Labour MP paid off aide who complained about anti-Semitism using public money
Khalid Mahmood used taxpayers cash to settle dispute against ex-lover Alaina Cohen, who he tried to silence for complaining about anti-Semitism
A senior member of the Labour Party used taxpayer funds to silence a long time aide after she complained about anti-Semitism in the party.
According to The Telegraph, in 2016 MP Khalid Mahmood suspended his assistant and erstwhile lover Elaina Cohen after she posted two tweets accusing his fellow MP Naz Shah of being “anti-Zionist.” Her comments came after it was revealed that Shah, who would later be suspended by the party leader, had written a Facebook post calling for the relocation of the entire State of Israel to the United States.
In response, Mahmood initiated disciplinary action against her. When she was finally found blameless, she returned to work where she claims she was essentially sidelined and replaced. She sued on the basis of religious discrimination, leading to a settlement, allegedly paid for with taxpayer money. As part of the deal, Cohen, who still works for Mahmood, was required to sign a non-disclosure agreement.
“We’re in the middle of an anti-Semitism storm, and I had two years of hell over two tweets trying to bring it to the party’s attention,” Cohen told The Telegraph.
Labour has struggled to shake off reports of rising anti-Semitism within the party ever since the ascension of Jeremy Corbyn to the party’s leadership in 2015. According to The Times, the party’s unit investigating anti-Semitism allegations against its members “has all but collapsed” and there is now only one staffer investigating hundreds of complaints.
Last week, video footage surfaced of Corbyn implying that Zionists were unable to understand British ways of thinking despite growing up in the country.
In a clip of Corbyn’s speech published by The Daily Mail, Corbyn told attendees at a London conference that “Zionists … clearly have two problems. One is they don’t want to study history, and secondly, having lived in this country for a very long time, probably all their lives, they don’t understand English irony either. They needed two lessons, which we could perhaps help them with.”
The conference, which was promoted on the Hamas terror organisation’s English language website, featured several controversial speakers, including one who had advocated boycotting Britain’s Holocaust Memorial Day and another who blamed Israel for the 9/11 attacks.
Last month, Labour decided to adopt parts of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of anti-Semitism, but to exclude several examples that specifically related to the ways anti-Israel activism can be seen as anti-Semitic.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
