‘Public wants new politics’: Birmingham councilor makes independent bid in UK after Gaza ‘hush up’

By Mehmet Solmaz

BIRMINGHAM, England (AA) – Dozens of British politicians are running for Parliament as independent candidates in Thursday’s elections, with many citing the stance of mainstream political parties on Israel’s war on Gaza as a decisive factor in their decision.

One of them is Ayoub Khan, a city councilor in Birmingham, who recently resigned from the Liberal Democrats, claiming he was told he could only be their candidate if he agreed to “hush up” over Gaza.

Khan, a lawyer, told Anadolu he wanted to be the voice of his community, but faced pressure from his party.

“The Lib Dems decided they wanted to prevent me from speaking about Gaza, so ultimately, I made the decision to stand as an independent by resigning from the party,” he said.

Khan believes the wave of independent candidates across the UK are receiving a great level of support from their constituencies, as people see they are different from the mainstream forces.

“It’s important to understand that this independent movement is not just located in Birmingham, it’s up around the country. It’s a new form of politics, and I genuinely believe that the public from all different sections of the community wants to see a new type of politics,” he said.

“They want politicians not to be under the influence of big companies, oil companies, gas companies.”

Khan is hopeful that independent candidates will perform well, saying “they will be a force to reckon with” if they succeed in taking 40 or 50 seats, particularly if there is a need for a minority government or a coalition.

- Labor losing Muslim votes

Birmingham, a city with a population of 1.2 million, is home to more than 300,000 Muslims, many of whom have been vocal against Israel’s offensive in Gaza, where it has now killed nearly 38,000 Palestinians and wounded more than 87,000, a majority of them women and children.

Khan said frustration over Britain’s current politics is not only felt by the Muslims but rather the general public.

“We all know the polls conducted in November last year, where more than 75% of the British population, polled across all groups, wanted a cease-fire,” he said.

“That didn’t happen. Instead senior politicians both in the Conservatives and in the Labour Party kept referring to self-defense, and self-defense was the justification for the massacre of more than 37,000 innocent men, women and children.”

After decades of strong support, the Labour Party has seen a sharp decrease in support from Muslims, primarily because of party leader Keir Starmer’s pro-Israel stance.

During last month’s local elections, in 58 local council wards analyzed by the BBC, where more than one-fifth of the residents are Muslims, Labour’s vote share was down 21% compared to the 2021 elections.

Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is also standing as an independent after representing the London constituency of Islington North for more than 40 years, saying he wants to be “an independent voice for equality, democracy and peace.”

Since Israel launched its war on Gaza, nearly 70 Labour parliamentarians have defied party policy and called for a cease-fire, while around 100 councilors quit the party.

The West Midlands metropolitan county, the second-most populous in England, has historically been a Labour stronghold with decisive support from Muslim communities.

However, the contest there was on a knife’s edge in last month’s local elections.

Labour’s Richard Parker became West Midlands mayor with 225,590 votes, just edging out Conservative candidate Andy Street, who finished on 224,082.

A substantial number of voters also backed independent Akhmed Yakoob, a criminal defense lawyer whose campaign focused on Gaza, as he came in third with 69,621 votes.​​​​​​​