The European Union’s refusal to classify Hizbollah as a terrorist organisation may be due to a backlash from the divisive discussions over lifting the Syrian arms embargo.

Britain’s motion to have Hizbollah banned in Europe is supported by France, Germany and the Netherlands but was rejected for a second time last week.

A senior Israeli official told the Jerusalem Post that smaller countries who opposed removing the arms embargo on Syria are derailing the bid.

“The impression is that there is a degree of settling accounts with the big European countries because of what happened regarding the Syrian arms issue.”

A European official reportedly concurred, stating that countries such as Ireland and the Czech Republic were retaliating for the way Britain and France “rammed through” the removal of the Syrian arms embargo.