Pro-Palestinian activist to challenge Sir Keir Starmer in election

Andrew Feinstein, a former ANC MP in South Africa, addresses pro-Palestinian protesters at a Whitehall rally in February. Photo: MARK KERRISON/IN PHOTO

A pro-Palestinian activist will oppose Sir Keir Starmer in his London constituency election as left-wing activists try to unseat the Labor leader.

Andrew Feinstein has been selected by a pressure group set up in support of Jeremy Corbyn, Sir Keir's predecessor as leader, to stand as a candidate in Holborn and St Pancras.

Sir Keir is almost certain to retain the seat he won in last election with a majority of more than 27,000, but Feinstein's candidacy is the latest sign of a backlash to Labor's position on the Gaza war.

< p>Mr Feinstein was an MP for the African National Congress (ANC) in South Africa between 1994 and 2001 and was first elected under Nelson Mandela.

He calls himself a «proud left-wing Jew» and sits on the steering committee of Stop the War, which has criticized NATO after Russia's invasion of Ukraine and called for an end to the conflicts between Russia and Ukraine and Israel and Hamas.

Sunday Ocisa (the Corbyn-inspired Organization for Socialist Alliance) has confirmed it will keep Mr Feinstein in office once he receives the support of more than 95 per cent of its supporters.

In a statement, Mr Feinstein said: «We can make this a national campaign if we also focus on Starmer's constant lies, his uncritical support for Israel and his refusal to call for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, the racist hierarchy of racism in the party and his support British military adventurism and the arms trade.

“We must do everything in our power to stop the Red Tories Starmer from winning.”

A crowdfunding page set up by Ocisa to support Mr Feinstein's campaign had raised just over £19,000 as of Monday lunchtime.

Sir Keir expressed support for «a sustainable ceasefire as quickly as possible» in December, but had until then refused to support calls for a cessation of hostilities, saying Israel had a “right and responsibility” to defend itself following the October 7 Hamas attacks. .

Holborn and St Pancras, in the north London borough of Camden, had a Muslim population of 16 percent, according to the 2021 census.

A crowdfunding page set up by Ocisa for Feinstein's campaign had raised just a bit as of Monday afternoon over £19,000.

The group was set up last year in response to Sir Keir's announcement that Mr Corbyn, who had his Labor whip withdrawn in 2020 for claiming antisemitism during his leadership had been «grossly exaggerated», would not stand as a candidate for party in Islington North.

Last month, Leanne Mohamad, another pro-Palestinian activist, was chosen to challenge Wes Streeting, the shadow health secretary, in Ilford North, where almost a third of the population is said to be Muslim. < /p >

The Labor Party has been contacted for comment.