You’d think that over the last couple of years there might have been one or two Labour MPs resigning from the lobby organisation Labour Friends of Israel. As Israel’s war crimes have piled up in Gaza, with the rulings of the International Court of Justice, as the atrocities, ethnic cleansing and land grabs have spread to Lebanon, the illegal invasion of Iran, as Netanyahu’s regime shows its utter contempt for international law and opinion across the world, and as Israel voted yesterday to enact the death penalty against Palestinian prisoners, you would have thought that there’d have been at least one MP, just one. who said to themselves, “I can’t do this anymore. I can’t go on supporting this, it has gone beyond the pale.” But not one member/supporter has resigned. They have continued to remain silent and carry on at Westminster as if the atrocities in Gaza, the occupied Palestinian Territories, Lebanon and Iran are not happening at all. It’s as if they’ve barricaded themselves into a protective cocoon at Westminster that’s immune to the outside world. The only MP known to have resigned from Labour Friends of Israel is Rupa Huq (MP for Ealing Central and Acton). She resigned in 2019 citing discomfort with the organisation’s positions on several issues, particularly its reluctance to oppose settler occupation and constructions in the Palestinian lands. Not long after she resigned from Labour Friends of Israel, Margaret Hodge’s @JewishLabour Movement accused Rupa Huq of antisemitism. The charges were dismissed by a panel citing lack of evidence. Why do so many Labour MPs remain staunch members and supporters of Labour Friends of Israel? Independent research has argued that MPs with “ties to Labour Friends of Israel and pro-Israel donors ‘have received significant patronage and promotions.’” Many in the highest posts of the Labour government are Labour Friends of Israel members including Yvette Cooper, Wes Streeting, Bridget Phillipson, Jon Reynolds, Alex Davies-Jones, Christian Wakeford, Preet Gill, Dan Jarvis, Emily Thornberry, Peter Kyle, Sharon Hodgson, Pat McFadden, Hilary Benn, Alex Norris, Alison McGovern, Jess Phillips, Liz Kendall, Darren Jones, Kim Leadbeater, Josh Simons, Chris Bryant, Steve Reed, Rachel Reeves, Ellie Reeves, Lucy Powell, Angela Eagle, Mike Tapp, Michael Shanks and Keir Starmer himself. In September 2025, Starmer appointed the chair of Labour Friends of Israel, Jon Pearce, as his Parliamentary Private Secretary. The influence that Labour Friends of Israel exerts over The Labour Party and the UK government is undeniable. Whether that influence is in the best interests of democracy and public representation in Parliament is surely open to question. @UKLabour @_LFI @Ofcom @leicesterliz #LocalElections #LabourDoorstep