Burak Bir
23 October 2023•Update: 23 October 2023
LONDON
A British-Palestinian academic resigned on Sunday from the UK's main opposition party, criticizing its position on the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Kamel Hawwash, a Civil Engineering professor at the University of Birmingham, wrote an open letter to the party’s leader Keir Starmer calling him to "stand on the right side of history."
In the letter, which he shared on X, Hawwash noted that the Labour Party has major problems with the direction it has taken on Palestine and Israel under Starmer's leadership.
"I have followed the party’s position on Palestine and Israel with dismay. You yourself have aligned yourself with blind support for Israel whatever it does and literally thrown the Palestinians under the bus or as in Gaza now, the bombs," he asserted.
He went on to say that the Labour party has been suspending and expelling members, "especially Jewish members, essentially for voicing support for Palestinians."
Criticizing Starmer's statements and policies towards the Palestine-Israel issue, Hawwash accused Starmer of refusing to meet with the Palestinian community in the UK despite repeated requests while meeting "pro-Israel organizations on a regular basis."
Recalling the series of recent resignations from the party by councilors followed by Starmer's controversial remarks during an interview with LBC radio, Hawwash said: "I salute the Labour Councilors for saying enough is enough."
On Oct. 11, the main opposition leader said that Israel had the "right" to cut power and water supplies to Palestinians living in Gaza. The remarks sparked controversy among the party and he came under criticism.
"There should be no reason for not calling for an unconditional cease-fire between Israel and the Palestinian factions to save lives on both sides. How many more deaths are needed to convince you that this is the correct call now?" said Hawwash, who is also the chair of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign.
"My mother, who was born in Jerusalem before Israel was created and now lives in Birmingham, has no right to return to her home city, but a Jewish woman from Birmingham with no connection to the holy land has a ‘right to return’ to a place she does not come from, Israel. That is the injustice," he added.
He said he hopes Starmer will end his "blind support for Israel."
