Australia to list Hamas as a “terrorist” group

Canberra(QNN)- The Australian government announced on Thursday that it planned to designate the whole of the Palestinian Islamic resistance movement of Hamas as a “terrorist” organisation.

“The views of Hamas and the violent extremist groups listed today are deeply disturbing, and there is no place in Australia for their hateful ideologies,” said Australia’s Home Affairs Minister, Karen Andrews, in a statement.

“It is vital that our laws target not only terrorist acts and terrorists, but also the organisations that plan, finance and carry out these acts,” Andrews added.

“I have received information from a number of our agencies in relation to Hamas and I’m of the view that the threshold to list as a terrorist organisation has been met.”

Andrews said she had written to her state and territory counterparts to consult with them and would finalize the listing as soon as possible.

Canberra had previously listed Hamas’s Al-Qassam Brigades military wing as a “terror group” in 2003, but the new designation which will come into force in April will list the organisation in its entirety, including its political wing, Andrews noted.

The designation will also place restrictions on financing or providing other support to Hamas – with certain offences carrying a 25-year prison sentence.

James Paterson, chairman of the Australian Parliament Intelligence and Security Committee, said that as a result of the designation, “any Australian supporting Hamas could be committing a serious crime – a powerful deterrent to make Australia safer”, according to The Australian.

The Australian reported that this also follows a recommendation from a powerful parliamentary intelligence and security committee four months ago that came in light of “overwhelming evidence” that Hamas operates as a singular entity.

The United States and Canada have long designated Hamas a “terror group,” while the UK announced lately plans to do the same, with those expressing support for the movement risking up to 10 years in prison.

A similar European Union decision had been the subject of a protracted court battle, that eventually resulted in Hamas being returned to the “terror list.”

Based in Gaza, Hamas won the 2006 Palestinian parliamentary elections, defeating its nationalist rival Fatah.