Jewish wife of Labor party leader 'effectively forced' out of home by pro-Palestine protesters
Protesters targeted Labour leader Keir Starmer's home, distressing his Jewish wife Victoria. Three face charges for breaching bail conditions in related protests.
Youth Demand demonstrators campaigned outside Labor leader Sir Jeir Starmer’s house in London and effectively forced his Jewish wife Victoria out of her own home, The Jewish Chronicle reported on Friday, April 12. Youth Demand is an activist group associated with Just Stop Oil. The protest aimed to pressure Starmer into using his influence to halt UK arms sales to Israel.
Three individuals, Leonora Ward, Zosia Lewis, and Daniel Formentin, were accused of hanging a black banner with the message "Starmer stop the killing" and placing rows of children's shoes at the front door, symbolizing the casualties in Gaza.
During the court proceedings, Prosecutor David Burns highlighted Victoria Starmer's distress, stating that she felt "intimidated and scared" by the protesters' actions when she returned home with her son and couldn't enter her property. Burns emphasized that Mrs. Starmer was "effectively forced out of her own home" due to the demonstrators' behavior.
Ward, Lewis, and Formentin faced charges of harassment under the Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001, as well as breaching court bail conditions prohibiting involvement in protests related to Just Stop Oil.
Protests escalate, defendants denied charges
The three protesters denied the charge of breaching bail conditions due to Just Stop Oil and Youth Demand being separate organizations.
In this incident, demonstrators set up banners and sat on pavements with Palestinian flags, while one protester vocalized demands, stating, "Starmer is the leader of the Labour party and he’s got enormous power, enormous influence, and he can call on a two-way arms embargo on Israel. Stop sending UK-made weapons over that are being used to cause genocide." The protester also urged Starmer to "stop the Tory oil and gas licenses" during the demonstration.
These protests escalated on Monday when the group sprayed red paint on the Labour Party Headquarters in Southwark, London. On Wednesday, they targeted the Ministry of Defence building. Both incidents led to multiple arrests.
Keir Starmer, whose wife is Jewish and has family in Israel, responded to the protests, affirming his support for international Jewish communities and Israel as a state, declaring, "We stand by our Jewish communities here and we stand by Israel internationally."
All three defendants were given bail, on the condition that they refrain from participation in future protests.
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