Labour's candidate for Rochdale made a 'completely wrong' and 'totally unacceptable' comment about Israel and Gaza, says Labour's @NickTorfaen.

       Azhar Ali suggested Israel allowed the 7 October massacre to give it the "green light" to invade Gaza. He has since apologised. pic.twitter.com/07xLsl725f

       — Sky News (@SkyNews) February 12, 2024

       Labour’s Rochdale candidate has been branded a “hypocrite” after it emerged he previously demanded a Tory councillor’s suspension for sending an “anti-Semitic” message.

       The embarrassing revelation comes as Labour continues to resist suspending their Rochdale by-election candidate after he claimed Israel deliberately let Hamas massacre its citizens last year in a baseless anti-Israel conspiracy theory – something he has now apologised for.

       In 2019, Azhar Ali blasted a local Tory councillor over a “shocking” message that he described as anti-Semitic.

       The message in question saw Conservative Councillor Mohammad Aslam telling his correspondent: “Everyone says you have a mind of Jews.”

       Cllr Aslam denied being anti-Semitic and argued he did not recall sending the message.

       READ MORE: Fury as Labour keeps MP hopeful after 'warped' comments about Israel ma...

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       Labour continue to stand by their Rochdale candidate despite the antisemitism row (Image: Getty)

       However Azhar Ali put pressure on the Tories to suspend his local rival, describing the message as “shocking”.

       He told the Lancashire Telegraph: “This is a shocking message. Anti-Semitism has no place in any party.

       “[Local Tory MP Andrew] Stephenson should immediately ensure Cllr Aslam is suspended by the Conservative Party.”

       A Conservative Party vice chairman has now described the revelation as “pure, rank hypocrisy” by Labour’s embattled by-election candidate.

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       James Daly blasted the "rank hypocrisy" of Labour's Rochdale candidate (Image: Getty)

       James Daly MP told the Express: “This is pure, rank hypocrisy from Labour's disgraced Rochdale candidate.

       "The man that saw fit to point fingers at others has now been caught red-handed peddling anti-semitic conspiracy theories, and despite them admitting as much the Labour Party refuses to act.

       "There is no doubt - the politics of Jeremy Corbyn is still alive and well in this supposedly changed Labour Party.”

       At the time a spokesman for Cllr Aslam claimed the Tory representative was “in no way anti-Semitic or racist… Cllr Aslam does not recall sending it. His Facebook has been hacked in the past”.

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       This morning, shadow cabinet member Nick Thomas-Symonds insisted it would be “unfair” to conclude there is a widespread problem with Labour in Rochdale.

       Mr Thomas-Symonds said their candidate had merely fallen “for an online conspiracy”.

       The deadline to remove Mr Ali as Labour’s candidate has passed, meaning there’s no way for the party to remove him from the ballot paper.

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       However the Conservative Party has demanded Labour suspend his party membership and suspend his campaign.

       Since the news of his conspiracy theory remarks emerged on Saturday evening, shadow cabinet members including Lisa Nandy have continued supporting him in Rochdale.

       Labour declined to comment.

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