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UK Labour Party Seeks to Oust Longtime Jewish MP, Opponent of Antisemitism in the Party by Benjamin Kerstein
Margaret Hodge stands by her accusation of antisemitism against Jeremy Corybn in a BBC interview. Image: BBC News.
A long-time leading Member of Parliament for the UK’s Labour party who is outspoken on the problem of antisemitism in the party is facing a campaign to oust her from office.
Dame Margaret Hodge, who is Jewish, has been forced into a “reselection” race — essentially a local party primary — by left-wing activists, according to local media reports.
Hodge has been one of the most fervent critics of party leader Jeremy Corbyn, who is widely seen as antisemitic. Famously, she told Corbyn to his face that he was “an antisemite and a racist.”
“I am obviously disappointed,” Hodge said in response to the reselection news.
Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden marked the impending Jewish New Year with a fundraiser at which he emphasized Holocaust-related themes…
“My priority remains serving the people of Barking as I have done for the last 25 years,” she added. “At a vital time for the country, with a general election looming, we should be focusing our efforts on holding Boris Johnson and the Tories to account.”
“I will work to secure the full backing of Barking Labour party, so I can continue to play my part as their MP in doing that,” she said.
The Jewish Labour Movement, a century-old Jewish faction within the Labour party that has been a strong opponent of antisemitism among party members, said of the news, “Margaret Hodge has been a steadfast campaigner against racism, fascism, and intolerance throughout her political life.”
“This is a shameful moment for a party which claims to embody the values of equality and diversity,” the group added. “She has been the target of vicious smears, derision, and antisemitism because she has been resolute in her opposition to anti-Jewish racism.”
Labour’s former deputy leader, Harriet Harman, said she was “dismayed more than I can say,” the UK’s Daily Mail reported.
“Margaret Hodge, scourge of tax avoiders, racists, and antisemitism. Champion of progressive policies. Hyperactive local MP. Surely this cannot stand!” she asserted.
Fiona Sharpe, a spokeswoman for Labour Against Antisemitism, which opposes antisemitism from within the party, said that Hodge’s reselection is “further evidence of the hostility towards Jews that is endemic within the Labour Party.”
Referencing Jewish MP Luciana Berger, who quit the party earlier this year over antisemitism, Sharpe said, “Now it appears another Jewish woman who has also been critical of anti-Jewish racism is being targeted.”
According to The Huffington Post, a local source denied Hodge was being targeted over antisemitism, saying, “This wasn’t a Corbyn inspired plot.
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Belgian carnival to double down on antisemitic displays
Giant figures are seen during the 87th carnival parade of Aalst February 15, 2015
The annual carnival in Aalst, Belgium, is expected to take place on Sunday with even more antisemitic elements than in previous years.
Aalst’s organizers have sold hundreds of “rabbi kits” for revelers to dress as hassidic Jews in the carnival’s parade. The kit includes oversized noses, sidelocks (peyot) and black hats. The organizers plan to bring back floats similar to the one displayed in 2019 featuring oversized dolls of Jews, with rats on their shoulders, holding banknotes.
Pope Appears to Give Thumbs Down to Trump’s Mideast Peace Plan
Pope Francis waves as he arrives at the Basilica of Saint Nicholas in the southern Italian coastal city of Bari, Italy February 23, 2020. Photo: REUTERS/Remo Casilli.
Pope Francis on Sunday warned against “inequitable solutions” to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, saying they would only be a prelude to new crises, in an apparent reference to US President Donald Trump’s Middle East peace proposal.
Francis made his comments in the southern Italian port city of Bari, where he traveled to conclude a meeting of bishops from all countries in the Mediterranean basin.
Israel, Palestinian Authority Agree to End Trade Dispute: Officials
Palestinians walk past a shop selling fruits in Ramallah, Feb. 20, 2020. Photo: Reuters / Mohamad Torokman.
Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA) have reached an agreement to end a five-month long trade dispute, officials said on Thursday.
The dispute, which opened a new front in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, began in September when the PA announced a boycott of Israel calves. The PA exercises limited self-rule in the West Bank under interim peace deals.
Disturbing Images Emerge of Astounding Antisemitism at Belgian Carnival
Antisemitic caricatures on display at the annual carnival in Aalst, Belgium. Photo: Raphael Ahren via Twitter.
Disturbing images emerged on Sunday of the annual carnival at Aalst, Belgium, showing an astounding number of antisemitic themes, costumes, displays and statements.
Israeli journalist Raphael Ahren documented people dressed as caricatures of Orthodox Jews, a fake “wailing wall” attacking critics of the parade, blatantly antisemitic characters and puppets wearing traditional Jewish clothes and sporting huge noses.
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KEN COHEN :UN Sinks to a New Low with BDS-Inspired Blacklist
The stench of anti-Semitism always hovers over Switzerland’s Lake Geneva when the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) is meeting there. The foul emanations reached a new nadir last week with UNHRC’s publication of a “database” of companies doing business in the disputed territories in Israel.
Following the publication of the list, Bruno Stagno Ugarte, deputy director for advocacy of NGO Human Rights Watch, stated, “The long-awaited release of the U.N. settlement business database should put all companies on notice: To do business with illegal settlements [sic] is to aid in the commission of war crimes.”
David Suissa : Bad Globalism: China Controls our Meds
One of the many things that annoys me about politicians is how sure they are of themselves. Everything is black and white. Every idea is good or bad. Take globalism, for example. You either love it or hate it. It works or it doesn’t.
Another thing that annoys me is how so much of a politician’s life revolves around power: Do everything you can to get it, and everything you can to keep it.
Why am I ranting? Because, while our politicians have been consumed with power and the media with the fights over power, a threat to our nation has been virtually ignored.
Alex Traiman : Challengers Gantz and Lapid Attack Netanyahu-Trump Relationship
Blue and White Party leaders Benny Gantz and Yair Lapid are establishing their diplomatic credentials in the immediate run-up to Israel’s March 2 election with an insult to a U.S. administration that has arguably provided Israel with more diplomatic gains than any previous administration.
The Times of Israel reported that at a campaign stop in front of English-speaking Israelis, Gantz accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “of neglecting bipartisan ties in favor of exclusive support from U.S. President Donald Trump’s Republican Party,” under the headline “Gantz pledges to mend ties with U.S. Democrats if elected.”
CLIFFORD D. MAY : The Return of the Monroe Doctrine
Bipartisanship was in short supply at the State of the Union address earlier this month—with one notable exception.
Nancy Pelosi had been looking dyspeptic, shuffling the papers she would later rip to shreds, when President Donald Trump reminded his audience that “the United States is leading a 59-nation diplomatic coalition against the socialist dictator of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro.”
Suddenly, the House Speaker applauded. Trump then introduced “the true and legitimate president of Venezuela: Juan Guaidó.”
Melanie Phillips : Sanitizing Soros through Guilt by Association
The law professor Alan Dershowitz has thrown a legal hand-grenade into America’s political civil war by claiming to have evidence that former President Barack Obama “personally asked” the FBI to investigate someone “on behalf” of Obama’s “close ally,” billionaire financier George Soros.
He made his cryptic remark in an interview defending U.S. President Donald Trump against claims he interfered in the prosecution of his former adviser, Roger Stone.