government to extend its listing to the entirety of Hezbollah.

“Hezbollah leaders are very open that the group does not operate through separate ‘wings’, so treating the ‘political’ and ‘military’ wings of the organisation differently is not only making a distinction without a difference, but simply gives Hezbollah the means to evade law enforcement and financial sanctions.”

He pointed to comments made by the parliamentary intelligence committee when it reviewed the renewal of the proscription of the ESO.

The ESO sits within Hezbollah’s military wing, and is responsible for a series of attacks in foreign countries.

The committee’s final report stated: “The committee does not consider that adequate evidence was provided regarding the decision not to include the military wing of Hezbollah in the listing. The committee also notes that the proscription of the ESO is now somewhat inconsistent with the approach taken by some of Australia’s closest partners: Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States.”

Canada and the US has listed the group as a terrorist organisation, while the UK, the EU and New Zealand have proscribed its entire military apparatus.

The Department of Home Affairs had told the committee last year that any broadening of the listing could be detrimental.

“Given Hezbollah’s extensive political and institutional ties, any broadening of the listing (for example, from Hezbollah’s ESO to Hizballah’s Military Wing) would have implications, including for our bilateral relationship with Lebanon,” the department told the committee.