Hizballah rejects UK government's proposal to ban it as terror group

Lebanese Shia movement Hizballah has strongly rejected the British government's move to ban it as a terrorist organisation.

The group, which operates both as a militant group and a political party, said in a statement on Friday that the decision is an "insult to the feelings, emotions and will of the Lebanese people". It stressed that the Shia group is a political force with representatives in the Lebanese parliament and government.

The statement was the first comment by the Iran-backed group on Britain's move earlier this week to ban Hizballah as a terrorist group, accusing it of destabilising the Middle East.

Subject to the British Parliament's approval, the draft order will go into effect on Monday.

Hizballah said the decision was proof that the British government is "merely a puppet" that does the bidding of its American "masters."

Hizballah is a militant movement that was established in 1982 during the Lebanese civil war. In recent years, it played a lead role in aiding Bashar al-Assad's forces fight rebels throughout Syria's war, which has left at least 500,000 dead since 2011.

It now a major political party in Lebanon and holds three cabinet posts.