‘This is for Gaza’: George Galloway wins U.K. Parliament seat
Veteran left-wing provocateur George Galloway has been elected to Parliament in the U.K. after winning a special election dominated by the Israel-Hamas war.
After running a pro-Palestinian campaign, Galloway won almost 40% of the vote in the English town of Rochdale, which has a sizable Muslim minority.
His victory underlines the divisions in the U.K. over the Israel-Hamas war, which has consistently seen protests in support of both sides spill onto British streets. But it also reflected specific factors at play in yesterday’s vote, which was overshadowed by controversy.
The opposition Labour Party pulled its support for its candidate, Azhar Ali, after leaked comments in which he suggested Israel was complicit in Hamas’ attack on Oct. 7.
In his victory speech, Galloway explicitly attacked the Labour leader, widely expected to be the next U.K. prime minister, for supporting Israel in its war against Hamas. “Keir Starmer, this is for Gaza,” he said. “You will play a high price, in enabling, encouraging and covering for, the catastrophe presently going on in occupied Palestine in the Gaza strip.”