By GB News (Politics) | Created at 2026-09-18 23:31:49 | Updated at 2026-09-19 03:43:47
4 hours ago
Labour has pulled a pro-Palestine group's event from its official conference programme following a backlash over its founder's past comments about Hamas.
Friends of Al-Aqsa had secured a listing for a fringe event taking place during Labour's conference in Liverpool, with founder Ismail Patel due to chair the gathering.
But the event has now been removed from Labour's online conference guide and app after concerns were raised about the organisation.
Friends of Al-Aqsa describes itself as an NGO “demanding political change for Palestine”.
A Government-commissioned review published in 2024 described Friends of Al-Aqsa as an “anti-Israel campaign group” and identified it as a member of Together for Palestine, a coalition of six British “far-left and Islamist groups”.
The same review highlighted a series of controversial remarks and associations involving Mr Patel.
It noted that the Friends of Al-Aqsa founder had previously visited former Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Gaza.
Mr Patel was also filmed at a demonstration in 2009 declaring: “We salute Hamas for standing up to Israel.”
At the same rally, he said: “Hamas is no terrorist organisation.”
Friends of Al-Aqsa had secured a listing for a fringe event taking place during Labour's conference in Liverpool
GETTY
The review also reported that Mr Patel praised the killer of Jerusalem tour guide Eli Kay as a “martyr” in 2021.
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp hit out at Labour over the decision to promote the event in its conference programme.
Speaking to The Telegraph, the Tory frontbencher said Mr Patel was “not a man Labour should be sharing a stage with, let alone letting him hold the gavel”.
He added: “The Labour Party is so frightened of its own hard left that it will platform a man who said the October 7 massacre was a pretext and that ‘Hamas is no terrorist organisation’.
“It is a disgrace that Labour HQ approved it in the first place. Antisemitism and hate have no place in our society.”
Mr Patel was previously filmed at a demonstration in 2009 declaring: 'We salute Hamas for standing up to Israel'
GETTY
Labour MPs raised concerns about the event with outgoing General Secretary Hollie Ridley on Wednesday, according to The Telegraph.
The listing was removed the following day, while senior party figures were reported to be examining Labour's internal vetting procedures.
Alex Hearn, of Labour Against Antisemitism, welcomed the decision to remove the event from the programme but demanded answers over how it had been approved.
He said: “Extremist groups should never be promoted by the Labour Party. It is right that this event has been removed from the conference programme.
“But there are still questions to answer: why was the event promoted in the first place? Is there any vetting before endorsement? We hope this group and others like it are excluded from the conference.”
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp hit out at Labour over the decision to promote the event in its conference programme
Friends of Al-Aqsa has previously claimed Israel used the October 7 attacks as a “pretext to launch a genocidal war against the Palestinian people”.
A year after the attacks, Mr Patel submitted written evidence to the Foreign Affairs Committee in which he argued: “Israel, or any occupying power, does not have a legal right to self-defence against the people it occupies.”
The organisation also sponsored a trip to Israel for MPs in 2010 which included meetings with representatives of both Hamas and Fatah.
The event at the centre of the latest row is titled “Labour’s Position on Gaza Is Betraying Justice & the People” and is due to take place at Liverpool's Hilton hotel.
A Labour spokesman said: “This event, which is outside the conference secure zone, is not a Labour Party event or endorsed by the Labour Party.
"The fringe listing has been removed from the online conference guide and conference app.”
GB News has approached the Friends of Al-Aqsa for comment.
