corbyn
© Parliament/Jessica Taylor/Handout via REUTERS
Jeremy Corbyn's suspension from the UK's Labour Party has been lifted on the same day he was slammed for a "pathetic non-apology" for comments about a report of anti-Semitism within his party's ranks.

Corbyn announced his Labour reentry on Tuesday, following last month's suspension.

"Our movement must now come together to oppose and defeat this deeply damaging Conservative government," he tweeted.

Corbyn found himself embroiled in controversy after dismissing a report from the Equalities and Human Rights Commission about alleged anti-Semitism in his party as "dramatically overstated for political reasons."


Comment: The allegations were wholely unfounded and were deployed so as to smear him because he posed a threat to the corrupt powers in parliament: Britain's Chief Rabbi is helping to stoke antisemitism



The Labour Party suspended Corbyn following the statement and launched an investigation. Corbyn called his suspension "political intervention" and vowed to fight it.

In a Tuesday statement before the announcement that he was welcomed back into the fold, Corbyn clarified his comments and said, "To be clear, concerns about anti-Semitism are neither 'exaggerated' nor 'overstated.'"

"The point I wished to make was that the vast majority of Labour Party members were and remain committed anti-racists deeply opposed to anti-Semitism," he wrote.

Corbyn's statement made him the target of criticism once again, with the Board of Deputies of British Jews slamming it as a "pathetic non-apology."

Jewish MP and chair of the Jewish Labour Movement Margaret Hodge and Gideon Falter, chief executive of Campaign Against Anti-Semitism, also dismissed the statement.

The EHRC report accused the Labour Party of harassment and discrimination against Jews, and lead investigator Alasdair Henderson deemed Corbyn, the former leader of the party, "ultimately accountable and responsible."

Current party leader Keir Starmer was more welcoming of the report's findings, promising "zero tolerance" for discrimination within the party going forward. In a Tuesday statement following Corbyn's announcement, Starmer reiterated his belief in the EHRC findings and promised to make the Labour Party a "safe place for Jewish people."


Corbyn, however, remains a controversial figure within the party, and the lifting of his suspension has only incensed critics.

In a joint statement, the Board of Deputies of British Jews, Jewish Leadership Council, and Community Security Trust blasted the Labour Party's decision.

"Labour's mountain to climb to win back the trust of our community just got higher," they stated.


The Jewish Labour Movement also released a statement slamming Corbyn for offering "no apology" for his dismissal of the EHRC report.

"Once again we find ourselves having to remind the Labour Party that Jeremy Corbyn is not the victim of Labour anti-Semitism - Jewish members are," the statement reads.

Amid the flurry of criticism, Corbyn's supporters also flooded the comments under his tweet, with one commenter suggesting he's been "treated like this just for being a decent human being," another calling Corbyn "a hero to millions around the world," and yet another telling the former leader that "You are the Labour Party."

Turmoil within Labour: Starmer blocks reinstated Corbyn from rejoining party ranks in Parliament

Starmer
© UK Parliament / Jessica Taylor via REUTERSFILE PHOTO. Labour Party leader Keir Starmer.
The UK's Labour Party leader Keir Starmer has effectively blocked his predecessor Jeremy Corbyn from rejoining party ranks as an MP by refusing to restore his whip. It came a day after Corbyn's suspension from the party was ended.

Corbyn's whip - instructions on agenda and expectations for voting that formally recognize an MP's party allegiance - was taken away on October 29, when his Labour membership was suspended. The punitive measures came in response to Corbyn's reaction to a report by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) on alleged anti-Semitism in the party, which the former party leader called "dramatically overstated for political reasons."

On Tuesday, the suspension was lifted by a disciplinary panel of Labour's National Executive Committee (NEC), but the next day Starmer announced that Corbyn's whip will not be restored. This effectively makes him an independent MP representing the constituency of Islington North.

"It is the task of my leadership to fix what I have inherited," Starmer said in a statement. "Jeremy Corbyn's actions in response to the EHRC report undermined and set back our work in restoring trust and confidence in the Labour Party's ability to tackle antisemitism."


The move had been predicted hours earlier by Marie van der Zyl, President of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, who said Corbyn's reinstatement was "an absolute sham."

"I hope this morning that Keir Starmer will have reflected on what has happened yesterday and make it clear that he is refusing to restore the whip," she told BBC's Radio 4.

Allegations of anti-Semitism have plagued Labour under Corbyn's leadership and arguably played a significant part in a crushingly poor performance in last year's general election, when it lost 60 parliament seats. He resigned his leadership position and was replaced by Starmer in April.


Corbyn supporters believe the anti-Semitism issue was blown out of proportion by Corbyn's political opponents in the party, who were unhappy with the direction he was taking Labour.