Burnley Council speaker, ten Labor Party members resign over Gaza war

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: News websites
6 Nov 2023 02:58
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Afrasiab Anwar, one of the resigning councilors, was among those who previously called for the party leader to resign.

Burnley Council leader Afrasiab Anwar. (Social media)

Burnley's council leader, Councillor Afrasiab Anwar, resigned from the Labour Party just days after urging Sir Keir Starmer to step down as leader due to his stance on the Israeli war on Gaza.

He described his departure from the Labour Party as a "tough decision."

Anwar and a group of ten other councilors have issued a statement announcing their collective decision to depart from the party, citing their memberships as "unsustainable" due to the leadership's failure to call for a ceasefire in the Middle East.

The local politicians expressed their belief that Sir Keir had shown a lack of appreciation for the party's grassroots, referencing comments made by the Opposition leader following a speech on Friday.

The Labour Party has supported the UK Government's position, endorsing the call for a "temporary cessation of hostilities to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid and medical care to the people of Gaza." However, Anwar criticized the stance as “nonsensical” and argued that it failed to represent the intense sentiments in his Lancashire town, as well as in communities across Britain, regarding the war.

Last week, he issued a joint call, along with Asjad Mahmood – a Pendle Borough councilor, for Sir Keir to resign over his leadership on the issue.

On Sunday, when discussing his choice to leave the party, Anwar stated, "We cannot remain passive or be associated with a party that fails to raise its voice, or at the very least, advocate for a ceasefire," adding that “Instead of talking of peace all of our world leaders, including the leader of the Labour Party, are talking about humanitarian pauses. It is just nonsensical."

There needs to be a #CeasfireNOW how many more innocent civilians have to die before one is called? Over 3000 children killed already. Where is the humanity #CeasefireNOW @Keir_Starmer @RishiSunak
— Afrasiab Anwar MBE 💙 (@afrasiab_anwar) October 31, 2023

“I just don’t think the message is getting through in terms of how our communities, right across the board, are feeling about this.”

The Burnley Council leader said the councilors had tried “everything we could by working within the party”.

Councilors' joint statement

In a statement, the councilors mentioned that they had held discussions with several prominent figures within the Labour Party, such as shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper, shadow foreign secretary David Lammy, and deputy leader Angela Rayner, to convey their apprehensions.

They said they had also written to Sir Keir, as well as Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

However, in a joint statement, the councilors said: “Regrettably, after exhausting every available option, we have arrived at the conclusion that the current party stance on Palestine does not align with the values we hold dear."

“Consequently we have collectively decided to resign from the Labour Party immediately, feeling that our place within the party is untenable given its present position."

“We cannot remain in a party that is not doing enough while innocent people are being killed in Gaza and Israel.”

Wave of resignations in the Labour Party

Earlier last month, several councilors affiliated with the UK's primary opposition party, the Labour Party, have tendered their resignations. Their decision to step down came in protest of the party's leader, Keir Starmer, who expressed support for what he termed the Israeli "right" to restrict power and water supplies to Gazans.

Prominent figures within the shadow cabinet and other senior members of the party have also echoed similar sentiments to Starmer, defending the current Israeli aggression. This group includes individuals such as Emily Thornberry, who holds the position of shadow attorney general, John Healey, serving as the shadow defense minister, and David Lammy, who serves as the shadow foreign secretary.