Radical British MP investigated for Israel comments

The BBC reports:

Calls by George Galloway for Bradford to be “declared an Israel-free zone” are being investigated by West Yorkshire Police.

Officers said two complaints had been made about a speech he made urging the city to reject all Israeli goods, services, academics and even tourists.

A spokesman for the Bradford West MP said he stood by his remarks.

Mr Galloway’s comments, made at a packed meeting of Respect activists in Leeds on Saturday, were posted on YouTube and prompted a storm of comment on Twitter.

Nigel Grizzard of Bradford Synagogue described Mr Galloway’s comments as “very extreme”.

“Israelis come to Bradford – people from Bradford go to Israel – there are many people I know in Bradford who have relatives in Israel,” he told BBC Radio Leeds.

“And I think Mr Galloway’s comments are completely off the wall and nothing to do with the reality of today’s life in Bradford.”

Jonathan Arkush, vice president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, described the remarks as “odious”.

“What about an Israeli who is a supporter of the Palestinian cause? He doesn’t differentiate between an Israeli who supports the Israeli government or an Israeli who doesn’t,” he said.

“He doesn’t differentiate between an adult or child – most people are apolitical. This man is so intolerant he can’t bear to have someone with an opposing view in his town – how ridiculous is this.”

A West Yorkshire Police spokesperson said: “We have received two separate complaints about comments attributed to George Galloway MP during a speech he gave at a public meeting in Leeds on 2nd August 2014. We are currently investigating the complaints.”

Galloway has said Israel does not have the right to exist. He was expelled from the Labor party 10 years ago over extreme comments he made at the start of the Iraq war.