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Political row over Al Quds Day rally
Mr Khan has said he "shares the understandable concerns" of the community
June 23, 2017 08:44
Mr Khan has said he "shares the understandable concerns" of the community
June 23, 2017 08:44A political row has broken out after Conservative politicians attempted to blame Sadiq Khan for the failure to stop the Al Quds march from taking place in central London.
Tory GLA member Andrew Boff had accused the Mayor of London of not “doing his job” during a stormy Mayor’s Question Time debate at City Hall yesterday.
But Jennifer Gerber, Labour Friends of Israel director, said: “Tory attacks on Sadiq Khan for Hezbollah flags flying on the streets of London are totally unjustified and naked blame-shifting.
"The Mayor and the Met are hobbled by the fact that, seven years after it came to office, the government has still not proscribed Hezbollah’s political wing.
"The responsibility for this failure rests solely with the Home Secretary and her predecessor, Theresa May.”
Mr Khan has said he "shares the understandable concerns" of the community over last weekend's Al Quds Day rally, which is now the subject of a police probe.
In his first statement since Sunday's event, he promised he would be "reviewing policing of the march".
But he also repeated the claim that he does not have the powers to ban the march - or any particular organisation, with only Home Secretary Amber Rudd able to sanction such moves. She answered questions on the controversy in the Commons yesterday.
A spokesperson for Mr Khan said: “The Mayor shares the understandable concerns of London’s Jewish community and others about this march. That is why he spoke to the Met Commissioner about it on multiple occasions ahead of the march and asked the Commissioner to ensure the police took a zero-tolerance approach to hate crime and antisemitism.
“However, the Mayor does not have the power to ban a march or ban a particular organisation – that responsibilities lies with the Home Secretary.
“As is the case with all significant public order operations, the Met and Mayor will be reviewing the policing of the march.
“The Mayor will continue to do everything in his power to combat antisemitism, crack down on extremism and ensure London’s Jewish community feel safe and secure in London.”
