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68 rabbis from across UK Judaism sign unprecedented letter condemning Labour antisemitism

'We must speak out with one Jewish voice'

July 16, 2018 20:40
People demonstrate against Labour antisemitism in Parliament Square in March
5 min read

A group of 68 British rabbis from across the denominational spectrum have signed an unprecedented letter urging Labour “to listen to the Jewish community" and adopt the full International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism.

In a sign of how frustrated British Jews have become with Jeremy Corbyn's Labour, Orthodox rabbis joined the senior UK rabbis of Reform, Masorti and Liberal Judaism to "speak out with one Jewish voice" because "antisemitism within sections of the Labour party has become so severe and widespread".

Among the Orthodox rabbis is Rabbi Avrohom Pinter, from the Charedi community.

The letter was published in the Guardian ahead of Tuesday’s national executive committee (NEC) meeting, where party members will vote on whether to approve a new code of conduct on antisemitism that omits key parts of the IHRA definition relating to criticism of Israel.