“We must make a mission to boot him out. He is such a piece of Zionist trash,” one activist wrote, accusing Duddridge of being “aggressively anti-Jeremy and would open[ly] call him antisemitic especially to my face.”
Another responded that they had “lost my whip and I was put on trial” following similar accusations of antisemitism, adding that Duddridge “must be replaced.”
A screenshot of the WhatsApp message (X)[Missing Credit]
The exchange is reflected in remarks made at Your Party events in recent weeks.
At a North West hustings on February 7, Liverpool councillor Sam Gorst denounced what he described as “fake antisemitism” allegations he faced while in Labour.
In 2019, the JC reported that Gorst had defended former London mayor Ken Livingstone against an “antisemitism witchhunt” and criticised MPs and “corrupt groups” for using antisemitism “as a political weapon” against Corbyn.
At the same event, Haifa Ali, also known as Haifa Alkhanshali, told attendees: “We stand firmly against imperialism and militarism and Zionism.”
In Scotland, Ashley Pringle called for “the complete dismantling of the Zionist regime of settler colonialism and apartheid,” while Eric Uden described Zionism as a notable “issue” in Germany, adding that others could “have some general understanding why that is a thing.”
Also at the Scotland event, Sophia MacLeod said: “The situation in Palestine is a result of decades of the settler colonialism of the Zionist movement.”
Addressing the leaked recording, Gorst told the JC: “I stand firm in my opposition to antisemitism, racism, and oppression in all its forms, and I will continue to advocate for justice, equality, and human dignity.
“Throughout my time as a member of the Labour Party, I was never found guilty of antisemitism. The allegations that I dismissed were just that – allegations. I was expelled for supporting a proscribed socialist group, a decision which I believe was applied retrospectively and without due process.”
Ali said her comments at the hustings “reflect a long-standing political position opposing imperialism, militarism including Zionism as a state ideology. This is a position rooted in universal principles of equality, internationalism and human rights.
“Opposition to Zionism or to the policies of the Israeli state is not opposition to Jewish people. Many Jewish individuals and organisations – both in Britain and internationally – share critical views of Zionism and actively campaign for Palestinian rights. It is therefore wrong and irresponsible to conflate antizionism with antisemitism.
“I reject antisemitism unequivocally, as I reject all forms of racism.”
Your Party was approached for comment.
