A Reform UK councillor has lambasted Sir Keir Starmer after the Prime Minister said he was “delighted” about the return of a British-Egyptian national after his “abhorrent” social media past resurfaced.
Sir Keir, alongside senior Cabinet members including Yvette Cooper and David Lammy, have come under fire after sending warm messages to Alaa Abd El-Fattah on Saturday just as his shocking historic comments came to light.
Before his return, Mr Abd el-Fattah spent more than a decade behind bars in Egypt and is alleged to have promoted the murder of Zionists and the police, while also branding the British “monkeys”.
On Saturday, Sir Keir said he was “delighted” the activist had been reunited with his family after years of imprisonment.
Reacting on GB News, Reform councillor Laila Cunningham almost appeared speechless, simply asking: “What on earth is this Government doing?”
“Why are we giving citizenship to people who hate this country and want to destroy it?” Ms Cunningham incredulously remarked.
She further vowed that, under a Reform Government, the activist would have his citizen revoked and imprisoned.
“Anyone who denies the Holocaust and wants to commit terrorist offences or praises it has no place in this country,” she adamantly declared.
Laila Cunningham slammed Sir Keir for sending warm wishes to the ‘extremist’
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GB NEWS
Beyond Labour, the city councillor took aim at the Conservatives, adding: “Let’s not forget, the Tories fought hard to bring him back.
“I think they went to Cairo. They wanted to do a deal. I don’t know, but it wasn’t just the Labour Party.
“Reform is clear. You don’t have to love every policy of this Government. You don’t even have to like the Government.
“But if your public record is a full on praise for terrorism and hatred, then you will not be allowed to set foot in this country.”
Sir Keir has received similarly scathing criticism from hordes of angry politicians, with Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick furiously leading the charge.
Mr Jenrick said he was ‘livid’ on the People’s Channel
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GB NEWS/X
Meanwhile, Sir Keir is believed to have only been made aware of the controversial social media posts after their circulation online on Saturday.
The Foreign Office released a statement today, which read: “The Government condemns Mr El-Fattah’s historic tweets and considers them to be abhorrent.”
Today, Nigel Farage reported Mr el-Fattah to counter-terrorism police over historic posts “threatening to kill British citizens” and “calling for more suicide bombings”.
The Reform chief raged: “This man must be urgently detained and deported.”
But Mr Jenrick was the first to take aim at the Government, slamming Labour for its “serious error of judgment” as the party welcomed the activist.
On GB News, the Newark MP said he was “absolutely livid” after learning that Mr Abd el-Fattah, who holds dual British-Egyptian citizenship, had arrived in the UK following the lifting of a travel ban by Egyptian authorities.
He said a review of Mr Abd el-Fattah’s past remarks showed he had described Britons as “dogs and monkeys”, denied the Holocaust, praised Osama bin Laden, called for the killing of Zionists “including civilians”, and urged violence against police.
“He said during the London riots the city should be set on fire,” Mr Jenrick added. “It goes on and on. And yet we see the Prime Minister bragging about pulling off some sort of diplomatic coup.”
“Your viewers will think they are mugs,” he told the People’s Channel, claiming diplomats prioritised the case over “genuine British interests”.
He also raised the prospect of revoking Mr Abd el-Fattah’s citizenship and deporting him “to live in Egypt or frankly anywhere else in the world”.
