Switzerland breaks neutrality, votes to ban Hezbollah after outlawing Hamas and cutting UNRWA funding

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In a departure from their longstanding position of political neutrality, Switzerland voted to ban Hezbollah on Tuesday.

The Swiss parliament announced that the Lebanese-based terror group was a threat to international security and that Switzerland needed to stand against terrorism.

The Swiss government opposed the ban, citing the country’s intelligence act, which requires either sanctions or a United Nations designation for such measures to be implemented.

“If Switzerland now moves to ban such organizations with special laws, we must ask ourselves where and how the boundaries are drawn,” Justice Minister Beat Jans said during the parliamentary debate.

However, the measure was approved in the upper house first and passed in the lower house with 126 votes in favor, 20 against, and 41 abstentions.

Last week, the Swiss parliament outlawed Hamas in Gaza over the Oct. 7, 2023 terror group's attack in southern Israel, when 1,200 civilians were murdered and 251 more were taken hostage in the Gaza Strip.

The bill passed on Tuesday and was drafted in accordance with the Swiss government’s practice of banning organizations on a case-by-case basis for “extremely serious reasons.”

Prior to the Hamas and Hezbollah ban, Switzerland had only banned al-Qaeda and the Islamic State (ISIS), which are on the UN's list of terrorist organizations. Switzerland does not have its own national terrorist list, arguing that it only applies sanctions from the UN Security Council, which has not designated Hamas a terrorist group.

Before the November ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, the terror group had been launching cross-border rocket and drone attacks on Israel from Lebanon since Oct. 8, 2023, resulting in 45 civilian deaths and causing 60,000 Israelis to be displaced from their homes in the north.

In September of this year, the Swiss National Council voted to stop payments to UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees). The decision was based on evidence of UNRWA members' activity and association with Hamas, as well as the promotion of hatred and violence in UNRWA school curricula.

Jewish organizations in Switzerland have been calling for the country to declare Hamas and Hezbollah terrorist organizations.

Following the Oct. 7 massacre last year, the Swiss Federation of Jewish Communities (SIG) and the Platform of Liberal Jews in Switzerland issued a joint statement that read, “Without a clear ban, Hamas will continue to receive legitimacy as a normal political actor. All the more so because Hamas can move freely in Switzerland, collect donations and handle its finances.”