'This Is for Gaza': Why Labour's Win in the UK Is in the Shadow of Palestine

“Palestine was on the ballot”

– Jeremy Corbyn, independent UK MP

The ‘sunlight of hope,’ ‘age of national renewal,’ and ‘a burden finally removed’ are not just poetic flourishes. They encapsulate the mood and expectations of the electorate following Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour Party’s stunning landslide victory in the UK general election. 

However, there is no boosterism. Unsurprisingly, Starmer stands armed with a bland, utilitarian agenda to fix things but may find major reform harder. Victory aside, Stramer’s Labour mirrors Blair’s New Labour. Everything is relative. Despite its technocratic rather than radical makeup, with anticipated letdowns already factored in, it is a sanitised Labour. No wonder even the staunchly anti-Labour Sun newspaper reluctantly endorsed Starmer for prime minister during the campaign.

Yes, Labour’s victory under Starmer appears insipid, unlike Blair’s triumphant 1997 moment, serenaded by the Northern Irish band D: Ream’s rousing anthem ‘Things Can Only Get Better’. Some called it a ‘loveless win’.

This electoral result is the fix to most voters who would have done anything to show the Tories the door.

Labour may have won 63% of seats with 34% of the vote, but this cannot be seen as an unalloyed endorsement. Beyond the victory and clarion calls of public service, the election’s true narrative unfolds. It reveals intricate threads of party allegiances and their play with the electoral system. This story demands time to unravel fully. 

Despite the election victory, the shadow of Gaza looms large over Starmer’s Labour, a stark reminder of the conflict’s profound impact on the results.

‘This is for Gaza’

Shockat Adam, an independent candidate in Leicester South, rejoiced his victory over Jonathan Ashworth, a top Stramer ally, raising a keffiyeh and saying, “This is for Gaza.” Shadow Paymaster General Ashworth was among high profile political casualties, losing by about 900 votes. Ashworth has represented this constituency since 2011. 

Similarly, in a dazzling display of the shifting political ground, in Ilford North, a 23-year-old British Palestinian, Leanne Mohammed, nearly toppled Labour’s Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting, narrowing his once-comfortable lead to a razor-thin margin of just 500 votes.

In this election, Starmer’s Labour has lost several former strongholds to independent candidates advocating for a pro-Palestinian agenda, demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and an end to the decades-long occupation of Palestine. In five constituencies, voters disenchanted with Starmer’s pro-Israel position on the Gaza conflict have chosen candidates focused primarily on this issue. 

Jeremy Corbyn emerged as the most high-profile independent victor in the UK’s general election, delivering a stinging blow to Labour campaigning fervently against Israel’s war in Gaza and advocating for the recognition of a Palestinian state. Corbyn, who has held the Islington North seat since 1983, secured re-election with a robust 24,120 votes, the first time as an independent. Labour’s support in his constituency plummeted by 29.9 percentage points. Barred from standing for Labour due to his handling of internal antisemitism issues during his leadership from 2015 to 2020, Corbyn’s campaign struck a chord with voters on his crucial platform.

The political landscape is shifting with a mischievous grin. Heather Iqbal, once a trusted adviser to Chancellor Rachel Reeves, failed to retain Dewsbury and Batley in West Yorkshire as the pro-Palestinian Iqbal Mohamed swept to victory. Among the fallen was Khalid Mahmood, who lost Birmingham Perry Barr, a seat he had held since 2001, to the determined Ayoub Khan. In Blackburn, Adnan Hussain dethroned Kate Hollern, an MP since 2015. 

However, Labour won back a seat from left-wing veteran George Galloway, who ran a pro-Palestinian campaign in the seat he won from Labour in a by-election earlier this year.

Speaking to BBC’s Nick Robinson, Zarah Sultana, the Labour MP for Coventry South, has said the Labour Party “has lost support in parts of the country because of its position on Gaza” and added that “we’ve heard concerns about the Labour Party when it comes to Gaza and it’s no surprise”. She continued that the polling has shown the public “overwhelmingly backs a ceasefire” and supports a ban on arms sales. 

She added: “The party was out of touch. On the one hand, we’re saying we need to listen to voters, but when it comes to this particular issue, there was a hope that this problem would go away, and it hasn’t.”

It was no wonder that one of the first acts of the newly minted Foreign Secretary David Lammy was to pronounce the new government’s support for the call for a ceasefire, given the ongoing Gaza ceasefire talks held in Doha. However, there is no policy departure here. 

Labour disarray 

The infamous interview of Starmer on LBC voicing support for Israel after the Hamas attacks on October 7 last year is still fresh in people’s memories, notwithstanding his attempts to offer clarification.

Some traditional Labour supporters have criticised Starmer for only gradually shifting the party’s position towards supporting a ceasefire in Gaza. Labour and the Scottish National Party (SNP) both demand an “immediate” ceasefire – yet Labour insists its amendment one-ups the SNP by outlining hopes for a comprehensive Middle East peace plan, all while using gentler language regarding Israel’s actions in Gaza and has been parsed well here.

The SNP’s immediate ceasefire motion in November saw a major rebellion over Starmer’s stance on the Israel-Gaza war. Fifty six of his MPs voted for an immediate ceasefire. Starmer’s reluctance to change his stance led to 10 frontbenchers quitting in November.  

Jesse Phillips, who had served as the party’s shadow domestic violence minister since 2020, was one of those 56 MPs. But she had a tough re-election scraped in by the skin of her teeth against Workers Party candidate Jody McIntyre, who describes himself as a consistent voice for the Palestinian people. Despite winning, boos interrupted her acceptance speech.

Though retaining only nine seats down from 48, the SNP will continue to advocate for a Gaza ceasefire in Parliament.

Uptick in Islamophobia

Labour saw a dramatic plunge in support in numerous constituencies, where contenders fervently advocating for Gaza and Palestine swayed the electorate. Green Party, which has campaigned heavily in several areas on its support for a ceasefire in Gaza and the suspension of arms sales to Israel, won four seats. According to one estimate, Labour saw its vote fall on average by 10 points in seats where more than 10% of the population identified as Muslim. 

The claim made by The Muslim Vote, a movement that emerged in 2024 to organise the Muslim vote during this election campaign, reaffirms this electoral result.

In its analysis, it says that “major wins for Lib Dems and Greens who benefited from The Muslim Vote” and that they were able to “slash huge majorities for Wes Streeting, Roshanara Ali, Jess Philips, Keir Starmer just to name a few.” 

But this is being misrepresented in mainstream media in a divisive way, leading to Islamophobia and sustained vilification. As the Guardian reported, the independent vote surge simplifies to a rejection of Starmer’s Gaza policy in “Muslim majority” areas, unfairly linking genocide concerns solely to Muslim communities.

However, on their website, The Muslim Vote clearly states the issues that it endeavours to pursue towards meaningful dialogue: “Addressing critical issues such as the war in Palestine, the cost of living, the state of the NHS and hate crime must be at the forefront of this new administration’s agenda. We also urge the new government to eliminate anti-immigration rhetoric and work towards bringing our country together.”

Could Gaza be Starmer’s Iraq?

Jeremy Corbyn triumphantly declared: “Palestine was on the ballot – and I promise to stay true to my word to stand up for the Palestinian people and their right to self-determination”.  

“We acknowledge the profound complexity of this issue,” remarked David Lammy, poised to assume the mantle of the government’s chief diplomat to journalists in the days before the vote.

Labour has committed to recognising a Palestinian state but has yet to set a definitive timetable.

The first weekend after the electoral win saw pro-Palestinian protests for a permanent ceasefire infuse new energy, spotlighting the prime minister and his deputy fairly and squarely.

Will Blair’s Iraq ghosts haunt Starmer? Unlocking the Gaza effect on this election and the ensuing dynamics in Parliament presents a complex tale. Labour’s approach will face scrutiny; despite their comfortable majority, smaller parties may press for a more critical stance on Israel.

Meanwhile, violence continues as Gaza’s Ministry of Health reports 29 people killed in the past 24 hours. Reports have emerged that five Palestinian journalists were among those killed.

Narendra Pachkhédé is a critic and writer who splits his time between Toronto, London and Geneva.