‘When Rishi sees a group chanting jihad on our streets, he bans them. Starmer invoices them...’
Tories taunt Sir Keir over his work for now-banned terror group
RISHI Sunak taunted Sir Keir Starmer yesterday over his previous bid to help radical Islamists set to be banned as a terrorist organisation.
During angry clashes in the Commons, the Prime Minister highlighted Sir Keir’s role in an attempt to overturn a German ban on the controversial group Hizb ut-Tahrir.
MPs are today expected to approve government plans to outlaw the network in the UK under the Terrorism Act 2000.
The move follows Hizb ut-Tahrir’s response to the October 7 attacks on Israel by Hamas.
An article posted on its website claimed that Muslims were ‘overjoyed at the events’ and described the atrocity as ‘a moment of unparalleled joy and celebration’.
There was then outrage at a proPalestine demonstration on October 21 when a Hizb ut-Tahrir member led chants of ‘jihad, jihad’.
It has now emerged that in his prior role as a human rights lawyer, Sir Keir tried to help the group lift a similar ban in Germany in 2008 – three years after then-prime minister Sir Tony Blair first tried to outlaw the organisation.
Mocking the Labour leader, Mr Sunak said: ‘I know that he does not like talking about them because they have been a client, but when I see a group chanting “jihad” on our streets, I ban them – he invoices them.’
The Conservative Party drove the point home on social media with an advert picturing Sir Keir below the message: ‘Are you a terrorist in need of legal advice? Better call Keir.’
The German government banned Hizb ut-Tahrir in 2003, accusing it of supporting the destruction of Israel and the killing of Jews.
In 2008, Sir Keir led lawyers claiming the ban breached the group’s rights to freedom of religion and expression.
His team submitted an application to the European Court of Human Rights in June 2008, three years after Sir Tony first pushed to outlaw the group in the UK.
The group’s website said Sir Keir’s team highlighted the ‘silencing of Hizb ut-Tarir regarding expression of its views publicly in Germany despite it being known that [the group] is a non-violent political party based on Islam’.
Sir Keir was appointed as director of public prosecutions a month after the application was lodged, meaning that he never represented the group at an oral hearing. In 2012, the Strasbourg court rejected the arguments put forward initially by Sir Keir.
The PM’s press secretary said yesterday it was for the Labour leader to explain why he ‘opted to represent these people’.
She added: ‘ If Keir Starmer wasn’t leader of the opposition, he would be representing a lot of these people still today.’
Labour backs the Government’s proposed ban on Hizb ut-Tahrir in the UK and pointed out that in November the group accused Sir Keir of having ‘parroted several myths that underpin key Zionist talking points’ in a speech.
A spokesman was unable to explain yesterday why Sir Keir had taken the Hizb ut-Tahrir case. It was acknowledged that the case was not covered by the ‘cab rank’ rule, which requires barristers to take the next case in line, as it was in a foreign jurisdiction.
But he added: ‘The nature of being a lawyer is that you represent and give advice to a whole range of clients, including people that you don’t agree with.’
The spokesman added Sir Keir had overseen the prosecution of Al Qaeda terrorists while at the Crown Prosecution Service.
Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain denied it is anti-Semitic or encourages terrorism and said it will challenge the proposed proscription ‘using all available legal means’.
‘Why did he opt to represent them?’