Controversial MP Zarah Sultana has come under fire after calling on Liverpool FC to pull out of commercial deals with six businesses she claims are “implicated in Israel’s atrocities against Palestinians”.
In a post on X, the former Labour MP, who switched to Your Party, which she founded with Jeremy Corbyn, said: “Liverpool must answer supporters and end complicity in apartheid and genocide”.
Vic Huglin, a leading member of Liverpool’s Jewish community and the first agent of recently deceased club legend Kevin Keegan, described her allegations as “obscene” and “unfounded” commenting that “to use the genocide claim is immoral and insulting”.
Her comments also prompted an angry backlash on the social media platform with many urging her to “shut up”.
In her X post, Sultana reproduced a letter on House of Commons headed paper which she sent to the club on June 25 saying she had still not received a response.
In her letter, she cited a report by the charity War on Want called Red Card: English Premier League Sportswashing of Israel’s Atrocities Against Palestinians.
She wrote: “Like many Liverpool fans, I now find myself upset and angry to see Liverpool FC having more sponsors complicit in Israel’s atrocities against Palestinian people than any other Premier League club.
“Not only the UK government but corporate entities, including Liverpool FC, must take concrete steps to cease direct and indirect support for Israel’s atrocities. Continued association with these sponsors is not a neutral commercial decision. It is complicity.”
Sultana claimed the charity’s report compiled evidence from “five authoritative sources” and named AXA, Carlsberg, Coca-Cola, Expedia, Google Pixel and Standard Charted as the companies who should be ditched.
Her examples of alleged wrongdoing included Carlsberg beer being manufactured and distributed by Coca-Cola Israel.
She claimed tourism company Expedia “offers rentals in illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank including East Jerusalem and the occupied Syrian Golan Heights” which puts it “in direct breach of the standards set by the UN Human Rights Council’s database of businesses operating in occupied territories”.
AXA was accused of investing $59.6bn in “51 complicit businesses” and Standard Chartered was similarly accused of providing “$15.4bn to 24 businesses complicit in Israel’s atrocities between January 23 and August 25”.
Sultana also claimed Google/Alphabet provides Israel with cloud computing and AI infrastructure under Project Nimbus, directly enabling its military and surveillance systems.
She went on to allege Liverpool is indirectly sponsored by Barclays Bank, the main sponsor of the Premier League, despite “the bank’s long and ongoing record as an enabler of apartheid”.
The War on Want report she referenced was published in May, and its lead author, Neil Sammonds, describes himself as “Senior Campaigner on Militarism & Security at War on Want, focusing on Palestine” on his LinkedIn page.
In the introduction, it states: “The report exposes an injustice at the heart of our beautiful game. EPL clubs, the EPL itself and the English Football Association (FA) are at risk of complicity in Israel’s genocide, illegal occupation, and apartheid against the Palestinian people.”
Sultana, 32, has been a longstanding critic of Israel, speaking out in the Commons against the proscription of Palestine Action.
She was elected as Labour MP for Coventry South in 2019 but announced she was quitting to set up a new party with Corbyn in July last year.
As being well known amongst the Jewish community in Liverpool, Huglin, a former chair of both the Jewish National Fund and the United Jewish Appeal, is a familiar face at Anfield and has followed Liverpool abroad many times over his 75 years as a supporter.
He said: “She should gain knowledge of facts before making unfounded allegations and to use the genocide claim is immoral and insulting to the Jews in Europe and citizens of Rwanda who experienced a real genocide.
“Liverpool FC has always prided itself on inclusiveness and non involvement by bringing politics into sport, when the Gaza war started they banned Palestinian and Israeli flags from the ground .
“Over the years they have had three Israeli players Avi Cohen, Ronnie Rosenthal and Yossi Benayoun, as well as the world famous Mohammed Salah from Egypt playing for them.
“As a supporter, I find her comments insulting and selectively obscene.
“Liverpool FC will always never walk alone and supports all supporters of all faiths. Politics has no place at Liverpool FC.
“We just want to watch good football and promote tolerance and understanding.”
The JC has approach Liverpool, The Premier League and War on Want for comment.
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