Former London mayor hides in toilet to escape press as 'anti-semitism' row escalates
LONDON -- Former London mayor Ken Livingstone has been suspended by the Labour Party after a political row unfolded over his claim that Adolf Hitler was "supporting Zionism" before he took power in the 1930s.
A spokesman for the Labour Party told the BBC the politician had been suspended "for bringing the Party into disrepute."
The political infighting and the media scrum grew to such a point that he hid in a toilet, with the press shouting questions at him through the door.
You May Also Like
Livingstone told BBC Radio London: "Let’s remember when Hitler won his election in 1932, his policy then was that Jews should be moved to Israel. He was supporting Zionism – this before he went mad and ended up killing six million Jews.”
Several Labour MPs had called for his resignation from the party on Twitter:
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
Among those who urged him to resign is Labour MP John Mann, who confronted Livingstone ahead of his appearance on BBC 2 Daily Politics and accusing him of "rewriting history."
"You're a disgusting racist Livingstone. You're a lying racist. A Nazi apologist," the angry MP says:
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
Later he dodged media questions by hiding in a disabled toilet:
Livingstone's controversial remarks came after a Labour MP for Bradford West, Naz Shah, was suspended from the party for comments she made on Facebook about Israel.
In 2014, she allegedly shared a post reading: "Solution for Israel-Palestine Conflict - Relocate Israel into United States," with comment "problem solved."
Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.
