Hamburg - Suspected Hezbollah members to stand trial
Two suspected members of the Lebanese Hezbollah arrested in Lower Saxony are to stand trial in Hamburg. They are suspected of having been members of a foreign terrorist organization, the federal prosecutor's office in Karlsruhe announced on Friday. On December 4, charges were brought before the State Security Senate at the Hanseatic Higher Regional Court. A court spokesman in Hamburg said that the Higher Regional Court still had to decide whether to admit the charges.
According to the Federal Ministry of the Interior, the terrorist organization Hezbollah is banned from operating in Germany. The Shiite-Islamist organization is directed against the idea of international understanding. It denies Israel's right to exist and propagates the fight against the Jewish state by terrorist means.
The two men - a 49-year-old Lebanese and a 55-year-old German-Lebanese - were arrested on May 10 this year in the districts of Aurich and Cuxhaven. The 49-year-old is said to have joined Hezbollah in Lebanon over 30 years ago. Since 2016, he had been in charge of Lebanese associations in coordination with leading cadres, particularly in northern Germany, the federal prosecutor's office added. For several years, he had regularly appeared as a preacher, for example at the Al-Mustafa community in Bremen, which was banned in 2022.
The 55-year-old is said to have been a member of Hezbollah since 2004. He had been active as a foreign functionary and member of an elite military unit. From 2009, he was reportedly active as a member and later chairman of the Al-Mustafa community. At the turn of the year 2015/2016, he had visited troops in the Syrian civil war in the uniform of his unit in order to strengthen their will to fight.
Press release on the indictment Press release on the arrest of 10.5.23 Federal Ministry of the Interior on Hezbollah
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- The federal prosecutor's office in Karlsruhe also pointed out that the Federal Ministry of the Interior in Germany has declared Hezbollah a banned organization due to its involvement in terrorism.
- The trial of the two suspects in Hamburg is significant as Hezbollah, a Shiite-Islamist group based in Lebanon, has long been accused of engaging in terrorism activities against Israel and supporting other terrorist organizations.
- In response to the arrests, the Federal Ministry of the Interior in Germany issued a press release emphasizing the seriousness of the situation and reiterating the country's stance against any form of terrorism.
- The arrests and upcoming trial in Hamburg are a reminder that processes related to terrorism and foreign terrorist organizations are closely monitored and pursued by authorities in Germany and beyond, including the federal prosecutor's office and the Federal Ministry of the Interior.
- The 49-year-old Lebanese suspect, who has been charged with being a member of Hezbollah since the 1990s, is believed to have played a key role in coordinating Lebanese associations in northern Germany, including the now-banned Al-Mustafa community in Bremen.
- The trial in Hamburg is expected to shine a spotlight on Hezbollah's activities in Germany and its alleged involvement in terrorist activities against Israel and other targets, drawing attention to the ongoing efforts to combat terrorism in the European Union and beyond.
Source: www.stern.de
