Police remove banner at Labour conference depicting Netanyahu targeting Corbyn
Cartoon showing the Israeli PM firing rockets adorned with word 'defamation' while shouting 'antisemite' at the Labour leader causes row at the party conference
A row broke out on the second full day of the Labour Party conference in Brighton over a cartoon poster depicting Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sending a rocket with the word “defamation” on it in the direction of a caricature of Jeremy Corbyn. The Netanyahu figure is shouting the words “antisemite”.
The banner, which also shows Corbyn pointing at a lectern with the Palestinian flag and the caption “Palestinian rights” was first displayed in the public area outside the official conference zone on Sunday morning, but matters soon grew heated when an unidentified member of the public attacked the poster and slashed it in half.
Palestinian supporters mended the banner with black tape but a second attempt was made to destroy it and police were called.
Next to the cartoon, a caption read: “IHRA (International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance): Tell the NEC (Labour National Executive Committee) how you feel.”
The Labour press team saw the banner and tweeted their unhappiness. They had no hesitation in describing it as antisemitic and said they had asked the police to ensure its removal.
The sign has just been taken down by @sussex_police …. pic.twitter.com/rZqKv7hb2a
— Theo Usherwood (@theousherwood) September 22, 2019
Later speakers at the Jewish Labour Movement rally condemned the posters. Seb Dance MEP said: “I was appalled when I turned up at the conference today to see two disgusting cartoons. I am pleased to say the police have removed these.” And MP Stella Creasey said there should have been a queue around the block to tear the posters down.
But Stan Keble, secretary of the Labour Against the Witchhunt group, which had a stand outside the conference centre, told the JN he did not regard the cartoon as antisemitic and claimed there had been three attempts to destroy the banner and prevent free speech.
Labour Against the Witchhunt was due to hold at least one fringe event at the conference but said that a reporter from the Jewish News could not attend as they were deemed to be “hostile”.
Read more:
- Thornberry: Labour would ‘immediately review all arms sales to Israel’
- Palestine flags flown as Labour conference backs ‘ethical foreign policy’ motion
- Thornberry: Netanyahu ‘trying to turn Israel into an apartheid state’
- Jeremy Newmark ‘rules out standing for Finchley and Golders Green’ in 2019
- Jeremy Corbyn ‘disgusted’ by ‘antisemitic’ banner at Labour conference
- MPs Diane Abbott and Lisa Nandy leave PSC event before BDS founder speaks
- JLM members pledge to ‘fight for heart and soul of party’
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
