Labor Party loses Muslim voters: outrage over arms deliveries!

Labor Party loses Muslim voters: outrage over arms deliveries!

London, United Kingdom –Anger among British Muslims is simmering! Halimo Hussain, 31, a committed Labor voter, has permanently stopped supporting the party after the July 2024 election. “It was impossible to support the Labor Party while it was actively funding genocide and condoning the collective punishment of Palestinians in Gaza,” explains the Tottenham diversity and inclusion officer. Your vote now belongs to independent, pro-Palestinian candidates.

Although Keir Starmer's Labor Party won the election in a landslide, it has lost a crucial part of its electorate. The party may have changed its stance on the Gaza conflict, but British Muslims are dissatisfied. Starmer declared after the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023 that Israel had the right to self-defense, leading to an outcry within the party. His later clarifications could not calm the situation.

Growing calls for an arms embargo

The voices calling for more action from the Labor government are growing louder. Over 100 Muslim council members have called on Prime Minister Starmer to immediately stop arms sales to Israel. “We must not be complicit in these clear violations of international humanitarian law,” their letter said. Joseph Willits from the Center of Arab-British Understanding sharply criticizes the British government: “It is astonishing that they are not acting in the face of the rising death toll.” Since October 7, 2023, over 43,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, while Israel is also bombing Lebanon.

While the Labor Party has taken some steps, such as restoring funding to UNRWA and lifting a formal objection to the International Criminal Court, these measures are not enough for many. Experts demand that the British government takes its international obligations seriously and takes active action against the attacks on Gaza. “The UK must sanction the Israeli political and military leadership,” says Lawrence Hill-Cawthorne, professor of international law. But so far the British government has remained inactive.