WEXLER HOLDS HEARING ON ADDING HEZBOLLAH TO THE EU TERRORIST LIST

(Washington, DC) Congressman Robert Wexler, a senior member of the House Foreign Relations Committee and Chairman of the Europe Subcommittee, will hold a hearing on Wednesday, June 20, 2007 on the issue of Hezbollah’s omission from the European Union’s (EU) terrorist list. The hearing – entitled “Adding Hezbollah to the EU Terrorist List” -- will focus on Hezbollah’s vast network in Europe and the extent to which its omission from the EU list of terrorist organizations impacts its operational capabilities in Lebanon, Israel, the Middle East and globally.

Hezbollah is classified as a terrorist organization by the United States, Canada, Netherlands and the United Kingdom and Australia have placed the “Hezbollah External Security Unit” on their terrorist list. On March 10, 2005, the EU Parliament voted overwhelmingly to adopt a resolution that affirmed Hezbollah's involvement in terrorist activities and ordered the EU Council to "take all necessary steps to curtail" Hezbollah. Four days later, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.Res.101, urging the European Union to add Hezbollah to its terrorist list. This was followed by a Wexler-led letter to EU High Representative Javier Solana in July 2006 signed by nearly half of the House urging the EU to add Hezbollah to its terrorist list. Both the resolution and letter were complimented by similar efforts in the United States Senate.

“It is critical that the US and EU work together to crack down on Hezbollah’s deadly global terrorist operations as well as their growing network in Europe. It is deeply disconcerting that a deadly terrorist organization, such as Hezbollah, uses European soil as a safe haven to organize, fundraise and recruit. The addition of Hezbollah to the EU terrorist list would bolster transatlantic counterterrorism co-operation, dry up critical funding for Hezbollah’s terrorist activities, and weaken Iran and Syria’s ability to further destabilize Lebanon and the entire Middle East,” Congressman Wexler said.

Hearing witnesses will include Michael Jacobson of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, Mr. Alexander Ritzmann of the European Foundation for Democracy, and Mr. James Phillips of the Heritage Foundation. The open hearing will take place at 1 p.m. in room 2200 of the Rayburn House Office Building on Wednesday, June 20.

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Congressman Wexler is Chairman of the Europe Subcommittee and a senior member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and the House Judiciary Committee; and he also sits on the Financial Services Committee.

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