Muslim Voter Group To Endorse Greens In Gorton And Denton By-Election
[PoliticsHome] Exclusive: A pressure group focused on who Muslims should support in elections will endorse the Green Party in Gorton and Denton.
The Muslim Vote, set up in late 2023, endorsed the four independent candidates who were elected at the 2024 general election on campaigns centred on the war in Gaza. They were Shockat Adam, Adnan Hussain, Ayoub Khan and Iqbal Mohammed.
The group has told PoliticsHome that it will support the Green candidate in the upcoming contest to replace Andrew Gwynne, who has resigned as a Labour MP for health reasons.
The party is yet to select its candidate, but the New Statesman reported over the weekend that it will not be leader Zack Polanski. The Greater Manchester seat has a significant Muslim population.
This will remain the case even if George Galloway’s Workers’ Party decides to contest the seat, the group said. The party came fourth in Gorton and Denton in 2024, and Galloway has historically enjoyed high levels of support among Muslim voters.
PoliticsHome understands that the Muslim Vote was open to supporting the candidacy of Andy Burnham in the event of the Greater Manchester Mayor being the Labour candidate.
However, on Sunday, Burnham’s desire to stand was rejected by members of Labour’s ruling national executive committee (NEC), including Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
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Article continues at https://www.politicshome.com/news/article/muslim-voter-group-to-endorse-greens-in-gorton-and-denton-by-election
MPs call for inquiry into Palestine Action hunger strikers
https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/mps-call-inquiry-palestine-action-hunger-strikers
Protesters outside the Royal Courts of Justice on The Strand, central London, ahead of a hearing over whether proscribing of Palestine Action should be temporarily blocked, July 4, 2025MPS CALLED for an inquiry into the Palestine Action hunger strikers today as the last one ended his strike after being given hours to live.
Umer Khalid, 22, told of ending his food and water fast after being rushed to hospital and given a “choice between treatment and likely death within the next 24 hours.”
He said that he believed “there is so much we can do to effect change … this clearly was not my time.”
If PM Sir Keir Starmer and Justice Secretary David Lammy want “to see me dead … they can come and do it themselves.
“Until then we keep fighting, we keep resisting,” he added in a statement released by Prisoners for Palestine yesterday.
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Former shadow chancellor John McDonnell is among the MPs who have spoken up in Parliament for the prisoners.
Today he told a Prisoners for Palestine press conference: “I would like the Secretary of State for Justice David Lammy now to have a full inquiry into how these prisoners have been treated.
“Because I do believe most people will find it’s unacceptable that they are on remand for so long and the way they have been treated in prison itself.
“That includes, I have to say, access to health facilities when some of them have been I believe in a dangerous plight.
“What we want to see is a review by the Secretary of State for Justice on the whole issue of their detention and their treatment so that we avoid this happening in the future.
“People shouldn’t have to put their lives at risk in this way just to secure an element of fair treatment and justice under our system.”
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See the original article at https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/mps-call-inquiry-palestine-action-hunger-strikers
UNRWA chief says Gaza is world’s most dangerous place for journalists and aid workers
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said on Sunday that the Gaza Strip has become the world’s most dangerous place for journalists and humanitarian workers, warning that continued restrictions and attacks are undermining efforts to document events and deliver aid.
In a press statement, Lazzarini said more than 230 journalists have been killed in Gaza, stressing the need to ensure freedom of access for the media and to protect journalists in line with international humanitarian law.
He argued that preventing international journalists from entering the Gaza Strip contributes to the spread of misinformation and extremist narratives, and weakens the ability of the international community to understand the scale of the humanitarian crisis on the ground.
Lazzarini also said that ongoing attacks on journalists and humanitarian personnel represent a serious violation of international law, calling for urgent measures to provide them with protection and to allow media organisations to operate freely and without restrictions.
Separately, Gaza’s government media office said last Wednesday that the number of journalists killed since the start of the Israeli war has risen to 260, following the killing of three journalists linked to an Egyptian committee.
READ: 3 journalists among 11 Gazans killed in Israeli attacks amid ceasefire violations
- Egypt rejects Israeli demands over Rafah crossing as negotiations stall
- Israeli forces raid West bank’s Qalandiya, close roads north of Jerusalem
- Israel’s Ben-Gvir slams ‘naivety’ of US envoys, Smotrich urges military rule in Gaza
- Israel blocks Al Jazeera, Al-Mayadeen televisions on digital platforms, TV screens
- Historic Christian presence in Palestine faces extinction under Israeli rule
- Israeli army recovers body of last captive from Gaza
- Italy protests Israel after 2 of its consulate officers threatened in occupied West Bank
- Over 37,000 Palestinians displaced last year in occupied West Bank in all-time high: UN
Health fears mount for last Prisoners for Palestine hunger striker
https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/health-fears-mount-last-prisoners-palestine-hunger-striker
Umer Khalid [Pic: Prisoners for Palestine]FEARS mounted over the weekend about the health of the remaining Prisoner’s for Palestine hunger striker, 22-year-old Umer Khalid, held in Wormwood Scrubs.
Mr Khalid is the last remaining hunger striker to take part in the Prisoners for Palestine hunger strike campaign and is currently being held on remand at the London prison.
He has been charged in connection with an action that took place at RAF Brize Norton, where two military aircraft were spray-painted last June.
The Palestine activist is on day 17 of his hunger strike and day three of his thirst strike.
Mr Khalid suffers from a rare genetic disorder, limb-girdle muscular dystrophy, which severely increases the risks associated with his hunger strike.
He was initially on hunger strike for 12 days before becoming seriously unwell and unable to walk. It is understood he has asked prison staff not to intervene in the event that he becomes unconscious.
The Prisoners for Palestine group has written to the Home Secretary asking that the government meet Mr Khalid’s representatives to end the hunger strike safely.
Amnesty International also raised concerns about Mr Khalid’s welfare at the weekend after he escalated his hunger strike by refusing water.
The rights charity’s Kerry Moscogiuri said: “Umer Khalid is in a desperate situation and we urge representatives of the government to meet with his lawyers before it is too late.
“Amnesty International has long opposed the misuse of terrorism powers that have led to lengthy, oppressive and disproportionate detention conditions, contributing directly to this crisis.
“None of the people who have been involved in the hunger strikes have been found guilty of a crime, yet some have been held in prison for up to 18 months in restrictive conditions after anti-terrorism powers have been used against them.
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Article continues at https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/health-fears-mount-last-prisoners-palestine-hunger-striker
