Starmer must confront Labour’s Islamist problem

Much talk about Sir Keir Starmer’s risk of a Labour split over Israel and Gaza; less thought, so far, about what it might mean for this country if he were to back away from his initial support for Israel and his unqualified condemnation of Hamas.

After winning his party’s leadership, Sir Keir addressed Labour’s “Jewish problem”, facing down the Corbynite hard Left. He did it well. But Labour, like many British institutions, also has a Muslim problem. This he has not yet faced.

The problem is a remarkable inability to distinguish between Muslims who are in politics because they wish to be good, active citizens of this country and those who follow a sectarian and sometimes extreme approach. Both types are active in the Labour Party.

Not only Labour is at fault here. You can see it in the way bodies like the police or the Crown Prosecution Service have naively engaged with supporters of Hamas, such as Muhammad Sawalha or Mohammed Kozbar (deputy secretary of the Muslim Council of Britain), regarding them, incredibly, as agents of moderation.

The pogroms of October 7 were the greatest atrocities committed in the entire 75-year-story of the state of Israel. They were committed by Hamas (and smaller associates). In its founding Covenant, Hamas denounces the Jews as Nazis, calls for their elimination from the Holy Land and uses the word “jihad” in a context which (whatever Metropolitan Police “experts” might think) unquestionably means violence.

It also lauds terrorism in the name of Islam, invoking Muslim scripture: “Verily ye are stronger than they, by reason of the terror cast into their breasts from Allah.” The Covenant is a virulently racist document.

Those who marched in London and other British cities in the wake of the massacres knew this, or were in position to know this, yet the whole of their anger was directed against those attempting to fight back against the mass murderers. Therefore, those marching were either Hamas supporters or Hamas tolerators (or utter ignoramuses). They had nothing to say about the monstrous crimes just inflicted, except, in some cases, to support them.

Current calls for a ceasefire should be seen in this light. Although many will feel genuine compassion for the people of Gaza, they must surely know that a ceasefire at this point would give massive advantage to Hamas and, in effect, remove from Israel its right of self-defence.

This means that if Sir Keir now backs down, he will have shown that his leadership dare not confront the faction in his party which, at best, excuses Hamas and, at worst, supports it. That would be terrible for a party which expects to govern after the next election. It would be seen to be appeasing, for electoral advantage or because of weak leadership, the deadliest terror group currently operating in the world. Such a party could not unite the nation, nor uphold the rule of law.

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