The pro-Palestine independents who turned the Gaza war on Keir: How TikTok barrister, a Leicester optician, a Batley IT consultant and a Blackburn lawyer all seized Labour seats thanks to Muslim vote

Parliament has five new independent Pro-Gaza MPs – including Jeremy Corbyn – who won seats after squeezing the Labour vote in Muslim areas by campaigning for a Free Palestine. 

Barrister Ayoub Khan, who quit the Lib Dems over Gaza, is the new MP for Perry Barr who left Labour rival Khalid Mahmood close to tears in a defeat where he used TikTok to harness the youth vote.

Local optician Shockat Adam also used Instagram and WhatsApp as he forced out Labour stalwart Jonathan Ashworth MP for Leicester South in another huge shock.

IT consultant Iqbal Mohammed quit Labour after Sir Keir Starmer attempted to justify Israel’s actions in Gaza on LBC and won Dewsbury and Batley after splitting the Muslim vote. 

While another lawyer, Adnan Hussain, unseated Labour in Blackburn doing the same – but firebrand George Galloway failed to turn up for the result when he lost Rochdale overnight.

Jeremy Corbyn was thrown out of Labour but is again MP as an independent for Islington North after he told voters that ‘Palestine is on the ballot’ on polling day and created a logo using the colours of the Palestinian flag.

Independent candidate Adnan Hussain (centre) celebrates with friends, family and supporters outside King George’s Hall in Blackburn today

Huge crowds turned out in Blackburn to greet Mr Hussain, who ran on a pro-Gaza ticket

Mr Hussain, is the new MP for Blackburn, Shockat Adam, has shocked by becoming MP for Leicester South

Iqbal Mohamed is MP for Dewsbury and Batley

Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn speaks to the media after he is declared winner of the North Islington Parliamentary seat

Mr Corbyn tweeted this on polling day

It means the five men, all calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, outnumber the four Reform MPs led by Nigel Farage.

While the Labour Party’s position on Gaza has not dented its landslide General Election win, several of its candidates lost to independent challengers campaigning on a pro-Palestine platform.

And there could have been more than five new independent MPs like this with Labour’s Wes Streeting, Rushanara Ali and Shabana Mahmood holding on.

Jess Phillips used her victory speech to declare that the campaign for her Birmingham Yardley seat was ‘the worst election I have ever stood in’ – as she was drowned out by boos and jeers by pro-Palestinian supporters after she beat an independent by just 693.  

The Birmingham MP looked furious and yelled: ‘I understand that a strong woman standing up to you is met with such reticence’ before asking for the mob to be thrown out. She added: ‘I didn’t bring my children here tonight, because I knew this would happen and they deserve better.’

Sir Keir Starmer was also heckled with shouts of ‘Free Palestine’ both at the polling station in his Holborn and St Pancras constituency and at his election count as he was declared to have won his seat.

Labour frontbencher Jonathan Ashworth was unseated by an independent in Leicester South.

Mr Ashworth, the shadow paymaster general who has made media appearances for the party during Labour’s election campaign, was defeated by independent candidate Shockat Adam.

His main policies include ‘standing for global peace and justice’, and he writes on his website: ‘I will champion Leicester’s values of global peace and justice, which have been neglected by the current government. Our constituency MP refused to vote for a ceasefire to end the bloodshed in Gaza, resulting in the needless deaths of thousands of innocent civilians.’

In Dewsbury and Batley, independent candidate Iqbal Mohamed, whose key focus areas include a ceasefire and peace agreement in Gaza, beat the Labour candidate Heather Iqbal.

In Blackburn, Labour’s Kate Hollern lost to Adnan Hussain, who said in his online statement to voters: ‘I promise to make your concerns against the injustice being inflicted against the people of Gaza be heard in the places where our so-called representatives failed.’

Labour’s Jess Phillips is booed as she wins her general election count after being closely run by Jody McIntyre, another pro-Gaza independent

Khalid Mahmood of Labour loses the parties 24 year reign in Perry Barr – and looked close to tears

Ex-Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn meanwhile ran as an independent and successfully retained his long-held seat of Islington North in London. He beat his Labour rival by more than 7,000 votes.

He has long been a pro-Palestine voice and his platform included demanding an end to the occupation of Palestinian Territories.

Independent candidate Faiza Shaheen blamed Labour for letting former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith win in Chingford and Woodford Green, saying the vote was split between her and her Labour challenger.

Ms Shaheen was dropped by Labour as its candidate for Chingford and Woodford Green after liking a series of posts on social media platform X that allegedly downplayed antisemitism allegations.

She wrote on X: ‘Our vote was a combination of those appalled by how I was treated, those who took issue with having an imposed candidate who didn’t know us, those who were never going to vote Labour after Starmer’s stance on Gaza, and those that have never voted before.

‘Labour split the vote the moment they deselected me.’

Sir Keir’s position on the Gaza conflict has previously caused unease among some in his party, with the leader facing criticism for not calling for an immediate ceasefire sooner.

In its manifesto, the Labour party committed to recognising a Palestinian state.

The Labour Party faced setbacks in the local elections in some previously safe areas, particularly those with large Muslim populations.

Labour’s Paul Waugh meanwhile won Rochdale from Workers Party leader George Galloway, just months after he won the seat in a shock by-election dominated by the Gaza war.

Mr Galloway, a former Labour and Respect member, swept to victory in Rochdale in February gaining almost 40% of the vote.

Palestine has been a major theme of Mr Galloway’s political career, throughout which he has voiced ferocious opposition to British and US foreign policies, both in the Middle East and, more recently, in their support for Ukraine.