British Nigerian Labour MP Kate Osamor is currently facing the suspension of the whip as an investigation is launched into her statement referring to Gaza as a genocide on Holocaust Memorial Day.
The minister ignited controversy by suggesting in her weekly newsletter that Gaza should be included in the category of “recent genocides.”
In a post accompanied by a photo of herself signing the Holocaust Education Trust’s commemoration book in Westminster, Osamor wrote, “Tomorrow is Holocaust Memorial Day, an international day to remember the six million Jews murdered during the Holocaust, the millions of other people murdered under Nazi persecution of other groups and more recent genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and now Gaza.”
Following the ensuing backlash, Osamor issued an apology on social media, stating, “I apologise for any offence caused by my reference to the ongoing humanitarian disaster in Gaza as part of that period of remembrance.” The Member of Parliament for Edmonton in north London is slated to meet with party whips to address the matter.
The controversial remarks drew reactions from key organizations, including the Board of Deputies, the Jewish Labour Movement, and the Holocaust Educational Trust.