UK's Starmer insists Labour 'changed' on anti-Semitism

Britain's Labour leader Keir Starmer insisted Tuesday the main opposition party has "changed" since it was plagued by anti-Semitism, hours after it withdrew support for a parliamentary candidate over contentious remarks about Israel.

Azhar Ali was Labour's candidate for a February 29 by-election in Rochdale, northwest England, following the death last month of sitting MP Tony Lloyd.

But a recording emerged over the weekend of him at a meeting of the local Labour party, in which he suggested that Israel deliberately allowed Hamas to attack on October 7 in order to justify invading Gaza.

After initially standing by his candidacy following an apology, Labour announced late Monday that it would no longer back his bid to become an MP after "new information about further comments" emerged.

The party cannot now replace Ali as the nominations have closed. He will not sit as a Labour lawmaker if still elected later this month.

"Further information came to light yesterday calling for decisive action, so I took decisive action," Starmer told reporters Tuesday, as he visited another constituency where a by-election will be held Thursday.

"It is a huge thing to withdraw support for a Labour candidate during the course of a by-election.

"It's a tough decision, a necessary decision, but when I say the Labour Party has changed under my leadership, I mean it."

Starmer has made tackling anti-Semitism within Labour's ranks a key mission since he became its leader nearly four years ago.

The party, now on course to win a general election due later this year, saw a spate of incidents under former left-wing leader Jeremy Corbyn.

A landmark October 2020 report by the Equality and Human Rights Commission ruled that Labour under Corbyn had broken the law in its "inexcusable" handling of complaints.

The period saw Jewish members and lawmakers leave the party in droves as criticism of Israel and Zionism veered into toxic anti-Semitism from Corbyn supporters.

The UK equalities watchdog last year removed Labour from two years of special supervision over the issue.