A Labour councillor who staunchly defended former leader Jeremy Corbyn and ex-Momentum vice-chair Jackie Walker against charges of antisemitism has been elected as chairwoman of the party’s main disciplinary body, the National Constitutional Committee.
Emine Ibrahim, a London Labour Momentum board member and Haringey councillor, posted in a Facebook chat in 2016: “Does anyone on here or in the party think Jeremy is an antisemite? If they don’t then associating him with antisemitism is a slur on his character and his policies.”
In 2016, Ms Ibrahim defended Ms Walker after she was readmitted to the party following suspension for claiming that “many Jews were the chief financiers of the sugar and slave trade,” on a Facebook group forum. Asked how she could defend Ms Walker’s views, Ms Ibrahim said: “Because I have met her and spoken to her and so I believe her when she says she is not an antisemite.”
Later the same year, Ms Walker was suspended again for comments made during antisemitism training and was eventually expelled by the NCC in 2019. Speaking to the JC, Ms Ibrahim said her comments pre-dated her time on the NCC.
