Anti-Israel activist Ewa Jasiewicz, who once desecrated the Warsaw ghetto and called for the death of Israeli politicians, has withdrawn from a panel event run by Momentum at a Labour Party conference in Liverpool.
Jewish News reports Jasiewicz will no longer appear at the hard-left forum after it was revealed she was also praised by Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn as his “very good friend.”
Jasiewicz, 40, was scheduled to speak about the future of trade unions.
Momentum founder Jon Lansman told Jewish News he did not condone what she did but he feels she is the victim of a “mob mentality.” He said:
It was several years ago and, as with any actions that cause offence, it should be judged soberly and she should have the opportunity to defend herself. This lynch mob mentality does nothing to assist a proper debate about antisemitism in the Labour Party or elsewhere. If someone makes a complaint to the Labour Party it will be judged fairly.
He then expanded on his thoughts via Twitter:
The trial by media of Ewa Jasiewicz for her graffiti is no way to judge anyone. “Libertate all Ghettos” and “Free Gaza and Palestine” are not antisemitic statements. The whole context, more info than Gilligan provided & her own defence must be considered as we do at Labour’s NEC
— Jon Lansman (@jonlansman) September 12, 2018
As Breitbart London reported, Jasiewicz sparked an outcry in 2010 when she helped daub pro-Palestinian graffiti in the Warsaw ghetto where 92,000 Jews died, splashing “liberate all ghettos” and “Free Gaza and Palestine” on the last remaining section of wall.
In 2011, Jasiewicz gave a speech at a Women In Gaza event, where she praised the Hamas terrorist group as “dedicated to resistance” and derided the Palestinian Authority as “collaborationalist.”
The Times reports it has since unearthed a report from Jasiewicz, written in 2002 when she was living and working in the West Bank, in which she suggested that terror groups should attack Israeli MPs instead of civilians.
The furore caused by her Momentum invitation reached to the top of the Labour Party.
Speaking on Good Morning Britain, the deputy leader of the Labour Party, Tom Watson, said: “on the grounds of taste and decency” Jasiewicz – who claimed the spray-painting was “intended in the spirit of anti-fascist resistance” – she should be excluded.
Mr. Watson added that his party’s new general secretary, Jennie Formby, should face questions about her future in the role if Labour continues to be dogged with allegations of anti-Semitism by Christmas.
Follow Simon Kent on Twitter: Follow @SunSimonKent or e-mail to: skent@breitbart.com
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.