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| MP David Ward has Lib Dem whip withdrawn over 'Jews' comment | MP David Ward has Lib Dem whip withdrawn over 'Jews' comment |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Liberal Democrat MP David Ward has had his party's whip withdrawn over controversial comments he made in the lead-up to Holocaust Day in January. | Liberal Democrat MP David Ward has had his party's whip withdrawn over controversial comments he made in the lead-up to Holocaust Day in January. |
| Mr Ward said "the Jews", who had suffered during the Holocaust, had inflicted "atrocities on Palestinians in the new State of Israel" within a few years. | Mr Ward said "the Jews", who had suffered during the Holocaust, had inflicted "atrocities on Palestinians in the new State of Israel" within a few years. |
| He also posted a tweet at the weekend, calling Israel an "apartheid state". | He also posted a tweet at the weekend, calling Israel an "apartheid state". |
| Mr Ward is said to be "disappointed" by the Lib Dem leadership's decision. | Mr Ward is said to be "disappointed" by the Lib Dem leadership's decision. |
| The MP for Bradford East wrote on his website in January that he was "saddened that the Jews, who suffered unbelievable levels of persecution during the Holocaust, could within a few years of liberation from the death camps, be inflicting atrocities on Palestinians in the new State of Israel and continue to do so on a daily basis in the West Bank and Gaza". | The MP for Bradford East wrote on his website in January that he was "saddened that the Jews, who suffered unbelievable levels of persecution during the Holocaust, could within a few years of liberation from the death camps, be inflicting atrocities on Palestinians in the new State of Israel and continue to do so on a daily basis in the West Bank and Gaza". |
| 'Disappointed' | 'Disappointed' |
| This led to a complaint to the Lib Dems from the Holocaust Educational Trust. | This led to a complaint to the Lib Dems from the Holocaust Educational Trust. |
| Mr Ward initially defended the comments and said his party's response - reprimanding him - had been "regrettable", but later apologised for the "unintended offence" which his words had caused. | Mr Ward initially defended the comments and said his party's response - reprimanding him - had been "regrettable", but later apologised for the "unintended offence" which his words had caused. |
| He insisted that neither he nor his comments had been anti-semitic. | He insisted that neither he nor his comments had been anti-semitic. |
| Following a meeting on Wednesday with Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg and chief whip Alistair Carmichael, the party whip was withdrawn until the autumn. | |
| This means he has been expelled from the parliamentary party, although the Commons will rise later for the MPs' summer break. | |
| Mr Ward is said to be "really disappointed" at the decision. | Mr Ward is said to be "really disappointed" at the decision. |
| The BBC understands that the party was also angered by another tweet by Mr Ward at the weekend, in which he asked: "Am I wrong or are am I right? At long last the #Zionists are losing the battle - how long can the #apartheid State of #Israel last?" | The BBC understands that the party was also angered by another tweet by Mr Ward at the weekend, in which he asked: "Am I wrong or are am I right? At long last the #Zionists are losing the battle - how long can the #apartheid State of #Israel last?" |
| Mr Ward, who visited the West Bank in December last year, denied in March that he had been ordered by the party leadership to attend "language classes". | |
| He served 26 years a councillor in Bradford before being elected to Parliament in 2010. He is a member of the Commons Education Select Committee. |