UK to Proscribe all Hamas

The UK’s Home Secretary, Priti Patel, announced today that she is seeking to have the whole of Hamas declared to be a terrorist organisation.

A proscription order set before Parliament today will soon be debated, with the aim of coming into force on 26th November.

For some years the UK government has proscribed what it considers to be the military wing of Hamas as a terrorist organisation. This new move will include Hamas’ political wing.

It is a criminal offence in the UK to belong to, or invite support for, any proscribed organisation, or even wear clothing perceived to support such a group.

This was recently demonstrated in the conviction of Feras al-Jayoosi on four counts of wearing clothing supporting the military wing of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

The penalty is a fine and/or up to 14 years in prison.

Lord Austin of Dudley applauded the government’s move saying:

“I am delighted the Home Secretary has banned the genocidal terrorists of Hamas
who are opposed to any peace agreement, want to wipe Israel off the map,
and murder the Jews who live there. They caused this year’s conflict by
firing thousands of rockets indiscriminately at Israeli civilians,
but they also rule Gaza in exactly the same way ISIS ran the land it controlled.”

Israel’s government praised the move, with Foreign Minister, Yair Lapid, saying:

“This is an important and significant decision that gives British security bodies
additional tools to prevent the continued build-up of the Hamas terror organisation,
including in Britain.”

Equally to be expected was Hamas’ condemnation of the move in a statement saying:

“Instead of apologising and correcting its historical sin against the Palestinian people …
[Britain] supports the aggressors at the expense of the victims.”

Their point about a ‘historical sin’ seems to be a reference to the Balfour Declaration. But what is most troubling about their statement is that it went on to say:

“Resisting occupation, by all available means, including armed resistance,
is a right guaranteed by international law to people under occupation.”

Claiming that international law gives them the right to fire thousands of rockets indiscriminately at civilians shows just why Hamas should be banned.