Carlos FresnedaLondon Correspondent

London Correspondent

Updated Wednesday, February 14, 2024-15:36

  • War in Gaza "Borrell wants to receive the Nobel Peace Prize at the expense of Israel's security"

Israel's offensive in Gaza has once again caused a new crisis in the Labor Party, with the expulsion of two candidates (

Azhar Ali and Graham Jones

) accused of anti-Semitism. The leader of the Labor opposition,

Keir Starmer

, finds himself again at a crossroads like the one three months ago, when dozens of councilors resigned and 56 deputies broke party discipline by voting in favor of an amendment calling for a

"ceasefire." ".

The new incidents threaten to frustrate Starmer's high expectations in the special elections being held on Thursday in the Kingswood and Wellingborough constituencies, in which the Labor Party aspired to take the two seats from

Rishi Sunak

's Conservative Party . In the latest Ipsos poll, Labor had once again marked a difference of more than

20 points over the "Tories"

in voting intention (49% to 27%).

The specter of anti-Semitism, against which Starmer has been fighting in his more than three years as leader, has however taken its toll again this week. The first case was

Azhar Ali

, candidate for Rochdale (where special elections are also held on February 29, who referred to the influence of the Jewish lobby in the media and went so far as to insinuate that Israel allowed the Hamas attack on October 7 as an excuse to invade Gaza.

The second incident involved Graham Jones, candidate for Hyndburn for the next general election in 2024, accused of referring to

"fucking Israel"

and proclaiming that "no British citizen should fight for another country" ( in reference to British Jews enlisted in the Israeli army).

The comments, captured during a meeting of Labor activists in Hyndburn, were revealed by

The Mail on Sunday

and provoked immediate reaction from the Jewish Labor Movement (JLM). Starmer was slow to react, but his decision was devastating when he learned the statements in detail.

The Jewish faction of Labor has demanded that its leader take all the consequences with all the militants who participated in a pre-election conclave in Hyndburn, where both Azahr Ali and Graham Jones made their comments. The meeting was called and led by Munsif Dad, a Labor councilor for Hyndburn, who also sees his position in danger.

The first crisis in Labor due to the war in Gaza opened a few days after the Israeli offensive, when MP

Andy McDonald

was suspended for participating in a pro-Palestinian march in London and paraphrasing at an open microphone the slogan

"of the river to the sea, Palestine will be free."

Starmer's alignment with Sunak's pro-Israel policy, and his refusal to support a ceasefire, has been harshly criticized by the party's left wing and has sparked a chain reaction from dozens of Muslim councillors. Even the mayor of London,

Sadiq Khan

, a close ally and personal friend of Starmer, has publicly criticized him for his position on the conflict.

42% of Labor voters in fact believe that

Starmer has "mishandled" his response

and the loss of support in Muslim communities threatens to jeopardize the large lead over Rishi Sunak in the countdown to the 2024 election. They are expected to celebrate next fall.