Nov 26, 2019

Britain's chief rabbi calls Jeremy Corbyn unfit to be prime minister

Jacob Knutson

Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis on Nov. 10. Photo: Jonathan Brady/PA Images via Getty Images

Britain’s Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis on Monday called Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn unfit to be prime minister for failing to remove anti-Semitism from his party.

Why it matters: Such interventions from religious leaders are unusual, according to Reuters. Mirvis's opinion article in The Times of London came just weeks before the Dec. 12 general elections.

What they're saying: “It is a failure of leadership. A new poison – sanctioned from the top – has taken root in the Labour Party,” Mirvis wrote. “Be in no doubt, the very soul of our nation is at stake.”

  • A Labour spokesman said Corbyn has campaigned against anti-Semitism and that “a Labour government will guarantee the security of the Jewish community, defend and support the Jewish way of life, and combat rising anti-Semitism in our country and across Europe," according to Reuters.
  • Justin Welby, the archbishop of Canterbury, backed Mirvis's comments, saying they indicated the fears of many Jews, The Guardian reports.

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