Britain's Parliament banned the military wing of Hizbullah on Tuesday to punish it for supporting terrorist activities in Iraq and the Palestinian territories.
The ban makes it a crime to join or support the group's military wing.
Britain's minister in charge of fighting terrorism Tony McNulty said he had evidence that the movement was linked to insurgent groups in Iraq that had attacked coalition soldiers.
I can say unequivocally that Hizbullah's military wing is providing active support to Shia militant groups in Iraq," he said.
All political parties supported the ban, which passed through the House of Commons unopposed.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown had told lawmakers earlier this month that he wanted to add the military wing of the organization to a list of banned terrorist organizations.
Britain lists 45 groups as banned international terrorist organizations, including al-Qaida and the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK. Hizbullah's external security organization has been listed since 2001.
McNulty insisted that Hizbullah's social and political work in Britain would be unaffected, but the ban would place tight limits on fundraising.
