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Jeremy Corbyn tells Labour conference he will fight the “evil” of antisemitism

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Jeremy Corbyn has vowed to fight against antisemitism with “every breath” during his keynote speech at the Labour party conference.

Mr Corbyn was loudly applauded by delegates in the hall in Liverpool as he said party members must be more responsible and put an end to abuse.

He said antisemitism was “an evil” that had led to “the worst crimes of the 20th century”.
“This party always has and always will fight against prejudice and hatred of Jewish people with every breath in its body,” the Labour leader said.

The comments were similar to those he made last night at the Labour Friends of Israel reception at the conference, but came as a key ally, activist Jackie Walker, was under renewed scrutiny over remarks about the Holocaust.

Minutes into his speech, Mr Corbyn said: “There is a responsibility on all of us to take care with our rhetoric, respect democratic decisions, respect our differences and respect each other.

“We know that robust debate has at times spilled over into abuse and hate around our party, including misogyny and antisemitism, especially on social media.

“That is utterly unacceptable. Our party must be a safe and welcoming space for everybody and we will continue to take firm action against abuse and intimidation.

“And let me be absolutely clear, antisemitism is an evil, it led to the worst crimes of the 20th century, every one of us has a responsibility to ensure that it is never allowed to fester in our society again.

“This party always has and always will fight against prejudice and hatred of Jewish people with every breath in its body.”

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