The Ministry of Justice of South Africa announced this evening (Tuesday) that the former leader of the Labor Party in Great Britain, Jeremy Corbyn, will join the South African delegation to the International Court of Justice in The Hague - this within the framework of the lawsuit filed by the country against Israel and the accusation of "genocide" in the context of the war in Gaza.
Corbyn will join a delegation of senior government officials in South Africa, led by Justice Minister Ronald Lamola. Ahead of the first hearing, Lamola said that "we are determined to see the end of the genocide currently being carried out in Gaza, and are encouraged by the fact that there are leaders in the world who stand on the right side of history and stand up for the rights of people, regardless of their origin."
As a reminder, Corbyn was suspended from his position as chairman of the British Labor Party in October 2020, following the publication of a report that stated that he had engaged in anti-Semitic policies during his tenure as opposition chairman. The report also stated that the party under his leadership violated the law by harassing and discriminating during its handling of the claims of anti-Semitism within it.
Following Corbyn's appeal, the Labor Tribunal overturned his suspension from the party after about three weeks - but determined that he would not be able to return to his position as the faction's chairman in Parliament, and as a result he did not continue to serve as a member of parliament on behalf of the party. The tribunal's decision came as a compromise proposal after Labor members opposed the decision of his replacement Keir Starmer, who stated that Corbyn would be suspended until the end of the investigation regarding his anti-Semitic conduct and his statements about the Jewish community in his country.
Starmer himself said following Corbyn's suspension that he would act against anti-Semitism in his party. "If you are anti-Semitic, there is no reason for you to be in this party - and I will make sure myself that you will not be a member of the party," he promised. "If there are still people who think that there is no problem of antisemitism in the Labor after all the cases of pain and suffering described in the report, who claim that the conclusions are exaggerated or made up - then you should know: you are also part of the problem, and you have no place in this party."
