More emergency moves from Keir Starmer today, as he and Angela Rayner will meet Labour Muslim MPs to try and settle growing backlash over the party’s stance on the Israel-Hamas war. Tens of Labour Councillors quit following his LBC interview last week where when faced with a ‘yes or no’ question on whether “cutting off power, cutting off water” was appropriate, he replied, “Israel does have that right…” . One Labour MP received a thousand emails of complaint, “the majority of whom were not Muslim voters”…
His hastily organised trip to South Wales Islamic Centre attempting to rectify the situation has gone badly wrong: the Mosque released a statement last night accusing Starmer of bringing them into “disrepute”, claiming he had “gravely misrepresented” the visit on social media, and even apologised for hosting the visit in the first place. Starmer’s big foreign policy test is looking like a Labour land nightmare…
Look at Marine Le Pen’s stunned face during this exchange. Hilarious footage has made its way over the channel of a debate between Marine Le Pen and Macron’s Minister for the Interior Gérald Darmanin, who went on the attack accusing Le Pen of being “a little soft… not hard enough” on the issue of Islam in France. Clearly stunned by the claim, Le Pen, correctly in Guido’s view, ended up defending Islam as “a religion like any other”. See Guido’s translation of the exchange below:
Gerald Darmanin: In her attempts to rehabilitate [her party], Mrs. Le Pen has gone a bit soft. I find you… you need to take some vitamins, you’re not tough enough here. If you compare your line to what Mrs. Marechal Le Pen [Le Pen’s more openly hardline niece] and Mr. Collard [RN MEP] are saying, there’s a huge difference. If I understand you right, you’re prepared to not even legislate on religion, and you say that Islam is not even a problem. You’ve gone quite far, it’s going to disappoint quite a lot of your voters I imagine.
Presenter: I have to admit I’ve not heard the same thing this evening, Mr. Darmanin.
Darmanin: On the contrary, Mrs. Le Pen says it’s not a problem with Islam, it’s a problem with ideology. The Salafists, the Muslim Brotherhood… (they talk over each other)
Marine Le Pen: Yes I can confirm that I don’t intend to attack Islam, which is a religion like any other. And, because I am strongly attached to our French values, I want to conserve total freedom of religion. That’s my opinion.
Hat-tip: Calum Paramor
A senior reporter has left Channel 4 News amid presenting a package last week promoting a racist Islamist who supported ramming attacks. Last Thursday Channel 4 News aired a film presented by reporter Assed Baig showcasing Muslim women who “fight back by rejecting stereotypes”. The film heaped praise on notorious anti-Israel activist Nadia Chan, who has previously:
- Said she: “strongly advocates that the parasitic entity known as ‘Israel’ MUST cease to exist. Furthermore, every single Israeli is a parasite.”;
- Appeared on Iranian state television to praise “the armed resistance from the Islamic Jihad … and also Hamas” in Israel;
- Suggested Palestinians should use “everyday items to resist, whether it’s knives, cars … everyday items to strike the fear in the hearts of their oppressors”;
- Described white people using the racial slur “honkies”;
- Called mixed martial artist Conor McGregor “an arrogant white Irish parasite”;
- Quoted Zimbabwean dictator Robert Mugabe, saying “the only white man you can trust is a dead white man”;
- Described the Independent Police Complaints Commission as “made up of ex cops (pigs) … Pigs are pigs, time to get justice done ourselves”.
Channel 4 has pulled the report and video from its website and deleted tweets promoting the piece…
It’s the latest in a series of controversies concerning Baig. Last year Guido revealed his racially charged tweets referring to Muslim supporters of government-hosted Ramadan meals as “uncle Toms”. Baig slurred Ahmadiyya Muslims and also said of British soldiers fighting in Afghanistan:
“They are not my boys or ‘our’ boys… Since when did we start calling paid soldiers, with Kevlar protection, air support, heavy machine guns, armoured vehicles and tanks heroes? In this narrative the farmer who is defending his country from the occupier is the bad guy. Who are the real heroes?”
A Channel 4 News spokesman told Guido:
“Last Thursday, Channel 4 News broadcast a report looking at the role of Muslim women in British society. Following inflammatory comments made online by one of the women featured after the pre-recorded interview took place, we decided to remove the piece while we investigate further.”
The spokesman also confirmed that Baig left Channel 4 News before the piece went to air. About time…
UKIP going big on Islam this morning:
- Ban face coverings. Nuns and beekeepers exempt.
- Ban sharia law
- Make girls at risk of FGM have annual medical examinations. Err…
- Presumption of prosecution for parents of FGM girls
- All official documents in English alone. What about the Welsh?
- Make Pakistani grooming a hate crime
- Make “honour” crimes an aggravating factor
- Muslim schools taken over by DfE if found to be teaching anti-Israel sentiment
- Moratorium on new Islamic state schools. That’s state schools which are Islamic, not ISIS supporters…
- Abolish postal voting on demand
Some of it very sensible – few would argue that postal voting needs to be looked at or that honour crimes need stronger punishments. Other sections a little out there. A manifesto for internet commenters…
