Starmer has ‘lost trust of British Jews’ after welcoming Egyptian ‘extremist’ into country
Board of Deputies criticises 'astonishing lack of due diligence' over Alaa Abd el-Fattah decision
Senior Labour figures have said Keir Starmer has lost the trust of British Jews after he welcomed an Egyptian dissident into the country who had endorsed the killing of “Zionists” and “police” in a multitude of inflammatory social media posts.
British-Egyptian campaigner Alaa Abd el-Fattah had arrived in the UK on Boxing Day to reunite with family members living here, after being released from jail following a lengthy campaign to bring him to this country, endorsed by numerous celebrities.
After the Prime Minister’s social media platform said he was “delighted” to welcome Fattah into the UK, the full extent of Fattah’s own incendiary posts, including anti-British and anti-white remarks, was circulated online.
Among posts written by Fattah was an admission he considered it “heroic” to kill “any colonialists and especially zionists”.
No 10 has said the Prime Minister, and Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper – who wrote that bringing the activist to the UK was a “top priority” – had been unaware of Fattah’s past comments.
In a statement, Fattah apologised for some of his “shocking and hurtful” remarks, and denied he was an antisemite and a Holocaust denier, insisting some of his comments were “expressions of a young man’s anger and frustrations”.
In their statement, the Board of Deputies criticised an “astonishing lack of due diligence” and said: “We have raised the issue with the government and have left them in no doubt as to our concern.” The Jewish Leadership Council had earlier led the communal criticism.
One Labour MP told The Times: “Letting in a thug with a history of rampant antisemitism and anti-Zionism crossing the line into terror, supporting and calling for the death of all Zionists is ridiculous and bad enough.
“But after Bondi Beach and the Manchester synagogue attack, when the PM said he’d do everything to make the Jewish community feel safe, this looks and sounds like a kick in the face. Fattah should undoubtedly lose his British citizenship.”
In 2014, Fattah was dropped as a nominee for a human rights award over tweets calling for the murder of Israelis.
Another Labour parliamentarian told Jewish News: “There has been a serious lack of judgement here.
“It is absolutely naive for the PM’s social media account to be boasting of his delight at bringing this man into the country.
“There is obviously a consular duty to be considered, but in light of some of the dangerous, extremist views apparently expressed in this man’s social media posts, the Home Office must now consider stripping him of his British citizenship.”
Another minister added: “I fear that just like the previous Conservative government, we don’t understand how to properly tackle extremism.”
In an updated statement, the Foreign Office added: “The Government condemns Mr El-Fattah’s historic tweets and considers them to be abhorrent.”
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch is among those now demanding Fattah’s deportation, saying: “I do not want people who hate Britain coming to our country.”
In an article for the Daily Mail, Badenoch said the Home Secretary “should now look at all possible options, including whether his citizenship can be revoked and he can be removed from Britain.”
However, some government insiders defended Starmer over the issues, pointing out that previous prime ministers, including Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss, as well as former foreign secretary James Cleverly, had all lobbied for Fattah’s release from jail.
Fattah’s release from prison last September followed a long campaign by his family – backed by celebrities such as actresses Dame Judi Dench and Olivia Colman – and lobbying by the British government.
They also stressed that welcoming Fattah’s reunification with his family was not the same as endorsing his political views.Reform UK has said the Conservatives “cannot be trusted” after the decision to grant Alaa Abd El-Fattah citizenship.
He was granted UK citizenship in December 2021 under former Conservative prime minister Boris Johnson, reportedly through his UK-born mother.
He had been imprisoned in Egypt on charges of spreading false news, in a process branded a breach of international law by UN investigators.
He was pardoned by Egyptian president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi in September, following years of lobbying by Conservative and Labour governments, and flew to the UK on Boxing Day.
Since then, the Twitter posts dating from as far back as 2010 have surfaced.
In his statement, Mr Abd El-Fattah said: “I unequivocally apologise.
“(The posts) were mostly expressions of a young man’s anger and frustrations in a time of regional crises (the wars in Iraq, Lebanon and Gaza), and the rise of police brutality against Egyptian youth.
“I particularly regret some that were written as part of online insult battles, with the total disregard for how they read to other people. I should have known better.”
Shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick said Fattah should “be made to live in Egypt or frankly anywhere else in the world”.
Former Conservative leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith signed a cross-party letter in December last year urging the government to secure his release in Egypt.
Writing on X on Sunday, Sir Iain said: “I do, however regret signing the letter calling for the release of Alaa Abd el-Fattah, given his views, that have since come to light, are utterly abhorrent.
“Had I known of these I would not have signed the letter. I urge the police to investigate the nature of these extremist comments.”
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