Labour Candidate Azhar Ali's Israel Comments Spark Labour Party Controversy

Labour's candidate in the Rochdale by-election, Azhar Ali, apologized for making offensive and false remarks about Israel, claiming that they "allowed" a deadly attack by Hamas gunmen. The Tories have called for Labour to suspend its by-election campaign and remove Ali's party membership, but the deadline to withdraw him as a candidate has passed. Despite the controversy, Labour's national campaign co-ordinator stated that Ali would remain the party's candidate. Ali issued an unreserved apology to the Jewish community for his comments, which were condemned by the Board of Deputies of British Jews.