Nicholas Blanford
Special to The Daily Star

The decision by the European Union to brand the political wing of Hamas as a terrorist group could pave the way for the full inclusion of Hizbullah on the EU’s list of terrorist organizations, diplomats say.
The EU had been debating adding Hamas’ political wing to the list since the devastating suicide bombing of a bus in Jerusalem last month which claimed 23 lives. The double suicide bombing in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem Tuesday, which was also claimed by Hamas, apparently persuaded opponents of proscribing the group ­ France, Belgium and Greece ­ to drop their opposition to the move.
Osama Hamdan, Hamas representative in Lebanon, said the EU’s decision was unexpected.
“They understand our position,” Hamdan told The Daily Star. “They have information about the situation on the ground. They know what the Israelis are doing on the ground, the suffering of the Palestinians, the meaning of resistance. They went through this experience in World War II. So this was an unexpected reaction and a wrong step. It will affect their role in the region.”
Previously, the EU proscribed only Hamas’ military wing, the Ezzeddine al-Qassam Brigades. A similar arrangement exists with Hizbullah. Although completely excluded from the original list, the EU added what it calls the Hizbullah External Security Organization (ESO) in December 2001. Hizbullah ESO is a name adopted initially by the British government for its own list of terrorist organizations under which all the party’s alleged terrorist activities are included. Hizbullah, the political party represented by MPs in Parliament which pursues a broad social agenda and retains a military wing called the Islamic Resistance, was left off the list.
“We might be getting close to adding Hizbullah, especially as its support for Hamas and Islamic Jihad could make the link between Hizbullah and terrorism,” a European diplomat said.
Other diplomats said there are no concrete steps under way at present to add Hizbullah to the list, “although that needs the caveat that everyone is keeping a very close eye on the Blue Line,” said one, referring to the UN-delineated line that corresponds to the Lebanon-Israel border. “But I sense no great pressure to change the list.”
Part of the difficulty for EU proponents of proscribing Hizbullah is the lack of evidence showing that the group continues to engage in acts of international terrorism. Hizbullah has supporter cells around the world, but their activities appear to be confined largely to fund-raising and surveillance of potential targets. The last acts of international terrorism with which Hizbullah was linked were in the mid-1990s. For several years, Hizbullah’s efforts have been confined to South Lebanon and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The diplomat added that if Hizbullah’s military activities were confined to Lebanese
territory, “it would make a huge difference.”
“But once it crosses the border, then it is something else entirely,” the diplomat said, adding that Hizbullah’s cross-border anti-aircraft fire and Israel’s overflight violations do not cancel each other out.
Hizbullah has been keeping a low profile since last week’s Israeli air raid against an observation post in Bayyada. A security source said that Hizbullah’s movements were “routine” and that the atmosphere along the border was “sleepy.”
There have been no Israeli overflights above the southern border district since the air strike on Bayyada, although Israeli aircraft flew over Sidon and Beirut Thursday having skirted UNIFIL observers along the coast.
The security source said that the Israelis were “playing it cool” for the time being, but expected the overflights to slowly pick up. There was a similar lull in overflights following the Aug. 10 air strike against a Hizbullah anti-aircraft battery in Teir Harfa. But in the week before the Sept. 3 incident, Israeli aircraft were penetrating Lebanese airspace on a daily basis.
Observers believe that Hizbullah will again fire volleys of anti-aircraft rounds across the border if Israel’s overflights intensify.