Hezbollah: Threat to the United Kingdom

Baroness Helic Excerpts

Tuesday 5th November 2024 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Helic (Con)]

My Lords, I thank my noble friend for securing this debate, though I regret that it is a brief one. The Middle East’s challenges profoundly affect our national security, our social cohesion and the security and well-being of our citizens. Given this, I hope more time can soon be allocated to ensure a thorough debate, not only about the crises themselves but about their profound impact on communities in Britain, including the Jewish community, in the wake of the terrorist attack last year.

The proscription of any group that could endanger British lives and interests is an essential part of any Government’s strategy to disrupt terrorist organisations and their supporters. Whether it is al-Shabaab, Hezbollah, Sonnenkrieg, Hamas or the Wagner Group, the Government’s response sends a strong and important message of our society’s rejection of terrorism and support for measures against it. This we must support. But while proscription may be a visible and necessary short-term measure, achieving what is best for the United Kingdom and her citizens also requires more comprehensive strategies that address the root causes of extremism itself.

Two immediate examples come to mind. The first is Lebanon. While the original confessional formula—derived from the French colonial dispensation—was good for civic peace and gradual democratic development, it created other problems, including an eventual extension of regional politics into domestic affairs. This system has been maintained by various groups, particularly the Shia community in southern Lebanon, where Hezbollah holds influence. It has also enabled external actors—especially Iran, Syria and occasionally Israel and Saudi Arabia—to interfere in Lebanon’s affairs. It is tragic to see the people of Lebanon pay the price for the lack of peace in the region.

The second example is the instability of the Middle East, including the unresolved issue of a Palestinian state. Addressing the interconnected challenges of Israel’s security and broader Middle East stability is impossible without resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through a commitment to justice and adherence to international law, bringing about a two-state solution premised on two states living side by side with secure and recognised borders, with Jerusalem as the shared capital of both.

What is my noble friend the Minister’s assessment of the future of the Middle East peace process? If it is truly over in the form in which we have known it for years, what is going to be put in its place? For absolute clarity, I fully support the proscription of organisations that endanger Britain and her interests, but we cannot treat only the symptoms without looking at the causes. For long-term security, we must make sure we do both.