In a letter, Israeli President Shimon Peres thanked European leaders for listing Lebanon's Hezbollah as a terrorist organization.
The decision was a "significant and necessary step towards putting an end to the spread of terrorism across the globe," Peres wrote, according to a statement from his office.
"The devastating effects of terrorism are not restricted to the Middle East. As we witnessed in the horrific attack in Bulgaria, Hezbollah strikes all over the world, including within Europe, indiscriminately targeting innocent civilians,"he said.
"Your decision sends a clear message to terrorist organisations and the countries which harbour them that their murderous actions will not be tolerated."
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also welcomed the EU decision:
"I welcome the fact that the EU has also declared Hezbollah to be a terrorist organization and I thank the leaders of its member states. In recent years, the State of Israel has invested great effort in explaining to all EU member states that Hezbollah is the terrorist arm of the Iranian regime and perpetrates attacks around the world,’’ he said.
‘’As far as the State of Israel is concerned, Hezbollah is one organization, the arms of which are indistinguishable. It has imposed terrorist rule on wide sections of Lebanon, has converted them into an Iranian protectorate and is stockpiling tens of thousands of rockets there. These have been placed in the heart of civilian populations and are designed to be fired at population centers in Israel,’’ he added.
‘’I hope that the implementation of the decision will lead to tangible steps against the organization."