Hezbollah condemns US sanctions on Lebanese lawmakers

Hezbollah has criticised new US sanctions on members of the Parliament of Lebanon affiliated with the group, calling the move an attempt to pressure supporters of the “resistance” against Israel.

In a statement published on its Telegram channel, Hezbollah described the potential sanctions as “a blatant attempt to intimidate a free people, the majority of whom support the resistance forces standing up to Israeli aggression," Caliber.Az reports. 

The group said Washington was targeting its lawmakers and political leaders because they oppose efforts to disarm Hezbollah and reject what it described as U.S.-backed policies benefiting Israel.

“The charge leveled by the U.S. administration against our lawmakers and leaders is that we refuse to disarm the Resistance and oppose the capitulation schemes into which the U.S. is trying to drag our country in the interests of the Zionist entity,” the statement said.

Hezbollah added that the sanctions would not alter its political stance or activities.

“These sanctions are a badge of honour for those upon whom they are imposed, further confirmation of the correctness of our choice,” the statement continued. “They are not worth the ink with which they are written and will have no practical impact on our decisions.”

The group also said its representatives would continue working “in the interests of the people, the protection of their interests, and their sovereignty.”

The response follows an announcement by the US State Department that it had imposed sanctions on nine individuals accused of helping Hezbollah “undermine Lebanon’s sovereignty and advance Iran’s interests in the country.”

By Sabina Mammadli