Millions of Muslims are being urged to vote out MPs who did not call for a Gaza ceasefire in a campaign launched by the former leader of a banned terror group, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.
Muslim Vote is plotting to unseat at least 55 Labour and Tory MPs who voted against or abstained on the Gaza ceasefire vote in Parliament last December.
The campaign is led by pro-Palestinian activist Muhammad Jalal, who styles himself as a ‘writer, political scientist and educator’. His real name is Jalaluddin Patel and he was the UK leader of the now-banned Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir between 2000 and 2007.
In 2019, analysis by the Muslim Council of Britain revealed that 31 marginal seats could be decided by Muslim votes, which would be enough to swing a close election.
Muhammad Jalal (pictured), whose real name is Jalaluddin Patel, was the UK leader of the now-banned Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir between 2000 and 2007
A plume of smoke rises in the sky of Gaza City during an Israeli airstrike on October 9, 2023
The Muslim Vote campaign was set up by Mr Patel, 46, who tweeted: ‘In the 2024 Election, we will focus on those MPs in 55 Muslim-populated constituencies that voted against the Gaza ceasefire. We have to show that the Muslim vote should never be ignored again.’
The group plans to organise social media campaigns in target areas to ‘reward’ pro-Palestine MPs and ‘punish’ those who failed to vote for a ceasefire. Salman Butt, who is part of Muslim Vote, said in a YouTube video: ‘This Election is about punishing those who didn’t vote or even call for a ceasefire, and rewarding those who did and took a principled stance.’
But last night Mr Patel claimed he only helped the group with data collection and denied being its leader. He also said he was no longer a member of Hizb ut-Tahrir (HT).
The Gaza conflict has created the biggest crisis in Sir Keir’s leadership. He was widely condemned by Muslim leaders after a radio interview in which he appeared to say Israel had the right to withhold water and power in Gaza.
Tensions boiled over when 56 Labour MPs defied Sir Keir and voted for a ceasefire in Parliament. The vote also led to the resignation of eight of his frontbenchers. Some Conservatives welcome the division within the Labour Party, seeing it as a chance to split the opposition vote. And former Labour MP George Galloway is hoping to attract disaffected Muslim voters by standing in the Rochdale by-election later this month.
Last night Mr Patel said: ‘I am neither affiliated with the Muslim Vote campaign nor an organiser.’
But he added: ‘I certainly value their efforts to hold advocates of genocide to account, and encourage Muslims to constructively engage politically.’