Australia designates Hezbollah, The Base as terrorist organizations
Sydney, Australia, Nov 24 (EFE).- Australia on Wednesday designated Lebanon’s Shia Muslim militant group Hezbollah and United States-based neo-Nazi group The Base as terrorist organizations.
Australian Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews said that the decision was made as the country reopens for the first time since 2020 Covid-19 border closures, which will lead to an increased risk of attacks.
“We know that as we open our international borders, people will start to gather together, and gather in greater numbers in crowds. That’s the sort of thing that terrorists look for,” she said during a televised press conference.
The Base is “a violent, racist, neo-Nazi group known by security agencies to be planning and preparing terrorist attacks. The Base is currently proscribed as a terrorist organization by the governments of Canada and the United Kingdom and is known to have organized paramilitary training camps overseas,” she added.
Andrews added that Hezbollah, which has civilian, political and militant wings, “continues to threaten terrorist attacks and support terrorist organizations,” which had led her to list it as a terrorist organization in its entirety.
The minister said that the government’s intention was not to create fear among citizens but to protect them against the risk of attacks.
The Base was formed in 2018 by the American neo-Nazi Rinaldo Nazzaro, who is believed to be in Russia.
The white supremacist group is active in the US, Canada, Australia and Europe and advocates the creation of white ethno-states through acts of violence.
Hezbollah (“Party of God”) is a Shia Islamist movement launched in 1985 during the Lebanese civil war with Iran’s backing, and opposes Israel and Western powers operating in the Middle East.
The organization has a political party in Lebanon, as well as non-profits, schools, a secret service and a powerful militia that has been involved in the armed struggle against Israel and in the wars in Bosnia and Syria.
Hezbollah’s military wing is considered a terrorist group by the European Union, the US, Canada, Argentina, Paraguay and Japan, among others, but not by other countries such as China, Cuba, Iran, Russia and Venezuela. EFE
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