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A member of the Labour leadership team has stepped down due to concerns about Sir Keir Starmer’s approach to the situation in the Middle East, increasing the scrutiny on the party leader’s position on the conflict.
Imran Hussain, Member of Parliament for Bradford East, announced his resignation as Shadow Minister for the New Deal for Working People in order to actively support a ceasefire.
He expressed concern to Sir Keir in a written correspondence regarding the Labour leader’s LBC interview, where it seemed as though he implied that the Israeli government could deny access to water and electricity to the people of Gaza.
“I am writing this letter with great sadness to announce my resignation as the Shadow Minister for the New Deal for Working People, after serving on the Labour Party frontbench for eight years,” expressed Mr. Hussain.
He stated that he was pleased to collaborate with Sir Keir and Deputy Angela Rayner to create a strategy for employment rights. However, he could not, in good faith, advocate for an end to conflicts while still being a part of the frontbench.
Mr Hussain stated that there is a significant difference in his opinion on the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza compared to the stance you have taken.
The head of the Labour party is struggling to control his top team’s behavior regarding the situation in Gaza.
A minimum of 16 shadow ministers have expressed support for a halt in hostilities or shared similar calls on various social media platforms, such as Yasmin Qureshi and Jess Phillips.
People search through buildings, destroyed during Israeli air raids in the southern Gaza Strip
Sir Keir emphasizes the continued importance of collective responsibility, but did not specify if members of the frontbench would be fired for going against the party line and advocating for an end to conflict.
Pat McFadden stated on Tuesday morning that Sir Keir would not be altering his position, despite approximately 30 Labour councillors stepping down due to concerns over his handling of the crisis.
He stated that his main point this morning is that while we do aim to put an end to it, our goals should go beyond just a temporary truce. Instead, we should strive for a safer future for both Israelis and Palestinians.
Ten other council members, along with Afrasiab Anwar, the leader of Burnley’s council, resigned from the party on Sunday. They cited their memberships as no longer sustainable due to the leader’s unwillingness to take further action beyond calling for “humanitarian pauses” in the growing conflict.
In an interview with the PA news agency on Sunday, Mr Anwar explained his choice to leave the party, stating, “We cannot continue to be part of a party that remains silent or fails to demand a ceasefire.”
“Our world leaders, including the leader of the Labour Party, are discussing humanitarian pauses instead of promoting peace. This is absurd.”
The council members mentioned that they had communicated with several prominent members of the Labour party, such as Yvette Cooper, David Lammy, and Angela Rayner, to express their worries.
Mr Hussain said he unequivocally condemned Hamas’s 7 October attack but said this could not “become a right to violate international law on protecting civilians or to commit war crimes”.
Currently, there have been over 1,400 Israeli civilians and over 10,000 Palestinian civilians who have lost their lives in the past month, as stated by the writer.
The current number of deaths is expected to increase due to ongoing attacks and the blockade of Gaza, which are not targeting specific individuals.
Mr. Hussain had been a member of Labour’s frontbench for nearly eight years, working under the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn as the shadow minister for international development in 2016.
Source: independent.co.uk
