UK Conservative Party elects new pro-Israel leader Kemi Badenoch

The UK Conservative Party elected Kemi Badenoch as the party's new leader on Saturday after winning 57% of the vote, according to British media.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer congratulated Badenoch but also took aim at the party.

"Congratulations to Kemi Badenoch on being elected leader of the Conservative party," the Guardian cited Starmer as saying. "It’s been a long leadership election, but sadly, one thing is clear – the Conservatives have learned nothing since the British people resoundingly rejected them in July. It’s been a summer of yet more Conservative chaos and division.

"They could have spent the past four months listening to the public, taking responsibility for the mess they made, and changing their party. Instead, Kemi Badenoch’s election as leader shows they’re incapable of change."

History of being pro-Israel

Badenoch, a 44-year-old North West Essex MP, has a pro-Israel track record, according to Jewish News. She has reportedly publicly supported the Conservative Friends of Israel organization.

The newly elected party leader also told Sky News last month that Israel was showing “moral clarity in dealing with its enemies.”

Asked pointedly by a reporter if she would give Israel a "free pass" if she became PM, she responded ”It’s not about a free pass, Israel does have a right to defend itself. … If we look at what happened on October 7, we can see they cannot be complacent.”

She has recently visited the country and is currently involved in talks to set up a free trade agreement with the Jewish state.

Badenoch was also reportedly deeply critical of the weekly pro-Palestinian protests that have overtaken London and other major cities.

She claimed, according to Jewish News, ”Our streets were soon filled with hordes of joyous people, not appalled at the acts of terror or demanding the perpetrators be brought to justice, but instead protesting against Jews under the guise of attacking Israel.”

She stirred up controversy in September, according to the Guardian, when she claimed “not all cultures are equally valid” when it comes to deciding who should be allowed into the UK - adding that she was shocked by “the number of recent immigrants to the UK who hate Israel.”