Politics
Priti Patel takes credit for Hamas proscription at Board of Deputies Chanukah event
She said the ban was 'long overdue'
December 1, 2021 11:10
She said the ban was 'long overdue'
December 1, 2021 11:10Home Secretary Priti Patel has spoken of how she was responsible for last month’s proscription of Hamas at a Chanukah party in Westminster.
At the Board of Deputies Chanukah reception in the House of Lords, Mrs. Patel said it was “a policy that I am responsible for.”
The Home Secretary also said that the full banning of Hamas was “long overdue”, comments echoing Boris Johnson’s remarks at his meeting with Israeli President Isaac Herzog last week, where he said that the recent terror attack in Jerusalem ‘fully vindicated’ the move.
Leader of the Opposition Keir Starmer was also in attendance at the event, again reiterating his claims that the Labour Party had changed under his leadership.
He said:”I have always said that we will only know that we have made progress when those who had lost faith in the Labour Party regain their faith in Labour.
“The warm welcome you have given me is a step on that journey and means a huge amount to me.”
The full ban of Hamas was passed in a cross party vote by MPs last week.
When she announced the full ban of the terror group, the Home Secretary said: “Hamas is fundamentally and rabidly antisemitic and antisemitism is an enduring evil which I will never tolerate. Jewish people routinely feel unsafe – at school, in the streets, when they worship, in their homes, and online.
“This step will strengthen the case against anyone who waves a Hamas flag in the United Kingdom, an act that is bound to make Jewish people feel unsafe.
“The current listing of Hamas creates an artificial distinction between various parts of the organisation – it is right that the listing is updated to reflect this.”