UK’s Labour Party cuts ties with a candidate who said Israel allowed Hamas’ attack to happen

By JILL LAWLESS
Associated Press

LONDON (AP) — Britain’s opposition Labour Party has disowned an election candidate who claimed that Israel allowed Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack to happen as a pretext to invade Gaza. Azhar Ali was selected last month to run for Labour in a Feb. 29 special election for the House of Commons seat of Rochdale in northwest England. Soon after, a newspaper published remarks he had made during a local party meeting last year.  Labour said Monday that while it was too late to replace Ali on the ballot paper, the party had “withdrawn its support” for him. Labour has been trying to root out antisemitism that’s alleged to have tainted the party under Corbyn, a strong supporter of the Palestinian cause.