Erdan to British minister: Outlaw Hamas' political wing
Erdan, according to his office, thanked Javid for leading efforts in Britain in February to blacklist Hezbollah entirely.
By HERB KEINONPalestinians take part in a rally marking the 31st anniversary of Hamas' founding, in Gaza City(photo credit: IBRAHEEM ABU MUSTAFA / REUTERS)
Public Security and Strategic Affairs Minister Gilad Erdan urged visiting British Home Secretary Sajid Javid on Monday to blacklist Hamas' political wing, just as London did to Hezbollah's political branch. Erdan, according to his office, thanked Javid for leading efforts in Britain in February to blacklist Hezbollah entirely – to no longer distinguish between its political and military wing – saying that the Lebanese based terror organization it is one of the main threats to stability in the Mideast. “Just as you did with Hezbollah, so too should Hamas' political wing be made illegal, and not only the military wing. A terrorist organization is a terrorist organization,” Erdan said. Erdan also asked Javid to to consider promoting legislation in Britain, as was done in Germany, that would designate the BDS movement as antisemitic. “The boycott movement exploits freedom of speech, but it is based on the same ideology as the terrorist organizations, and the BDS and boycott movements have a part in the rise of antisemitism inside Britain,” he said. According to the statement put out from Erdan's office, Javid informed Erdan of his initiative to push forward legislation that will impose fines on Internet companies, and even to hold them criminally responsible, for not removing inflammatory and harmful content from the web.
