Senior Iran diplomat condemns Germany's designation of Hezbollah as a terrorist group
Germany’s designation of the Iran-backed Hezbollah as a terrorist organization is a “strategic mistake,” senior Iranian diplomat Hossein Amirabdollahian said on Thursday.
Germany branded Hezbollah a “Shiite terrorist organization” on Thursday, with dozens of police and special forces storming mosques and associations across the country linked to the Lebanese militant group.
“Germany's move to designate Hezbollah as [a] terrorist entity is a strategic mistake,” senior foreign policy advisor to Iran’s Speaker of Parliament Hossein Amirabdollahian tweeted on Thursday.
“Being [a] key element of Lebanese society, Hezbollah safeguards security and territorial integrity of Lebanon,” he added in the same tweet.
Amirabdollahian, who is a former deputy foreign minister, warned that “Germany's stick to US-Zionist policy endangers its regional interests.”
The Iranian foreign ministry also condemned Germany’s decision to designate Hezbollah a terror group, saying it would face consequences for its decision to give in to Israeli and US pressure.
Hezbollah was established in 1982 during the Lebanese civil war and fought a 2006 war with Israel.
Iran is a major supporter of the Lebanese Shia group and its “resistance” against the Islamic republic’s arch foe Israel.
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