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Starmer accused of allowing anti-Semitism in Britain to ‘deteriorate’! B

Labour campaign group argues the PM’s actions have ‘added to a climate of intolerance and hate’ against British Jews

The campaign group says Starmer has 'empowered' a spate of increasingly aggressive pro-Palestinian protests

Labour Against Anti-Semitism says Starmer has ‘empowered’ increasingly aggressive pro-Palestinian protests Credit: WPA Pool/Getty Images Europe

Sir Keir Starmer has been accused of allowing anti-Semitism in the UK to “deteriorate” amid a string of “performative” policies which “only serve to satisfy an extreme cadre” of ultra-Left-wing groups.

The Prime Minister’s actions have “empowered” those taking part in a spate of increasingly aggressive pro-Palestinian protests and have “added to a climate of intolerance and hate” faced by British Jews, according to Jewish Labour members.

Labour Against Anti-Semitism (LAAS) – a grassroots campaign group of predominantly Jewish party members – cites the embargo on some arms sales to Israel as well as the Government’s resumption of taxpayer funding to the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine (UNRWA).

The funding had been suspended following claims that its members had taken part in the Oct 7 atrocity, in which 1,200 Israelis were killed and 240 people taken hostage. A number of employees were subsequently sacked by the agency.

Sir Keir has also dropped the previous government’s challenge to the International Criminal Court application for an arrest warrant against Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister.

Alex Hearn, the director of LAAS, says 'many use Israel as a cipher for this hate' of Jewish people

Alex Hearn, the director of LAAS, says ‘many use Israel as a cipher for this hate’ of Jewish people Credit: Dominic Lipinski/PA

In a letter to Sir Keir, seen by The Telegraph, LAAS said: “As Prime Minister, you have set the tone and allowed an already unacceptable state of affairs to further deteriorate.

“It is not good enough to promise that school children will learn about the Holocaust when you are allowing Jewish children to be bullied on our streets.

“Once again, you need to put actions to your words and reassure the Jewish community that contemporary antisemitism, under the guise of humanitarian anti-Zionism, will not be tolerated.

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“You must once again close the door on the anti-Semitism that the previous government’s inaction and your government’s policies have welcomed back on to our streets, making Jews feel unsafe and unwelcome in the UK.”

Official figures, published last month, show that anti-Semitic hate crimes rose at nearly nine times the rate of anti-Muslim offences in the wake of the Oct 7 Hamas terror attacks on Israel.

The number of anti-Semitic hate crimes more than doubled, from 1,543 to 3,282, up to March 2024, a 113 per cent increase and the highest on record.

Last week, pro-Palestinian protesters launched a spate of anti-Israel vandalism attacks on buildings around the UK to mark the 107th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration.

Palestine Action stole two busts of Israel’s first president from Manchester University and daubed campus buildings, along with a research centre and a Jewish charity office elsewhere, with red paint.

In London, Palestine Action sprayed the Britain Israel Communications and Research Centre, on Hampstead High Street, with red paint, claiming it was “funded by wealth made from manufacturing Israeli weapons” and therefore fitted the group’s wider ambition to “dismantle Zionism”.

Last month, Jewish pensioners and women were left in tears while queueing up for an event at the JW3 Jewish community centre in north London. It had been targeted by masked pro-Palestinian protesters shouting in megaphones that they are “mass murderers” and “baby killers”.

The Board of Deputies of British Jews and the National Jewish Assembly said the “appalling” action was “anti-Semitic” and designed “to intimidate British Jews”.

‘Climate of intolerance’

Alex Hearn, director of LAAS, said: “There have been a number of Labour policies which seem to have only served to satisfy quite an extreme cadre of groups.

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“Government figures show attacks against Jews have rocketed and we know many use Israel as a cipher to express this hate.

“Policies such as the decision to reinstate UNRWA funding despite evidence they are intertwined with Hamas, the arms embargo and the ICC arrest warrant are, in reality, performative, but they add to the mood music that Israel is persona non grata.

“People going on these [pro-Palestinian] rallies have become empowered, in part, by these policies. It has added to a climate of intolerance and hate.

“Some of the time Labour policies seem to be catering to those who are attacking us rather than offering us solidarity and support. We would like to see a stronger stance on defending Israel’s right to defend itself and its basic right to exist.”

The activist group Palestine Action doused the Britain Israel Communications and Research Centre in red paint

The activist group Palestine Action doused the Britain Israel Communications and Research Centre in red paint

A Downing Street spokesman declined to comment on the letter but pointed to Sir Keir’s recent speech at the Holocaust Education Trust where he said his government will “not be silent” and “look the other way” but will “call out anti-Semitism for what it is: Hatred. Pure and simple.”

They also highlighted Sir Keir’s stance on the Israel-Hamas conflict which is that he believes the only way forward is restraint and a ceasefire to create the space for a political solution.

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