A decade ago, at a passport control checkpoint in New Zealand, I presented my Israeli passport to a stern-faced officer. He cast a seemingly polite glance at me, waiting for me to show him my visa. Then I realized my mistake: I put away the Israeli passport and pulled out my British one. The officer's face lit up with a reverent smile as he bowed and directed me to the baggage carousel.

I'm not sharing this anecdote to brag about my foreign passport, but to briefly reflect on the nature of Britain. While it has its glaring flaws – such as questionable cuisine and a national museum brimming with artifacts from around the world – it also boasts excellent soccer, a respected philosophical tradition, and an exceptional survival instinct. When I think about it, if there's one European nation I'd trust for its survival instinct, it would be the British.

Some of you might wonder why not the Swiss or the Swedes, who weathered the darkest periods of modern times without their capitals being bombarded. But sitting on the sidelines and letting others do the dirty work isn't particularly admirable, and Britain has earned its respect fair and square.

For the first time in a decade and a half, the Labour Party has defeated the Conservative Party – a particularly interesting development given the new right-wing wave sweeping across Europe, in France, Germany, the Netherlands, and beyond. The Right and Left in Israel love to feel that if "their" side is elected in a country somewhere around the globe, it's solid evidence of the righteousness of their path. However, the political divide between right and left can vary greatly from country to country.

In Britain, for instance, the vote for Labour doesn't stem from a massive awakening in the social sphere, but mainly from weariness with the current government. Its leaders are perceived as seeing themselves above the law, and it has failed to deliver significant achievements in areas close to the British heart: The cost of living, the poor state of public healthcare, immigration that hasn't been curbed despite Brexit, and trains that don't arrive on time. No, this isn't a joke – proper public transportation is a real issue for the middle class living in the suburbs.

The Right and Left in Israel love to feel that if "their" side is elected in a country somewhere around the globe, it's solid evidence of the righteousness of their path. However, the political divide between right and left can vary greatly from country to country.

The British Left understood that most voters identify more with the values of the Conservative Party, but to win their hearts (and their votes), Labour wisely made two significant moves: First, they got rid of the radical Jeremy Corbyn and replaced him with Keir Starmer, whose parents were blue-collar workers, who attended a public school, and who deeply resonates with the working class. Second, they abandoned the left-wing identity politics and the progressive-conservative culture war. Instead, they talk about mortgages, health, affordable housing, and wages.

The message to the global Left, including the Israeli Left, is clear: Want to be an alternative to a right-wing government that few are satisfied with? No more elitist and detached politicians talking about lofty world issues – but humble politicians who know firsthand the struggles of citizens and are willing to forgo grand words in favor of concrete solutions.

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As Britain heads to the polls, Labour Party leader Keir Starmer stands on the cusp of a remarkable political turnaround. Poised to become the next prime minister with a substantial majority, Starmer's journey from human rights lawyer to political reformer has been nothing short of extraordinary. His mission: to reshape the Labour Party and, ultimately, Britain itself.

Just five years ago, the Labour Party was in disarray, reeling from electoral defeat and internal strife. Enter Keir Starmer, a relative newcomer to politics who has engineered a stunning revival. "Sometimes, to be a good leader, you need to be ruthless," Starmer remarked in a November interview. "I changed the Labour Party. If I'm privileged enough to be given the opportunity, I'll change the country too."

Starmer's rise is a testament to his tenacity and strategic acumen. Born in 1962 to working-class parents, he became the first in his family to attend university, studying law at Leeds and Oxford. His career as a human rights lawyer took an unexpected turn when he was appointed director of Public Prosecutions in 2008. Dominic Grieve, former Conservative Shadow Home Secretary, praised Starmer's impartiality: "He was very easy to work with. I never saw political leanings creep into his considerations."

Upon assuming Labour leadership, Starmer inherited a party plagued by infighting and accusations of antisemitism. He swiftly moved to address these issues, issuing a public apology to British Jews and purging antisemitic elements from the party. His personal connection to Judaism – his wife Victoria comes from a Jewish family – has likely influenced his approach to both domestic and international issues.

Starmer's policy platform is characterized by pragmatism rather than radical promises. He supports a two-state solution in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and advocates for a permanent ceasefire, contingent on the release of hostages and the exclusion of the Hamas terrorist organization from any future Palestinian government. Domestically, he faces the challenge of addressing the housing crisis and reforming public services without increasing taxes or the deficit.

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Starmer's decision on Wednesday came one day after Corbyn was reinstated following a 19-day suspension.

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Corbyn, who led the Labour Party from September 2015 until this past April, was suspended last month after the Equality and Human Rights Commission, a nondepartmental public body in England and Wales, found that the party's leadership has failed to address anti-Semitism and complaints of hatred toward Jews.

In a statement on Wednesday, Starmer said Labour's disciplinary process "does not have the confidence of the Jewish community. That became clear once again yesterday."

He reiterated his pledge to create a new independent disciplinary process "as soon as possible" and noted that Corbyn would not be readmitted yet as a Labour MP.

Instead, he will become an Independent MP.

In statements, British groups expressed mixed reactions to Wednesday's decision.

"We welcome Keir Starmer's decision to withhold the whip from Jeremy Corbyn," said Board of Deputies of British Jews President Marie van der Zyl.

"Despite the EHRC's finding that the party had acted unlawfully under Mr. Corbyn's watch, Jeremy Corbyn's initial reaction to the report was dismissive, and he has been shameless and remorseless for what he has put the Jewish community through. Meanwhile, Labour's disciplinary process is clearly still not fit for purpose. Keir Starmer has now taken the appropriate leadership decision not to restore the whip to Jeremy Corbyn. We continue to say that 'zero tolerance' must mean precisely that, whether for anti-Semites or their apologists."

However, the UK-based Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) slammed the move.

Withholding the whip from Jeremy Corbyn is offering the Jewish community crumbs," said chief executive Gideon Falter.

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"The EHRC ruled that Labour's disciplinary processes were unfit but Sir Keir allowed Mr. Corbyn to be tried under them," he pointed out. "Not only that, but Mr. Corbyn should never have been suspended merely for his response to the EHRC's damning report, but for the responsibility he bears for the Labour Party being found guilty of committing unlawful acts of anti-Semitism by the EHRC."

Falter announced that his group filed a complaint with the EHRC in response to Wednesday's development.

Reprinted with permission from JNS.org

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There were 1,805 anti-Semitic incidents in 2019 in Britain, a rise of 7% from the previous year and the highest number ever recorded by the CST.

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CST chief executive David Delew said "2019 was another difficult year for British Jews, and it is no surprise that recorded anti-Semitic incidents reached yet another high. It is clear that both social media and mainstream politics are places where anti-Semitism and racism need to be driven out, if things are to improve in the future."

The CST said increases in the number of incidents occurred "at a time when Jews, anti-Semitism and the Labour Party were the repeated subjects of national controversy," and that the "debate about Brexit also made this a politically contentious time during which recorded hate crime rose more generally, affecting many communities."

Thirty-nine percent of all incidents in 2019 were related to online anti-Semitism, with the vast majority taking place on Twitter. A total of 157 physical assaults were reported in 2019 – up 27% from 2018.

CST also identified 224 incidents as "Labour Party-related" and 126 as far-right.

The trust stated that heightened media coverage of anti-Semitism and the Labour's anti-Semitism problem, in particular, may have led to increased attacks in 2019, while on the far-right, "relative stability points to an anti-Semitism that is less volatile and reactive."

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"I have no problem with legitimate criticism where it is due, but this obsession with Israel needs to be addressed. This singling out of the Jewish state is wrong, unjustified, and plays a role in the rise and rise of anti-Semitism," he said.

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"Whether it manifests itself in Monsey [New York] in the United States or just down the road in South Hampstead, it arises, as we have seen in the Labour Party, when there is a failure of leadership on the grandest scale," added Polak.

The baron also raised the question of the Palestinian Authority's terroristic practice of "pay to slay," making it clear that the government has an obligation to ensure that British taxpayer money go to those in need, as opposed to rewarding terrorists convicted of heinous crimes and their families.

"In 2018, the Palestinian Authority paid over £260 million [$338 million] – around 7% of its annual budget – on salaries to killers and murderers," said Polak.

Referring to the Netherlands' discontinuation of direct aid to the PA in November because of this terror reward policy, he urged, "We must pay our way, but not when our aid is used to pay for slay. We must find a method by which aid payments serve the recipients who need our support in Palestinian society, and at the same time, serve the interests of the British taxpayer."

Though these issues have been ongoing, Polak told Jewish News Syndicate that with a new British Parliament, now is the time to raise the issues they want and "set an agenda."

"My speech was a signal that this is a priority for the pro-Israel community," he said.

In the context of a rise of anti-Semitism and violence against Jews worldwide, Polak said that he will "again raise the issue of payment to Palestinian prisoners and continue to push."

In his speech, Polak took the opportunity to congratulate the government on its new legislation making it illegal for local councils to implement boycotts against Israel. "The promise by the government to legislate against BDS was a first and shows where the new government is at in relation to these sorts of issues," he told JNS.

He then rebuked the United Nations for fixating on the world's only Jewish state. "There was one resolution on North Korea, one on Syria, one on Iran and two on Russia. There were no resolutions on China, Venezuela, Saudi Arabia or Pakistan. But there were no less than 18 resolutions on Israel. That is totally unacceptable and, what is more, far too often the UK votes for these resolutions," he said in his speech.

Polak critiqued a resolution that was passed at the UN General Assembly on Dec. 13 called "Israeli practices affecting the human rights of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem," saying, "suffice it for me to say that the resolution totally ignored terror attacks against Israeli civilians in Israel, referring to them as "tensions and violence."

It also negated deadly rocket and missile attacks by Palestinians on Israeli cities and towns over the years, and sought to strip Israel of its inherent right to self-defense by classifying every defensive measure as "a violation of international law."

In addition, he continued, "it referred to the Temple Mount in Jerusalem only by its Islamic name, Haram al-Sharif. What did we do? We voted for the resolution, whereas our allies and friends in Canada, Australia and the US had the courage to vote against it."

Polak concluded with a request that the United Kingdom look "very carefully" in the future before voting against Israel at the United Nations.

Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.

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"No one has done more to mainstream anti-Semitism into the political and social life of a democracy than the Jeremy Corbyn-led Labour Party," said the Simon Wiesenthal Center. "Members and staff who have dared to speak out against the hate were purged, but not those who declared 'Heil Hitler' and 'F--k the Jews.'"

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The list is normally published in late December or early January, but was released early this year, perhaps due to the upcoming general election in the UK on Dec. 12.

Rabbi Marvin Hier, dean and founder of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, told the British Daily Mail that if Corbyn becomes the new prime minister of the United Kingdom, he will make Britain "a pariah on the world stage."

This is not the first time Corbyn made the Simon Wiesenthal Center's annual list.

In 2016, anti-Semitism in the Labour Party under Corbyn's leadership was listed as No. 2, behind the US abstention on a UN vote on West Bank settlements. And in 2017, Labour anti-Semitism placed No. 10. In 2018, Corbyn came in as No. 4 on the list.

On Sunday, more than 3,000 people gathered in Parliament Square in central London to stand against anti-Semitism and to hear speeches about its dangerous rise. The square was filled with rally-goers holding signs that said "together against anti-Semitism" and "solidarity with British Jews."

On Monday it was reported that Hamas has been working to help Corbyn win Thursday's general election.

According to the Israel-based Tazpit Press Service, one of the largest and most important of the Corbyn support organizations across the world – the "We support Jeremy Corbyn" Facebook page, with some 72,000 followers – is operated by Hamas operatives in Gaza and London.

Also Monday, despite Israel officially not taking a stance in the UK's general election, Blue and White co-leader MK Yair Lapid said Israel had to actively ensure that Corbyn doesn't enter 10 Downing St.

"Usually, you're not supposed to interfere with the election in other countries, but in this case, I'm going to make an exception. Jeremy Corbyn is an anti-Semite," Lapid said.

In 2012, Corbyn attended a conference with Hamas terrorists in Doha.

In 2014, the Labour leader attended a memorial ceremony for the Palestinian terrorists who murdered 11 Israelis at the 1972 Munich Olympic Games.

Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.

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According to TPS, one of the largest and most important of the Corbyn support organizations across the world – the "We support Jeremy Corbyn" Facebook page, with some 72,000 followers – is operated by Hamas operatives in Gaza and London.

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The page has been managed for over two years by Walid Abu Rouk, a resident of Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip. In June 2017, Labour activists decided to add Abu Rouk as a manager to the page, declaring him "our man in Gaza," TPS reported.

Abu Rouk, the report continued, "Is a central link within the hidden relationship that serves Hamas in its political relations with Labour, and that may be what prompted Labour activists to appoint him as the director of the Facebook page from the Gaza Strip."

A source in Gaza told TPS that "Abu Rouk serves Hamas' information campaign and is guided" by the terrorist organization "because of his command of the English language."

Abu Rouk said in a phone call with TPS that he writes for Al Jazeera, the Qatari news network affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood, for the Palestine 24 website and for the Middle East Eye website – all affiliated with Hamas.

He also writes for the London-based Memo Monitor newspaper, which is considered one of the UK's Muslim Brotherhood's media sites. Memo Monitor writers routinely express support for Corbyn and Labour, and the party receives particularly sympathetic coverage by the outlet.

Abu Rouk, TPS reported, also advocates for the boycott of the Israeli media and is an active supporter of several BDS organizations. He promotes the British organization Viva Palestina, which was founded by former British Labour lawmaker George Galloway, who was expelled from the party over anti-Semitism.

According to TPS, Viva Palestina, which is registered in the UK, operates under the instructions of senior Hamas official Zaher Birawi, who has also been identified by Israel's defense establishment as one of the top Hamas representatives in the United Kingdom. A source in the Gaza Strip told TPS that Birawi is responsible for all Hamas-UK relations and they call him the holder of the "Corbyn-Hamas file."

On Monday, despite Israel officially not taking a stance in the UK's general election, Blue and White co-leader MK Yair Lapid said Israel had to actively ensure that Corbyn will not enter 10 Downing St.

"Usually, you're not supposed to interfere with the election in other countries, but in this case, I'm going to make an exception. Jeremy Corbyn is an anti-Semite," Lapid said.

Corbyn attended a conference with Hamas terrorists in Doha in 2012.

Hamas political bureau chief Khaled Mashaal, who is on the UK's sanction list, was just one of the terrorist officials in attendance at the Qatar conference.

A spokesman for Corbyn told The Telegraph at the time that the Labour leader "has a long and principled record of solidarity with the Palestinian people and engaging with actors in the conflict to support peace and justice in the Middle East. That is the right thing to do."

In 2014, Corbyn attended a memorial ceremony for the Palestinian terrorists who murdered 11 Israelis at the 1972 Munich Olympic Games.

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The Labour Party has suspended Margaret Corvid, who previously made headlines as a whip-cracking dominatrix, for claiming that Zionists "quashed the truth about their collaboration with Nazis," according to The Daily Mail. 

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Her comments were made in 2007, following the screening of a Holocaust-related play called Perdition – a controversial piece that claimed Zionists collaborated with Nazis, both before and during World War II. 

A former member of the Scottish Palestine Solidarity  (SPSC) – a particularly virulent backer of Palestinian statehood – Corvid, who was born Jewish and was formerly known as Esther Sassaman – left the group in protest over its decision to screen the play on International Holocaust Memorial Day.

"The Zionists have certainly controlled the discourse about Holocaust remembrance for many years, and have aggressively quashed the truth about Zionist collaboration with Nazis," she wrote in her resignation letter, according to The Mail.

She added: "Until then, Zionists will be able to marginalize and isolate alternative narratives during Holocaust Memorial Week and will use such efforts to strengthen their control of the Holocaust discourse."

Corvid's letter was unearthed by David Collier, a self–styled anti-Semitism researcher and blogger, who has gained a certain amount of notoriety following – at least in the Twitter-sphere – Jeremy Corbyn's 2015 election as Labour leader.

Sassaman resigned from the Dundee branch of SPSC and left the city in 2015, relocating to England's southwest. After moving she changed her name and joined the Labour Party – being elected a party councillor in 2018.

She claimed that she disclosed all her past political associations – Socialist Workers Party, Scottish National Party and Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign – during a hearing ahead of her selection as a Labour Councillor. However, she had apparently forgotten about the issue regarding Perdition, as well as a subsequent "intemperate" tweet.

Having been made aware of the allegations against her in November 2018, Corvid said that she immediately reported them to the deputy council leader and chief whip in a face-to-face meeting. "These old statements do not reflect my views on the Israel/Palestine conflict or my views on anti-Semitism," she maintained. In addition, she said that she supported the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's definition of anti-Semitism as well as the Labour Party's alleged commitment to stamping it out.

This episode at least shows some consistency within Labour about its attitudes to certain aspects of anti-Semitism – particularly the slur regarding Zionist collaboration with the Nazis. In 2016, former London mayor and long-time Labour MP Ken Livingstone effectively started off the anti-Semitism debate that has engulfed the party in recent years, by effectively claiming that "Hitler was a Zionist."

It took the best part of a year to censure Livingstone – and even when the punishment was handed down it consisted of a suspension from holding office for a year, rather than from the party itself. What effectively constituted a slap on the wrist, led to more than 100 MPs calling for his expulsion.

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While on the show This Morning, Corbyn was asked multiple times by the show's co-host, Phillip Schofield, to "just say sorry" about the failure to tackle hatred against Jews in the Labour Party after Corbyn claimed that he has been handling the problem.

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Corbyn eventually said, "Obviously, I'm very sorry for everything that had has happened, but I want to make this clear: I am dealing with it. I have dealt with it."

"When I became leader of the party, there were no processes in place at all to deal with cases of anti-Semitism. I instituted those," he added. "I also made sure that for egregious cases, there was a rapid system of doing it, and I proposed that to our national executive in July. I also instituted a process of education in the party."

"Other parties are also affected by anti-Semitism – candidates have been withdrawn by the Liberal Democrats and the Conservatives, and by us because of it. We just do not accept it in any form whatsoever."

Corbyn also responded to British Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis's claim that Jews are "justifiably anxious" about the possibility of him becoming Britain's prime minister, saying, "I'm very happy to meet him … very happy to talk to any representatives of any part of the Jewish community in our society because I recognize that anti-Semitism is a poison, and it's very dangerous."

Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.

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Rivlin met with Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis in London on Wednesday. His office says he expressed support for Mirvis' work, including his recent article in The Times newspaper in which he said "a new poison, sanctioned from the top, has taken root in the Labour Party."

Rivlin said there is "no room for anti-Semitism in the halls of power." He added that Mirvis' "clear voice and leadership, particularly in the last few days, fills us all with pride."

Corbyn has struggled to defuse harsh criticism about anti-Semitism leveled at himself and the party before the Dec. 12 election.

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