Zionist Organization of America National President Morton A. Klein and Chair Mark Levenson, Esq. released the following statement:
The Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) strongly praised Sir Keir Starmer, leader of Great Britain’s Labour Party, for his principled action in removing a party official from her position after she posted on social media a vile false accusation against Israel with regard to police brutality.
Starmer removed Rebecca Long-Bailey from her role as the opposition party’s “shadow secretary of education” after Long-Bailey posted a link to an article by British actress Maxine Peake falsely accusing Israel of teaching American law enforcement officers the tactic of pressing their knee on a suspect’s neck – the manner in which American George Floyd was killed by a Minneapolis police officer on May 25. Peake’s article was generally deemed as anti-Semitic.
Many American law enforcement agencies send some of their officers to Israel for special training due to Israel’s long experience of facing terrorism and civil unrest. All of these law enforcement agencies have praised the value of this training.
Peake reportedly wrote in the article: “The tactics used by the police in America, kneeling on George Floyd’s neck, that was learnt from seminars with Israeli secret services.” Israeli officials have strongly denied the false allegations.
Long-Bailey was an ally of disgraced former Labour Party Leader Jeremy Corbyn, who had a long record of Jew-hatred and anti-Israel actions and statements.
Along with posting Peake’s article, Long-Bailey wrote that Peake is an “absolute diamond.”
“The article Rebecca shared earlier today contained an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory,” a spokesman for Starmer reportedly said.
Upon being elected leader of the Labour Party in April, Starmer said: “Anti-Semitism has been a stain on our party. I have seen the grief that it’s brought to so many Jewish communities. On behalf of the Labour Party, I am sorry. And I will tear out this poison by its roots.”
For the sake of Great Britain’s Jewish community and for the sake of everything that decent and righteous, ZOA is deeply appreciative and proud that Sir Starmer is fulfilling his moral commitment.