Arab League removes Hezbollah from ‘terrorist group’ list: Report
The Arab League’s assistant secretary-general says the organisation has ceased referring to Hezbollah as a “terrorist organisation,” Anadolu reports.
In a televised statement on the Egyptian Al-Qahera News Channel the day after he concluded a visit to Beirut, Hossam Zaki said, “The member states of the league agreed that the label of Hezbollah as a terrorist organisation should no longer be employed.”
On March 11, 2016, the Arab League classified Hezbollah as a “terrorist organisation,” with reservations from Lebanon and Iraq, and called for it to “cease promoting extremism and sectarianism, refrain from meddling in the internal affairs of countries, and withhold any support for terrorism and terrorists in the region”.
The classification occurred shortly after the Gulf Cooperation Council countries designated the Lebanese Hezbollah as a terrorist organisation on March 2, 2016.
On Friday, the Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar reported that Zaki visited Beirut and held a meeting with Muhammad Raad, the head of the Loyalty to the Resistance bloc affiliated with Hezbollah. This marks the first contact between the Arab League and Hezbollah in more than a decade.
Zaki’s visit and statement coincided with heightened concerns about a potential escalation between Hezbollah and Israel over the war in Gaza.
Riyadh urges its citizens to refrain from traveling to Lebanon
Saudi Arabia has called on its citizens in Lebanon to leave the country amid rising concerns over an all-out war between Hezbollah and Israel, according to the Saudi state news agency SPA.
The kingdom’s embassy has urged Saudis to leave Lebanon “immediately”, the agency reported.
Several countries, both in the region and Western, in recent days have advised their citizens against travelling to Lebanon.
Palestinians in Lebanon ready to fight if Israel starts war with Hezbollah
Palestinians in Lebanon have watched Israel’s assault on Gaza with simmering anger and are now facing the prospect of a similar fate if Israel wages an all-out war against the Lebanese group Hezbollah.
But many Palestinians in Lebanon say they’re prepared to fight.
Israeli jets break sound barrier over Lebanon’s capital
Our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic are reporting that Israeli fighter jets have broken the sound barrier over Beirut and parts of south and east Lebanon.
The moves come as Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah continued to trade fire, with the Lebanese armed group saying it will only stop when the Israeli assault on Gaza ends.
The hostilities have largely depopulated the border zone on both sides, with tens of thousands of people fleeing their homes.
