Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thanked British Prime Minister Theresa May on Monday for the United Kingdom officially designating Hezbollah as a terrorist group, announced the former’s office.
The Israeli leader also expressed gratitude for the United Kingdom’s “strong stand against anti-Semitism,” in addition to applauding a free-trade pact made between the two nations, according to Netanyahu’s office.
The U.K. officially blacklisted Hezbollah last week as a terrorist organization.
“Hezbollah is continuing in its attempts to destabilize the fragile situation in the Middle East, and we are no longer able to distinguish between their already banned military wing and the political party,” said U.K. Home Secretary Sajid Javid. “Because of this, I have taken the decision to proscribe the group in its entirety.”
Two weeks ago, Israeli Minister of Economy Eli Cohen and United Kingdom Secretary of State for International Trade Liam Fox signed a free-trade accord between the two countries ahead of the upcoming United Kingdom split from the European Union.
Great Britain is Israel’s largest European trade partner and third-largest overall. The trade turnover between the two nations in 2018 was around $11 billion—a 15 percent increase from the previous year, according to the Israeli economy ministry data.
