The British Left and Gaza

If the recent fighting in Gaza was a test for the British Left, the Left failed miserably. There can no longer be any doubt that the British Left has lost its moral compass.
Sympathy for the Palestinians goes far beyond the Left in Britain, which has historically had close relations with the Arab world. Nevertheless, the Left had its own special relationship with the Palestinian cause which may have made sense a generation ago. Back then, the main Palestinian terrorist groups boasted of their “Marxist-Leninist” credentials and put women fighters like the photogenic Leila Khaled in the spotlight.
But those days are long gone and the Palestinian “resistance” in Gaza consists of men like Hamas leader Nizar Rayan, killed with two of his wives in an Israeli air strike. To a man like Rayan, left-wing ideas were Jewish-inspired and conflict with the holy teaching of the Koran. It’s hard to imagine what socialists and feminists think they have in common with the religious fascists of Hamas.


But this has not affected the traditional British Left view of the Palestinian cause. If anything, the British Left is more uncritically pro-Palestinian today than ever before.
The largest group on the British far Left, the Socialist Workers Party has played a leading role organising the largest anti-Israel demonstrations across the country through its “Stop the War Coalition” in alliance with Islamist groups. The largest demonstration so far took place in Trafalgar Square last week. Ten thousand people attended. Banners that read “We are all Hamas” capture the essence of their politics, as do the keffiyah-clad demonstrators dressing up in what can only be described as Hamas-chic.
The entire British left from the mainstream Guardian to the crazies of the extreme Left have used Second World War metaphors to describe Israel’s actions in Gaza. The term ‘Holocaust’ is regularly used to describe the killing of both civilians and Hamas fighters. Not surprisingly, no one on the far Left has hit upon the more obvious analogy to Nazi rocket attacks against Britain – and the British response, which makes Israel look quite tame.
One very small group on the British Left has long argued for a two-state solution, recognizing Israel’s right to exist – the Alliance for Workers Liberty (AWL). But the AWL, still reeling from the embarrassment of an article from its leader a few months ago that seemingly backed an Israeli strike against Iran, has kept a low profile. Its members have joined in the anti-Israel protests, meekly passing out a leaflet acknowledging that there should still be a two-state solution. But the leaflet says nothing about stopping Hamas rocket attacks against Israeli civilians.
The Socialist Party (SP) – formerly the Militant faction in Labour – has been more forthright in its calls for an end to rocket attacks. Like the AWL, they support a two-state solution and are relatively hostile to Hamas. But they too participate in the pro-Hamas rallies.
By far the most influential opinion-former in the country is The Guardian, read by everyone from the far Left to the centre. And on a typical day it will feature full colour photos of the slaughter in Gaza accompanied by editorials, op-ed columns and letters from readers all with an anti-Israel slant. There is little attempt at balance.
The Guardian and other British papers are especially fond of articles from Jewish authors who take a pro-Hamas view. The Times, for example, ran a particularly bad article by the American “rabbi” and former SDS militant Michael Lerner, which claimed that Israel’s attempt to defend itself “pervert[s] the loving message of Judaism into a message of hatred and domination.”
Following a Christmas break, the British trade unions have slowly come on board the anti-Israel bandwagon as well, though the Trades Union Congress adopted a more balanced position. Calls for boycotts of Israel from within the unions have intensified. The group tasked with answering this – Trade Union Friends of Israel – has been asleep at the wheel, waiting eleven days into the conflict before sending out its first statement by email.
It should be emphasized that we’re speaking here mostly about the far Left. The Labour Party, in power since 1997, remains relatively moderate. While Prime Minister Gordon Brown has called for an immediate cease fire, he has come under fire from anti-Israel critics for not unambiguously condemning the actions of the Jewish state.
On the whole, the pro-Israel part of the left has been limited to an online response. The main venue for sane, left discussion of the conflict has been the very popular Harry’s Place group blog. Engage, the blog that campaigns against anti-Semitism primarily in the academics trade union, has also become a place where the war can be discussed sanely.
The pro-Israel left in Britain finds itself besieged and isolated, aware that public opinion in the country as a whole and particularly on the Left is more anti-Israel than ever before.
Meanwhile the Jewish community, itself afraid of anti-Semitic attacks, is left to fend for itself and has finally, after two weeks of waiting, called for demonstrations in support of Israel.
[A German language version of this article has appeared in Jungle World.]