It’s a fact that many of our parents will have said “fucking Germany” after reading about the horrific activities of the Nazis in the 1930s, just as many older readers, like me, will have used the same expletive to describe America after seeing awful photos of napalmed children in Vietnam. In neither case was racism implied, and neither should it be in the case of Graham Jones (Labour suspends second parliamentary candidate over Israel comments, 13 February).
In saying “I’m sure when [world leaders] go home, like me, pardon my French [they say] ‘fucking Israel’ again”, Jones was clearly showing his frustration with Israel’s government, an emotion probably felt by many after watching the appalling destruction of Gaza on television, and hearing about Israel’s refusal to agree to a ceasefire.
It is simply as much a natural reaction to feel anger, and voice it with expletives, on hearing the story of the six-year-old killed in her family car after it “came under fire from Israeli tanks” (Cousin of Hind Rajab, 6, haunted by her last call after family car shot at in Gaza, 11 February), as it is to show elation on seeing people rescued after being buried by an earthquake.
As your editorial states (13 February), Keir Starmer’s desire to escape “his predecessor’s shadow” is one thing, but to pursue it “at all costs” is mistaken. The definition of antisemitism needs immediate clarification from Labour’s leadership; it should not include criticism of the way Benjamin Netanyahu is waging this war. What will almost certainly happen if Starmer doesn’t do this is that the Daily Mail and its ilk will find plenty more evidence over the coming months to embarrass Labour. This is just the start.
Bernie Evans
Liverpool
• The conspiracy theory that the Israeli government deliberately allowed the Hamas assault of 7 October last year, like many conspiracy theories, has evident antisemitic undertones. Azhar Ali has been roundly condemned for propagating it, and is no longer a Labour candidate (Labour withdraws support for Rochdale candidate after Israel-Gaza remarks, 12 February).
A poster produced by the Labour party last April, accusing Rishi Sunak of leniency towards paedophile offenders, had evident racist undertones. The poster was condemned by many Labour members, but defended by some Labour frontbenchers.
Labour is now in a state of total disarray in the Rochdale byelection. It is in danger of losing a presumed safe seat, and Rochdale may not be the last. Keir Starmer should ask himself whether his intransigent refusal to condemn, or even to question, extreme and unlawful Israeli violence against Palestinian civilians helps either Labour’s electoral fortunes or his goal of ridding the party of antisemitism.
Chris Sinha
Cringleford, Norfolk
• Labour’s support for Azhar Ali, crumbling only when it became completely untenable, demonstrates how accusations of antisemitism are handled differently for the right and the left of the party.
With racism on the rise again across Europe, there are very real dangers in how such claims are used for party-factional fighting. The time is long overdue for Labour to take the recommendations of the Forde report seriously.
Mike Sheaff
Plymouth
• Have I missed something? The US president said over the weekend that Israel is killing too many innocent people in Gaza. Then he signed legislation giving Israel billions of dollars of arms with which to kill people. No wonder Josep Borrell is confused (‘Provide less arms’ if you think death toll is too high, Josep Borrell tells Israel allies, 12 February).
The leaders of the Conservative and Labour parties should surely be pointing out the logical contradiction rather than continuing to support the killing spree.
Guy Standing
Geneva, Switzerland
