British MP gets death threat over Gaza stance

Member of Parliament George Galloway received a death threat on Tuesday, apparently in connection to his views on the conflict between Israel and Gaza.

A package, which was identified and opened in the Parliament’s postal room, contained an unidentified substance along with a note that warned the left-wing politician that he would “die from a deadly virus,” the Guardian reported, adding that according to “a source” the threat was related to Galloway’s staunchly pro-Palestinian positions.

George Galloway, a Respect Party MK, has been an outspoken critic of the Jewish state since he began his parliamentary career in 1987. He recently made headlines when he declared the English city of Bradford an “Israel-free zone” in an August speech, declaring that he did not want want any Israeli goods, services, tourists or academics in the district he represents.

Scotland Yard has begun an investigation into the origins and motives of the threat. No arrests have been made yet in relation to the package, which reportedly bore an Austria postmark.

Galloway, a Scot, was returning from a rally against Scottish independence when the package was intercepted. He claimed that he was heckled by protesters at the Glasgow rally and was told that he was “going to face a bullet.”

Galloway expressed his gratitude in a tweet Tuesday evening to the postal workers and police who intercepted the package: “The workers in the post room in parliament were the ones endangered and I’m grateful to them and metpoliceuk,” adding that he believed the package was being examined by “forensics.”

This is not the first time Galloway has been targeted. Last month, a 39-year-old man physically assaulted the MP “while shouting something about the Holocaust.” He was hospitalized with bruising and swelling of the face.