Political positions of Jeremy Corbyn#Syria

{{Short description|Views and voting record of the British politician}}

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This article summarises the views and voting record of Jeremy Corbyn, who was the Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party in the United Kingdom from 12 September 2015 until 4 April 2020. An independent, Corbyn was a member of the Labour Party from 1965 until his expulsion in 2024.

Positioning

Corbyn self-identifies as a socialist.{{Cite web|url=https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/13609421.corbyn-im-a-socialist-not-a-unionist/|title=Corbyn: I'm a Socialist not a Unionist|website=HeraldScotland}} He has also been referred to as a "mainstream [Scandinavian] social democrat".{{cite news |last= Gjersø |first= Jonas |date= 9 June 2017 |title= Jeremy Corbyn – a mainstream [Scandinavian] social democrat |url= https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/can-europe-make-it/jeremy-corbyn-mainstream-scandinavian-social-democrat/ |work= openDemocracy |access-date= 21 April 2021}} He advocates reversing austerity cuts to public services and some welfare funding made since 2010, as well as renationalisation of public utilities and the railways.{{cite news|last1=Asthana|first1=Anushka|last2=Stewart|first2=Heather|title=Labour party's plan to nationalise mail, rail and energy firms|url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/may/10/labour-party-manifesto-pledges-to-end-tuition-fees-and-nationalise-railways|accessdate=31 August 2017|work=The Guardian|date=11 May 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170831132900/https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/may/10/labour-party-manifesto-pledges-to-end-tuition-fees-and-nationalise-railways|archive-date=31 August 2017}} A longstanding anti-war and anti-nuclear activist, he supports a foreign policy of military non-interventionism and unilateral nuclear disarmament.{{cite news|last1=McTague|first1=Tom|last2=Cooper|first2=Charlie|title=Jeremy Corbyn under fire for stance on nuclear weapons|url=http://www.politico.eu/article/jeremy-corbyn-under-fire-for-stance-on-nuclear-weapons/|accessdate=31 August 2017|work=Politico|date=26 September 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170831134200/http://www.politico.eu/article/jeremy-corbyn-under-fire-for-stance-on-nuclear-weapons/|archive-date=31 August 2017}} Writer Ronan Bennett, who formerly worked as a research assistant to Corbyn, has described him as "a kind of vegan, pacifist idealist, one with a clear understanding of politics and history, and a commitment to the underdog".{{cite news |last=MacAskill |first=Ewen |author-link=Ewen MacAskill |date=17 August 2018 |title=Jeremy Corbyn's foreign causes: a blessing or a curse? |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/aug/17/jeremy-corbyn-foreign-causes-a-blessing-or-a-curse |access-date=17 August 2018 |work=The Guardian}}

In 1997, the political scientists David Butler and Dennis Kavanagh described Corbyn's political stance as "far-left".{{cite book |title=The British General Election of 1997 |first1=David |last1=Butler |first2=Dennis |last2=Kavanagh |year=1997 |location=Basingstoke |publisher=Macmillan |isbn=978-0-333-64776-9 |page=171}} Corbyn has described Karl Marx as a "great economist"{{cite news|title=The Marx Brothers: Jeremy Corbyn joins John McDonnell in praising Communist icon's work|newspaper=The Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/05/08/marx-brothers-jeremy-corbyn-joins-john-mcdonnell-praising-communist/|year=2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170808035924/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/05/08/marx-brothers-jeremy-corbyn-joins-john-mcdonnell-praising-communist/|archive-date=2017-08-08|last1=Maidment |first1=Jack }}{{cite web|title=Jeremy Corbyn backs John McDonnell and says Marx was a 'great economist'|url=https://www.politicshome.com/news/uk/political-parties/labour-party/jeremy-corbyn/news/85762/jeremy-corbyn-backs-john-mcdonnell|year=2017|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170808045204/https://www.politicshome.com/news/uk/political-parties/labour-party/jeremy-corbyn/news/85762/jeremy-corbyn-backs-john-mcdonnell|archive-date=8 August 2017|access-date=7 August 2017}} and said he has read some of the works of Adam Smith, Marx and David Ricardo and has "looked at many, many others". However, some have argued that Corbyn is less radical than previously described:{{Cite news|url=http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/uk/2017/03/far-being-left-wing-radical-jeremy-corbyn-slouching-towards-milibandism|title=Far from being a left-wing radical, Jeremy Corbyn is slouching towards Milibandism|work=New Statesman|access-date=10 June 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170620074652/http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/uk/2017/03/far-being-left-wing-radical-jeremy-corbyn-slouching-towards-milibandism|archive-date=20 June 2017}} for example, the journalist George Eaton has called him "Keynesian".{{Cite web|url=http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/june2017/2017/05/labours-manifesto-more-keynesian-marxist|title=Labour's manifesto is more Keynesian than Marxist|website=New Statesman|date=16 May 2017 |access-date=10 June 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170519000542/http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/june2017/2017/05/labours-manifesto-more-keynesian-marxist|archive-date=19 May 2017}} In 2023, The Daily Telegraph reported that most of the tax policies in Corbyn's 2019 general election manifesto had been implemented by the winning Conservative government, including a higher corporation tax, a windfall tax on oil companies, a reduction in annual tax allowances on dividend income, raising income tax on high earners, and introducing a digital services tax on online retailers.{{cite news |last1=Brennan |first1=Harry |title=Corbyn's hard-Left vision for Britain is close to reality – thanks to the Tories |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tax/news/how-jeremy-corbyns-hard-left-high-tax-manifesto-delivered/ |access-date=9 March 2023 |work=The Daily Telegraph |date=9 March 2023}}

Corbyn named John Smith as the former Labour leader whom he most admired, describing him as "a decent, nice, inclusive leader". He also said he was "very close and very good friends" with Michael Foot.{{cite news |last=Watt |first=Nicholas |date=7 August 2015 |title=Jeremy Corbyn: 'We are not doing celebrity, personality or abusive politics – this is about hope' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/aug/07/jeremy-corbyn-interview-we-are-not-doing-celebrity-personality-or-abusive-politics |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170407085709/https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/aug/07/jeremy-corbyn-interview-we-are-not-doing-celebrity-personality-or-abusive-politics |archive-date=7 April 2017 |work=The Guardian}}

Economy and taxation

Corbyn has campaigned against private finance initiative schemes,{{cite news |last1=Corbyn |first1=Jeremy |date=26 August 2015 |title=Labour must clean up the mess it made with PFI, and save the health service |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/aug/26/pfi-labour-nhs-health-service-private-finance-initiative |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160921153327/https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/aug/26/pfi-labour-nhs-health-service-private-finance-initiative |archive-date=21 September 2016 |access-date=24 August 2016 |work=The Guardian |issn=0261-3077}} supported a higher rate of income tax for the wealthiest in society,{{cite news |last1=Wintour |first1=Patrick |date=22 July 2015 |title=Jeremy Corbyn vows to raise taxes for the rich if elected Prime Minister |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/jul/22/jeremy-corbyn-vows-to-raise-taxes-for-the-rich-if-elected-prime-minister |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150927213116/http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/jul/22/jeremy-corbyn-vows-to-raise-taxes-for-the-rich-if-elected-prime-minister |archive-date=27 September 2015 |access-date=18 September 2015 |work=The Guardian}} and his shadow chancellor proposed the introduction of a £10 per hour living wage.{{cite web |last=Waugh |first=Paul |date=15 September 2015 |title=John McDonnell Unveils His First Policy: A £10 Minimum Wage |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/09/15/story_n_8138900.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150918002240/http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/09/15/story_n_8138900.html |archive-date=18 September 2015 |access-date=15 September 2015 |work=The Huffington Post}} He advocates recouping losses from tax avoidance and evasion by investing £1 billion in HM Revenue and Customs.{{cite news |last=O'Donnell |first=Svenja |date=14 August 2015 |title=What is 'Corbynomics' – And What Might it Mean for Britain? |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-08-14/what-is-corbynomics-and-what-might-it-mean-for-britain- |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160723111947/http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-08-14/what-is-corbynomics-and-what-might-it-mean-for-britain- |archive-date=23 July 2016 |work=Bloomberg}} Corbyn sought to reduce an estimated £93 billion that companies receive in tax relief.{{cite news |last=Grice |first=Andrew |date=3 August 2015 |title=Jeremy Corbyn allies accuse Chris Leslie of deliberately misrepresenting Labour frontrunner's economic policies |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-allies-accuse-chris-leslie-of-deliberately-misrepresenting-labour-leader-contenders-economic-policies-10436258.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150925171030/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-allies-accuse-chris-leslie-of-deliberately-misrepresenting-labour-leader-contenders-economic-policies-10436258.html |archive-date=25 September 2015 |work=The Independent |location=London, UK}}{{cite news |last=Chakrabortty |first=Aditya |date=7 July 2015 |title=The £93bn handshake: businesses pocket huge subsidies and tax breaks |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/jul/07/corporate-welfare-a-93bn-handshake |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161231172118/https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/jul/07/corporate-welfare-a-93bn-handshake |archive-date=31 December 2016 |work=The Guardian |location=London, UK |issn=0261-3077}}{{cite web |last=Farnsworth |first=Kevin |date=2015 |title=The British Corporate Welfare State: Public Provision for Private Businesses |url=http://speri.dept.shef.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/SPERI-Paper-24-The-British-Corporate-Welfare-State.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150925200238/http://speri.dept.shef.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/SPERI-Paper-24-The-British-Corporate-Welfare-State.pdf |archive-date=25 September 2015 |website=Sheffield Political Economy Research Institute}} The amount is made up of several reliefs, including railway and energy subsidies, regional development grants, relief on investment and government procurement from the private sector.

Corbyn opposes austerity, and has advocated an economic strategy based on investing-to-grow as opposed to making spending cuts. During his first Labour leadership election campaign, Corbyn proposed that the Bank of England should be able to issue money for capital spending, especially housebuilding, instead of quantitative easing, which attempts to stimulate the economy by buying assets from commercial banks. He describes it as "People's Quantitative Easing".{{cite news |date=14 August 2015 |title=What is Jeremy Corbyn's programme for Government? |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-33772024 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150913053655/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-33772024 |archive-date=13 September 2015 |access-date=12 September 2015 |work=BBC News}} A number of economists, including Steve Keen, said that Corbyn's candidature for leadership of the Labour party "recognis[ed] the inspiring possibilities for a fairer and more equal society offered by an information economy in an interdependent world".{{cite news |title=The Labour party stands at a crossroads |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/aug/14/the-labour-party-stands-at-a-crossroads |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150815122541/http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/aug/14/the-labour-party-stands-at-a-crossroads |archive-date=15 August 2015 |work=The Guardian |issn=0261-3077}} Robert Skidelsky offered a qualified endorsement of Corbyn's proposals to carry out QE through a National Investment Bank.Robert Skidelsky, [https://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/aug/19/corbynomics-why-we-should-take-it-seriously 'Why we should take Corbynomics seriously,'] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150919080033/http://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/aug/19/corbynomics-why-we-should-take-it-seriously|date=19 September 2015}} The Guardian 19 August 2015. As the policy would change the central bank's focus on stabilising prices it has been argued it could increase the perceived risk of investing in the UK and raise the prospect of increased inflation.{{cite news |last=Peston |first=Robert |author-link=Robert Peston |date=12 August 2015 |title=Would Corbyn's 'QE for people' float or sink Britain? |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-33884836 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150818102547/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-33884836 |archive-date=18 August 2015 |work=BBC News}} His second leadership campaign saw him promise £500 billion in additional public spending, though he did not detail how he would fund it.{{cite news |last1=Eaton |first1=George |date=4 August 2016 |title=How would Jeremy Corbyn pay for his spending pledges? |url=http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/uk/2016/08/how-would-jeremy-corbyn-pay-his-spending-pledges |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160826163616/http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/uk/2016/08/how-would-jeremy-corbyn-pay-his-spending-pledges |archive-date=26 August 2016 |access-date=24 August 2016 |work=New Statesman}}

Corbyn has been a consistent supporter of renationalising public utilities, such as the now-privatised British Rail and energy companies, back into public ownership.{{cite news |last=Merrick |first=Jane |date=9 August 2015 |title=Jeremy Corbyn to 'bring back Clause IV': Contender pledges to bury New Labour with commitment to public ownership of industry |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-to-bring-back-clause-four-contender-pledges-to-bury-new-labour-with-commitment-to-public-ownership-of-industry-10446982.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150809111000/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-to-bring-back-clause-four-contender-pledges-to-bury-new-labour-with-commitment-to-public-ownership-of-industry-10446982.html |archive-date=9 August 2015 |access-date=9 August 2015 |work=The Independent on Sunday |location=London, UK}}{{cite news |last1=Dathan |first1=Matt |last2=Stone |first2=Jon |date=23 July 2015 |title=The 9 charts that show the 'left-wing' policies of Jeremy Corbyn the public actually agrees with |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/the-jeremy-corbyn-policies-that-most-people-actually-agree-with-10407148.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150724173423/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/the-jeremy-corbyn-policies-that-most-people-actually-agree-with-10407148.html |archive-date=24 July 2015 |access-date=27 July 2015 |work=The Independent |location=London, UK}} Initially, Corbyn suggested completely renationalising the entire railway network, but would now bring them under public control "line by line" as franchises expire.{{cite news |title=Labour would renationalise railways 'line by line,' says Jeremy Corbyn |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-34306333 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161127214715/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-34306333 |archive-date=27 November 2016 |work=BBC News}}

National and constitutional issues

Corbyn is a longstanding supporter of a united Ireland{{cite news |date=24 September 2015 |title=Jeremy Corbyn reiterates support for united Ireland |url=http://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/uk/jeremy-corbyn-reiterates-support-for-united-ireland-1.2364612 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160129001345/http://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/uk/jeremy-corbyn-reiterates-support-for-united-ireland-1.2364612 |archive-date=29 January 2016 |access-date=11 June 2017 |newspaper=The Irish Times}} and reportedly described himself as campaigner against imperialism in Ireland in 1984.{{cite news |last1=Parkhouse |first1=Geoffrey |date=17 December 1984 |title=Kinnock is appalled at visit of IRA bombers |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2507&dat=19841217&id=iP49AAAAIBAJ&pg=3074,3464356&hl=en |access-date=19 September 2015 |work=The Glasgow Herald}} In 1985, Corbyn voted against the Anglo-Irish Agreement, saying that it strengthened the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland{{cite web |author=O'Reilly |first=Jo |date=14 September 2015 |title=What does a Jeremy Corbyn led Labour opposition mean for Ireland? |url=http://irishpost.co.uk/what-does-a-jeremy-corbyn-led-labour-opposition-mean-for-ireland/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150918110139/http://irishpost.co.uk/what-does-a-jeremy-corbyn-led-labour-opposition-mean-for-ireland/ |archive-date=18 September 2015 |access-date=29 May 2017 |work=The Irish Post}} and he opposed it as he wished to see a united Ireland.{{cite web |date=27 November 1985 |title=Anglo-Irish Agreement HC Deb 27 November 1985 vol 87 cc884-973 |url=https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1985/nov/27/anglo-irish-agreement#S6CV0087P0_19851127_HOC_294 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150919081408/http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/commons/1985/nov/27/anglo-irish-agreement#S6CV0087P0_19851127_HOC_294 |archive-date=19 September 2015 |access-date=22 August 2015 |work=Parliamentary Debates (Hansard)}} In July 1998, Corbyn endorsed the Good Friday Agreement by voting for the Northern Ireland Bill saying: "We look forward to peace, hope and reconciliation in Ireland in the future."{{cite web |date=31 July 1998 |title=House of Commons Hansard Debates for 31 Jul 1998 (pt 6) |url=https://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm199798/cmhansrd/vo980731/debtext/80731-06.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170626002403/https://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm199798/cmhansrd/vo980731/debtext/80731-06.htm |archive-date=26 June 2017 |access-date=31 May 2017 |publisher=Parliament}}

Corbyn would prefer Britain to become a republic, but has said that, given the Royal Family's popularity, "it's not a battle that I am fighting".{{cite news |date=30 July 2015 |title=Who is Jeremy Corbyn? Labour leadership contender guide |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-33624145 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150901132615/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-33624145 |archive-date=1 September 2015 |access-date=3 September 2015 |work=BBC News}}{{cite web |title=Bedrock of the British state – Weekly Worker |url=http://weeklyworker.co.uk/worker/1073/bedrock-of-the-british-state/ |access-date=23 November 2017 |website=weeklyworker.co.uk}}

On the issue of Scottish independence, when asked if he would consider himself a unionist, Corbyn said: "No, I would describe myself as a Socialist. I would prefer the UK to stay together, yes, but I recognise the right of people to take the decision on their own autonomy and independence."{{cite news |last=Settle |first=Michael |date=18 August 2015 |title=Corbyn: I'm a Socialist not a Unionist |url=http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/13609421.Corbyn__I_m_a_Socialist_not_a_Unionist/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150819014150/http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/13609421.Corbyn__I_m_a_Socialist_not_a_Unionist/ |archive-date=19 August 2015 |work=The Herald |location=Glasgow}} Corbyn said that he did not favour holding a second Scottish independence referendum, but that it would be wrong for the UK Parliament to block such a referendum if the Scottish Parliament desired to have one.{{cite news |last=Walker |first=Peter |date=13 March 2017 |title=Jeremy Corbyn denies backing second Scottish independence vote |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/mar/13/jeremy-corbyn-denies-backing-second-scottish-independence-vote |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170313111939/https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/mar/13/jeremy-corbyn-denies-backing-second-scottish-independence-vote |archive-date=13 March 2017 |access-date=13 March 2017 |work=The Guardian}}

As Leader of the Opposition, Corbyn was one of the sponsors for the Constitutional Convention Bill, which was an attempt at codifying the UK's constitution, which has not been compiled into a single document.{{cite news |date=12 January 2017 |title=Jeremy Corbyn rejects 'new Act of Union' call |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-38599780 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170320053538/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-38599780 |archive-date=20 March 2017 |access-date=2 March 2017 |work=BBC News}}{{Cite news |last=Johnson |first=Simon |date=12 January 2017 |title=Jeremy Corbyn rejects Kezia Dugdale's keynote plan for new Act of Union |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/01/12/jeremy-corbyn-rejects-kezia-dugdales-keynote-plan-new-act-union/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170303051231/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/01/12/jeremy-corbyn-rejects-kezia-dugdales-keynote-plan-new-act-union/ |archive-date=3 March 2017 |access-date=2 March 2017 |work=The Telegraph}} He appointed a Shadow Minister for the Constitutional Convention into his Shadow Cabinet and Teresa Pearce stepped down after the May 2017 local elections and this position has since remained vacant.{{cite web |title=Her Majesty's Official Opposition |url=http://www.parliament.uk/mps-lords-and-offices/government-and-opposition1/opposition-holding/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101202230616/http://www.parliament.uk/mps-lords-and-offices/government-and-opposition1/opposition-holding/ |archive-date=2 December 2010 |access-date=2 March 2017 |publisher=Parliament of the United Kingdom}}

In October 2017, Corbyn was one of 113 MPs to sign a cross-party petition to Home Secretary Amber Rudd, which requested making it a criminal offence for opponents of abortion to hold protests outside of abortion clinics.{{cite news |last=Maidment |first=Jack |date=26 October 2017 |title=Amber Rudd urged by 113 MPs to ban protests outside abortion clinics |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/10/26/amber-rudd-urged-113-mps-ban-protests-outside-abortion-clinics/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171028023238/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/10/26/amber-rudd-urged-113-mps-ban-protests-outside-abortion-clinics/ |archive-date=28 October 2017 |access-date=26 October 2017 |newspaper=Daily Telegraph}}{{cite news |title=Jeremy Corbyn joins 100 MPs calling for ban on vigils outside abortion clinics |url=http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/news/2017/10/27/jeremy-corbyn-joins-100-mps-urging-government-to-ban-abortion-protests/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171028091730/http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/news/2017/10/27/jeremy-corbyn-joins-100-mps-urging-government-to-ban-abortion-protests/ |archive-date=28 October 2017 |access-date=27 October 2017 |newspaper=Catholic Herald}}{{cite news |last=Elgot |first=Jessica |date=26 October 2017 |title=Jeremy Corbyn backs call for abortion clinic buffer zones |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/oct/26/jeremy-corbyn-backs-call-for-abortion-clinic-buffer-zones |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171026162638/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/oct/26/jeremy-corbyn-backs-call-for-abortion-clinic-buffer-zones |archive-date=26 October 2017 |access-date=26 October 2017 |newspaper=The Guardian}} The letter called for buffer zones to be established around clinics, arguing women "face daily abuse when undergoing terminations", with protesters instead given space in town centres or Speakers' corner. He also promised to allow abortion in Northern Ireland as well as same-sex marriage.{{Cite news |last=Clarke |first=Liam |date=6 August 2015 |title=Labour's Jeremy Corbyn vows to bring abortion and same-sex marriage to Northern Ireland as victims blast refusal to condemn IRA terror |url=https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/labours-jeremy-corbyn-vows-to-bring-abortion-and-samesex-marriage-to-northern-ireland-as-victims-blast-refusal-to-condemn-ira-terror-31430990.html |access-date=23 November 2017 |work=BelfastTelegraph.co.uk |issn=0307-1235}}

Education

During the 2015 Labour leadership contest, Corbyn put forward a policy to scrap all tuition fees and restore student maintenance grants. The cost of the policy was estimated at £10 billion which would be funded by "a 7% rise in national insurance for those earning over £50,000 a year and a 2.5% higher corporation tax, or by slowing the pace at which the deficit is reduced". Corbyn apologised for the actions of previous Labour governments in imposing "fees, top-up fees and the replacement of grants with loans". He said "I opposed those changes at the time – as did many others – and now we have an opportunity to change course".{{cite news |last1=Wintour |first1=Patrick |date=15 July 2015 |title=Jeremy Corbyn announces £10bn plan to scrap university tuition fees |url=https://www.theguardian.com/education/2015/jul/15/jeremy-corbyn-announces-10bn-plan-to-scrap-university-tuition-fees |access-date=24 March 2019 |newspaper=The Guardian}}

During the 2017 election, Corbyn had a policy of scrapping university tuition fees from 2018 restoring the maintenance grants abolished by the Conservatives in 2016 and funding a free national education service. He also pledged to investigate cancelling student loan debts incurred by recent graduates. The policy said that the British average student starts their working life with debts of £44,000 due to tuition costs and that university tuition is free in many northern European countries. The education changes were costed at £9.5 billion and would be funded by increasing taxes on the top 5 per cent of earners and increasing corporations tax.{{cite news |last1=Mason |first1=Rowena |date=21 May 2017 |title=Labour pledges to abolish tuition fees as early as autumn 2017 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/education/2017/may/21/labour-abolish-university-tuition-fees-jeremy-corbyn-eu-uk-europe |access-date=24 March 2019 |newspaper=The Guardian}}{{cite news |last1=Chang |first1=Charis |date=14 June 2017 |title=Is Jeremy Corbyn's policy for free university education as crazy as it sounds? |url=https://www.news.com.au/finance/economy/world-economy/is-jeremy-corbyns-policy-for-free-university-education-as-crazy-as-it-sounds/news-story/cd892492447bc3aca5621d9c5005cf21 |access-date=24 March 2019 |agency=AP}}

European Union

Corbyn has previously been a left-wing Eurosceptic. In the 1975 European Communities referendum, Corbyn opposed Britain's membership of the European Communities, the precursor of the EU.{{cite news |last=Hughes |first=Laura |date=11 September 2015 |title=Jeremy Corbyn admits he voted for Britain to leave Europe in 1975 |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/11859648/Jeremy-Corbyn-admits-he-voted-for-Britain-to-leave-Europe-in-1975.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160118023429/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/11859648/Jeremy-Corbyn-admits-he-voted-for-Britain-to-leave-Europe-in-1975.html |archive-date=18 January 2016 |access-date=21 January 2016 |work=The Daily Telegraph}} Corbyn also opposed the ratification of the Maastricht Treaty in 1993,{{cite news |last=Stone |first=Jon |date=18 September 2015 |title=Jeremy Corbyn predicted the Euro would lead to 'a bankers' Europe' |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-eu-europe-bankers-europe-eurosceptic-ukip-10507381.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160415095116/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-eu-europe-bankers-europe-eurosceptic-ukip-10507381.html |archive-date=15 April 2016 |access-date=31 May 2016 |work=The Independent}} opposed the Lisbon Treaty in 2008,{{cite news |date=21 January 2008 |title=Lisbon Treaty (Second Reading) |url=http://www.publicwhip.org.uk/division.php?date=2008-01-21&number=50&mpn=Jeremy_Corbyn&mpc=Islington_North&house=commons |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160704195501/http://www.publicwhip.org.uk/division.php?date=2008-01-21&number=50&mpn=Jeremy_Corbyn&mpc=Islington_North&house=commons |archive-date=4 July 2016 |access-date=31 May 2016 |work=Public Whip}} and backed a proposed referendum on British withdrawal from the EU in 2011.{{cite news |last1=MacLellan |first1=Kylie |date=12 September 2015 |title=Labour's Corbyn, who voted 'No' in 1975, raises Brexit fears |url=http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-politics-labour-corbyn-idUKKCN0RB1IK20150911 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160630040244/http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-politics-labour-corbyn-idUKKCN0RB1IK20150911 |archive-date=30 June 2016 |access-date=31 May 2016 |work=Reuters |location=London, UK}} He accused the EU of acting "brutally" in the 2015 Greek crisis by allowing financiers to destroy its economy.{{cite news |last1=Wilson |first1=Jeremy |date=14 April 2016 |title=Jeremy Corbyn wants Britain to remain in the EU – but here are all the times he said it was bad |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/jeremy-corbyn-is-making-a-big-speech-saying-we-should-remain-in-the-eu-heres-all-the-times-he-said-the-eu-was-bad-2016-4 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160622205048/http://uk.businessinsider.com/jeremy-corbyn-is-making-a-big-speech-saying-we-should-remain-in-the-eu-heres-all-the-times-he-said-the-eu-was-bad-2016-4 |archive-date=22 June 2016 |work=Business Insider}}

During his leadership campaign, Corbyn said there might be circumstances in which he would favour withdrawal from the EU.Waugh, Paul (25 July 2015) '[http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/07/25/jeremy-corbyn-refuses-to-_n_7870992.html Jeremy Corbyn Refuses To Rule Out Campaigning For Britain To Quit The European Union] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161019202728/http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/07/25/jeremy-corbyn-refuses-to-_n_7870992.html|date=19 October 2016}}', The Huffington Post UK In September 2015, Corbyn said that Labour would campaign for Britain to stay in the EU regardless of the result of Cameron's negotiations, and instead "pledge to reverse any changes" if Cameron reduced the rights of workers or citizens.{{cite news |last=Wintour |first=Patrick |date=17 September 2015 |title=Jeremy Corbyn: Labour will campaign for UK to stay in the EU |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/sep/17/jeremy-corbyn-labour-campaign-for-uk-stay-in-eu |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151009064206/http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/sep/17/jeremy-corbyn-labour-campaign-for-uk-stay-in-eu |archive-date=9 October 2015 |access-date=20 October 2015 |work=The Guardian}} He also believed that Britain should play a crucial role in Europe by making demands about working arrangements across the continent, the levels of corporation taxation and in forming an agreement on environmental regulation.{{citation |last=Wilkinson |first=Michael |title=Jeremy Corbyn's policies: A-Z on the Labour Leader contender's position on austerity, education and taxation |date=31 July 2015 |work=The Daily Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/labour/11775739/jeremy-corbyn-policies.html |access-date=21 August 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150819014128/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/labour/11775739/jeremy-corbyn-policies.html |archive-date=19 August 2015 |url-status=live |location=London}}

In June 2016, in the run-up to the EU referendum, Corbyn said that there was an "overwhelming case" for staying in the EU. In a speech in London, Corbyn said: "We, the Labour Party, are overwhelmingly for staying in, because we believe the European Union has brought investment, jobs and protection for workers, consumers and the environment." Corbyn also criticised media coverage and warnings from both sides, saying that the debate had been dominated too much by "myth-making and prophecies of doom".{{cite news |last=Pienaar |first=John |date=2 June 2016 |title=Jeremy Corbyn says 'overwhelming case' for staying in EU |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-eu-referendum-36430606 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160913141401/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-eu-referendum-36430606 |archive-date=13 September 2016 |work=BBC News}} He said he was "seven, or seven and a half" out of 10 for staying in the EU.{{cite news |date=11 June 2016 |title=Corbyn: I'm 'seven out of 10' on EU |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-eu-referendum-36506163 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160614142834/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-eu-referendum-36506163 |archive-date=14 June 2016 |access-date=24 June 2016 |work=BBC News}}

In July 2017, Corbyn said that Britain could not remain in the European Single Market after leaving the EU, saying that membership of the single market was "dependent on membership of the EU", although it includes some non-EU countries.{{cite news |last1=Stone |first1=John |date=23 July 2017 |title=Labour would take Britain out of the EU single market, Jeremy Corbyn says |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/brexit-labour-eu-single-market-jeremy-corbyn-leave-customs-union-immigration-maastricht-a7855621.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170807193827/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/brexit-labour-eu-single-market-jeremy-corbyn-leave-customs-union-immigration-maastricht-a7855621.html |archive-date=7 August 2017 |access-date=7 August 2017 |newspaper=Independent}}{{cite news |last1=Elgot |first1=Jessica |date=23 July 2017 |title=Labour would leave single market, says Jeremy Corbyn |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/jul/23/labour-would-leave-single-market-jeremy-corbyn |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170807192641/https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/jul/23/labour-would-leave-single-market-jeremy-corbyn |archive-date=7 August 2017 |access-date=7 August 2017 |work=The Guardian}} Shadow Minister Barry Gardiner later suggested that Corbyn meant that Labour interpreted the referendum result as wanting to leave the single market.{{cite news |last1=May |first1=Josh |date=23 July 2017 |title=Jeremy Corbyn insists UK cannot be part of single market after Brexit |url=https://www.politicshome.com/news/uk/political-parties/labour-party/jeremy-corbyn/news/87767/jeremy-corbyn-insists-uk-cannot-be |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170807193404/https://www.politicshome.com/news/uk/political-parties/labour-party/jeremy-corbyn/news/87767/jeremy-corbyn-insists-uk-cannot-be |archive-date=7 August 2017 |access-date=7 August 2017 |publisher=PoliticsHome}}{{cite news |last1=Gardiner |first1=Barry |author-link=Barry Gardiner |date=24 July 2017 |title=Brexit means leaving the single market and the customs union. Here's why |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/jul/24/leaving-eu-single-market-customs-union-brexit-britain-europe |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170807133206/https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/jul/24/leaving-eu-single-market-customs-union-brexit-britain-europe |archive-date=7 August 2017 |access-date=7 August 2017 |work=The Guardian}} Corbyn said that Labour would campaign for an alternative arrangement involving "tariff free access". In October 2017, Corbyn said that he would vote remain if there were another referendum.{{Cite news |last=Merrick |first=Rob |date=12 October 2017 |title=Jeremy Corbyn says he would still vote to Remain in Brexit referendum |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/brexit-jeremy-corbyn-remain-vote-second-referendum-eu-negotiations-theresa-may-a7996996.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171030193222/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/brexit-jeremy-corbyn-remain-vote-second-referendum-eu-negotiations-theresa-may-a7996996.html |archive-date=30 October 2017 |access-date=3 November 2017 |work=The Independent}}

In January 2018, Corbyn reiterated that Labour would not seek to keep the UK in the single market after Brexit and in June 2018 he called for a "new single market" deal for the UK after Brexit maintaining "full access" to the EU internal market, as opposed to the "Norway model" which pro-Remainers in the party wish to see.{{cite news |last=Mason |first=Rowena |date=8 January 2018 |title=Jeremy Corbyn insists UK cannot remain in single market after Brexit |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/jan/08/jeremy-corbyn-eu-single-market-after-brexit |newspaper=The Guardian}}{{Cite news |last=Craig |first=Jon |date=6 June 2018 |title=Corbyn facing Labour backlash as he demands 'new single market' after Brexit |url=https://news.sky.com/story/corbyn-facing-labour-backlash-as-he-demands-new-single-market-after-brexit-11396029 |access-date=24 September 2018 |work=Sky News}}

In 2018, Corbyn said his main reason for not committing to remaining in the single market was freedom from EU rules on state aid to industry. He said the UK government should not be "held back, inside or outside the EU, from taking the steps we need to support cutting edge industries and local business".{{cite news |last1=Stone |first1=Jon |date=10 April 2018 |title=Brexit: Public backs Jeremy Corbyn's plan to abandon EU state aid rules, poll shows |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-state-aid-plan-brexit-restrictions-public-support-britain-eu-trade-a8297616.html |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220608/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-state-aid-plan-brexit-restrictions-public-support-britain-eu-trade-a8297616.html |archive-date=8 June 2022 |access-date=6 October 2018 |newspaper=The Independent}} This prompted backlash from senior EU figures, who said that state subsidisation would be a "red line" in negotiations, as it would lead to a possible trade war between the UK and EU. One senior figure told The Times: "We have to protect ourselves and the single market ... If a Corbyn government implements his declared policies the level playing field mechanism will lead to increased costs for Britain to access the single market because of distortions caused by state aid."{{cite news |last1=Waterfield |first1=Bruno |last2=Fisher |first2=Lucy |date=7 May 2018 |title=Fear of Jeremy Corbyn-led government prompts tough EU line on Brexit |url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/article/fear-of-corbyn-prompts-tough-eu-line-on-brexit-lrcmwgvlx |url-access=subscription |access-date=6 October 2018 |work=The Times}}

Also in 2018, Corbyn said he would seek a new type of customs union with the European Union, but will seek exemptions of some EU regulations for the UK, such as those regarding state aid and government subsidies.{{cite web |last=Brunsden |first=Jim |date=26 February 2018 |title=Corbyn's customs union plan – what it might mean |url=https://www.ft.com/content/d7673a26-1af2-11e8-956a-43db76e69936 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210/https://www.ft.com/content/d7673a26-1af2-11e8-956a-43db76e69936 |archive-date=10 December 2022 |website=Financial Times}}

In January 2019, Labour lost a vote of no confidence in the government. The Conservative government sought to open cross-party talks while Corbyn initially said Labour would refuse to attend talks unless the government ruled out a "no deal Brexit".{{cite news |last=Sabbagh |first=Dan |date=16 January 2019 |title=Corbyn: no talks with May until no-deal Brexit is off table |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/jan/16/corbyn-no-talks-with-may-until-no-deal-brexit-is-off-table |newspaper=The Guardian}} In March 2019, Corbyn said that he could vote leave in a second referendum, depending on the Brexit deal on offer.{{cite news |last=Hossein-Pour |first=Anahita |date=17 March 2019 |title=Jeremy Corbyn says he could vote to leave EU in second Brexit referendum |url=https://www.politicshome.com/news/uk/foreign-affairs/brexit/news/102579/jeremy-corbyn-says-he-could-vote-leave-eu-second-brexit |access-date=25 October 2019 |work=PoliticsHome}}

Following the 2019 European Parliament election, Corbyn endorsed holding a referendum on the Brexit withdrawal agreement regardless of who negotiates it.{{cite news |last1=Mason |first1=Rowena |last2=Elgot |first2=Jessica |date=28 May 2019 |title=Corbyn backs referendum on Brexit deal after EU election exodus |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/may/27/jeremy-corbyn-signals-more-support-for-second-referendum-after-voter-exodus |work=The Guardian |publisher=Guardian News and Media}}{{cite web |last=Corbyn |first=Jeremy |date=9 July 2019 |title=The next Prime Minister should put their Brexit deal or No Deal back to the people |url=https://labour.org.uk/latest/stories/labour-demands-brexit-public-vote/ |access-date=16 September 2019 |website=The Labour Party |publisher=Labour Party |quote=Whoever becomes the new Prime Minister should have the confidence to put their deal, or No Deal, back to the people in a public vote.}}

Foreign affairs

=War and peace=

File:Rebellious_Old-School_Labour_MP_I_think_(1516897722).jpg demonstrations]]

File:Jeremy-Corbyn-Chatham-House.jpg]]

During the 1982 Falklands War, in a meeting of Haringey Council, Corbyn opposed a motion offering support to British troops sent to retake the islands, instead declaring the war to be a "Tory plot" and submitted an alternative motion that condemned the war as a "nauseating waste of lives and money".{{cite book |last1=Prince |first1=Rosa |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sUZ3CwAAQBAJ&pg=PT52 |title=Comrade Corbyn: A Very Unlikely Coup: How Jeremy Corbyn Stormed to the Labour Leadership |date=28 January 2016 |publisher=Biteback Publishing |isbn=9781785900044 |page=52}} Corbyn has said that he would like Britain to achieve "some reasonable accommodation" with Argentina over their Falkland Islands dispute, with a "degree of joint administration" between the two countries over the islands.{{cite web |date=24 January 2016 |title=Jeremy Corbyn wants power-sharing deal for Falkland Islands |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/jan/24/jeremy-corbyn-power-sharing-deal-falkland-islands-argentina |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170520122816/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/jan/24/jeremy-corbyn-power-sharing-deal-falkland-islands-argentina |archive-date=20 May 2017 |access-date=15 May 2017 |work=The Guardian}}{{cite web |last=Swinford |first=Steven |date=29 August 2015 |title=Jeremy Corbyn's Falklands plan tantamount to surrender to Argentina, warns wounded veteran Simon Weston |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/11833264/Jeremy-Corbyns-Falklands-plan-tantamount-to-surrender-to-Argentina-warns-wounded-veteran-Simon-Weston.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170808005446/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/11833264/Jeremy-Corbyns-Falklands-plan-tantamount-to-surrender-to-Argentina-warns-wounded-veteran-Simon-Weston.html |archive-date=8 August 2017 |access-date=15 May 2017 |work=The Daily Telegraph |issn=0307-1235}}

Corbyn does not consider himself an absolute pacifist and in 2015 named the Spanish Civil War, the British naval blockade to stop the slave trade in the nineteenth century and the role of UN peacekeepers in the 1999 crisis in East Timor as justified conflicts.{{cite web |author=Waugh |first=Paul |date=20 December 2015 |title=Jeremy Corbyn says of Dresden firestorm: 'Bombing civilian targets is never a good idea |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/12/20/jeremy-corbyn-dresden_n_8849490.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222232334/http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/12/20/jeremy-corbyn-dresden_n_8849490.html |archive-date=22 December 2015 |work=Huffington Post}} In an interview from the same year, he said that opposing violence and war had been "the whole purpose of his life".{{cite news |date=25 September 2015 |title=Are You A Pacifist? Labour Leader Speaks To Sky |url=http://news.sky.com/video/1559097/is-jeremy-corbyn-a-pacifist |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150930184550/http://news.sky.com/video/1559097/is-jeremy-corbyn-a-pacifist |archive-date=30 September 2015 |access-date=29 September 2015 |publisher=Sky News (video)}} He prominently opposed the invasion of Iraq and War in Afghanistan, NATO-led military intervention in Libya,"[https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2011/mar/21/libya-war-partition-military-action Jeremy Corbyn: Libya and the suspicious rush to war] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160821010736/https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2011/mar/21/libya-war-partition-military-action|date=21 August 2016}}". The Guardian. 21 March 2011. military strikes against Assad's Syria, and military action against ISIS, and served as the chair of the Stop the War Coalition.{{cite news |last=Kelly |first=Jon |date=13 September 2015 |title=24 things that Jeremy Corbyn believes |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-34209478 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150921211250/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-34209478 |archive-date=21 September 2015 |access-date=29 September 2015 |publisher=BBC News}} When challenged on whether there were any circumstances in which he would deploy military forces overseas he said "I'm sure there are some but I can't think of them at the moment."

Corbyn has called for Tony Blair to be investigated for alleged war crimes during the Iraq War.{{cite news |last=Stone |first=Jon |date=23 May 2016 |title=Jeremy Corbyn 'still prepared to call for Tony Blair war crimes investigation' |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-still-prepared-to-call-for-war-crimes-investigation-into-tony-blair-a7042926.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161012173013/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-still-prepared-to-call-for-war-crimes-investigation-into-tony-blair-a7042926.html |archive-date=12 October 2016 |access-date=31 October 2020 |work=The Independent}} In July 2016, the Chilcot Report of the Iraq Inquiry was issued, criticising Blair for joining the United States in the war against Iraq. Subsequently, Corbyn – who had voted against military action against Iraq – gave a speech in Westminster commenting: "I now apologise sincerely on behalf of my party for the disastrous decision to go to war in Iraq in March 2003" which he called an "act of military aggression launched on a false pretext" something that has "long been regarded as illegal by the overwhelming weight of international opinion".{{cite news |author= |date=7 July 2016 |title=Tony Blair says world is better as a result of Iraq War |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-36733979 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160707103321/http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-36733979 |archive-date=7 July 2016 |access-date=7 July 2016 |work=BBC News |quote=He said the report proved the Iraq War had been an "act of military aggression launched on a false pretext", something he said which has "long been regarded as illegal by the overwhelming weight of international opinion"}} Corbyn specifically apologised to "the people of Iraq"; to the families of British soldiers who died in Iraq or returned injured; and to "the millions of British citizens who feel our democracy was traduced and undermined by the way in which the decision to go to war was taken on."Andrew Grice, [https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-chilcot-report-iraq-war-inquiry-apology-tony-blair-labour-party-a7123461.html Jeremy Corbyn apologises on behalf of Labour for 'disastrous decision' to join Iraq War] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160706173518/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-chilcot-report-iraq-war-inquiry-apology-tony-blair-labour-party-a7123461.html|date=6 July 2016}}, The Independent (6 July 2016).

Corbyn has said he would prefer to use diplomacy rather than armed force in international conflict. He would avoid military conflict by "building up the diplomatic relationships and also trying to not isolate any country in Europe". His aim is to "achieve a world where we don't need to go to war, where there is no need for it".{{cite web |last1=Sands |first1=Mark |date=19 August 2016 |title=Jeremy Corbyn and Donald Trump share a bold view on NATO |url=https://static2.businessinsider.com/jeremy-corbyn-owen-smith-nato-russia-2016-8 |access-date=22 March 2019 |website=Business Insider}}

=NATO=

Corbyn favours the United Kingdom leaving NATO,{{cite news |last=Dutta |first=Kunal |date=4 August 2015 |title=Jeremy Corbyn winning Labour leadership could threaten Tory plans to bomb Isis in Syria |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-winning-labour-leadership-could-threaten-tory-plans-to-bomb-isis-in-syria-10436528.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923060126/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-winning-labour-leadership-could-threaten-tory-plans-to-bomb-isis-in-syria-10436528.html |archive-date=23 September 2015 |work=The Independent |location=London}} and for NATO to be disbanded.{{Cite news |title=Jeremy Corbyn calls for Nato to be 'ultimately disbanded' |url=https://www.thetimes.com/world/russia-ukraine-war/article/jeremy-corbyn-calls-for-nato-to-be-disbanded-jg7kcmmq8 |access-date=20 April 2022 |work=The Times |publication-date=2022 |issn=0140-0460}} In May 2012, Corbyn authored a piece in the Morning Star titled "High time for an end to NATO" where he described the organisation as an "instrument of cold war manipulation", saying that "The collapse of the Soviet Union in 1990, with the ending of the Warsaw Pact mutual defence strategy, was the obvious time for NATO to have been disbanded."{{Cite news |last=Corbyn |first=Jeremy |date=16 April 2014 |title=Nato belligerence endangers us all |url=https://morningstaronline.co.uk/a-972b-nato-belligerence-endangers-us-all |work=Morning Star}} and also said in a 2014 speech that the organisation was an "engine for the delivery of oil to the oil companies" and called for it to "give up, go home and go away".{{Cite news |last1=Hughes |first1=Laura |last2=Swinford |first2=Steven |last3=Farmer |first3=Ben |date=19 August 2016 |title=Jeremy Corbyn called for Nato to be closed down and members to 'give up, go home and go away' |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/08/19/jeremy-corbyn-called-for-nato-to-be-closed-down-and-members-to-g/ |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/08/19/jeremy-corbyn-called-for-nato-to-be-closed-down-and-members-to-g/ |archive-date=11 January 2022 |access-date=5 August 2018 |work=The Telegraph |issn=0307-1235}}{{cbignore}}

For these comments and a refusal to answer whether he would defend a NATO ally in the case of attack he was criticised by Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the former Prime Minister of Denmark and NATO Secretary General, who said Corbyn's opinions were "tempting President Putin to aggression" and made comparisons between his views and those of the American president Donald Trump. He was also criticised by George Robertson, former Labour Party defence secretary, who said "It beggars belief that the leader of the party most responsible for the collective security pact of NATO should be so reckless as to undermine it by refusing to say he would come to the aid of an ally".

He has since acknowledged that the British public do not agree with his beliefs that the UK should leave NATO, and instead intends to push for the organisation to "restrict its role". He believes there should be a debate about the extent of NATO's powers including its "democratic accountability" and why it has taken on a global role.{{cite news |last1=Hughes |first1=Laura |date=27 August 2015 |title=Jeremy Corbyn backtracks on calls for Britain to leave NATO |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/Jeremy_Corbyn/11829048/Jeremy-Corbyn-backtracks-on-calls-for-Britain-to-leave-Nato.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923073131/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/Jeremy_Corbyn/11829048/Jeremy-Corbyn-backtracks-on-calls-for-Britain-to-leave-Nato.html |archive-date=23 September 2015 |work=The Daily Telegraph |location=London, UK}} In April 2014, Corbyn wrote an article for the Morning Star attributing the crisis in Ukraine to NATO. While he said that he does "not condone Russian behaviour or expansion", he described Russia's actions as "not unprovoked".{{cite web |last=Corbyn |first=Jeremy |date=17 April 2014 |title=Nato belligerence endangers us all |url=http://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/a-972b-Nato-belligerence-endangers-us-all |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923060138/http://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/a-972b-Nato-belligerence-endangers-us-all |archive-date=23 September 2015 |work=Morning Star}} He has said it "probably was" a mistake to allow former Warsaw Pact countries to join NATO as it has increased tensions with Russia and made the "world infinitely more dangerous".{{cite news |last=Watt |first=Nicholas |date=7 August 2015 |title=Jeremy Corbyn: 'We are not doing celebrity, personality or abusive politics – this is about hope' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/aug/07/jeremy-corbyn-interview-we-are-not-doing-celebrity-personality-or-abusive-politics |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170407085709/https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/aug/07/jeremy-corbyn-interview-we-are-not-doing-celebrity-personality-or-abusive-politics |archive-date=7 April 2017 |work=The Guardian}} In April 2022, following the start of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, he criticised the British government and other Western countries for supplying arms to Ukraine.{{cite news |last=Maidment |first=Jack |date=22 April 2022 |title=Jeremy Corbyn criticises UK for 'prolonging war in Ukraine' |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2022/08/02/jeremy-corbyn-criticises-uk-prolonging-war-ukraine/ |access-date=2 August 2022 |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |place=London}}

During the 2017 election, when questioned about Corbyn's anti-NATO statements, Labour Shadow Foreign Secretary Emily Thornberry said, "Jeremy has been on a journey, to coin a phrase. There have been a number of discussions. It is quite clear that the predominance of opinion within the Labour is that we are committed to NATO."{{cite news |date=14 May 2017 |title=Emily Thornberry forced to watch clips of Corbyn saying Nato is 'danger to the world' in excruciating interview |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-emily-thornberry-andrew-marr-general-election-nato-defence-security-a7734921.html |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220608/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-emily-thornberry-andrew-marr-general-election-nato-defence-security-a7734921.html |archive-date=8 June 2022 |website=The Independent}}

=Nuclear weapons=

Corbyn is a longstanding supporter of unilateral nuclear disarmament,{{cite news |last=Mason |first=Rowena |date=18 July 2016 |title=Commons votes for Trident renewal by majority of 355 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/jul/18/mps-vote-in-favour-of-trident-renewal-nuclear-deterrent |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160718213055/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/jul/18/mps-vote-in-favour-of-trident-renewal-nuclear-deterrent |archive-date=18 July 2016 |access-date=18 July 2016 |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London}}{{cite news |last=Kuenssberg |first=Laura |date=19 July 2016 |title=MPs vote to renew Trident weapons system |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-36830923 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160718213716/http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-36830923 |archive-date=18 July 2016 |access-date=19 July 2016 |work=BBC News |quote=Jeremy Corbyn has been heckled and accused of lying by his own MPs and told he was "defending the countries’ enemies" as he announced he would vote against renewing Trident.}} although he has suggested a compromise of having submarines without nuclear weapons.{{cite news |last=Mason |first=Rowena |date=17 January 2016 |title=Jeremy Corbyn hints at no-nuke subs in Trident compromise |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/jan/17/jeremy-corbyn-trident-compromise-no-nuclear-warheads |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170128034217/https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/jan/17/jeremy-corbyn-trident-compromise-no-nuclear-warheads |archive-date=28 January 2017 |work=The Guardian}}{{cite news |date=18 July 2016 |title=Theresa May: It would be irresponsible to scrap Trident |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-36820416 |access-date=13 February 2019 |work=BBC News |quote=MPs will vote later on whether to renew the Trident nuclear weapons programme.}} He has campaigned for many years against nuclear weapons and the replacement of Trident and has said he would not authorise the use of nuclear weapons if he were prime minister.{{cite news |last1=Wintour |first1=Patrick |date=30 September 2015 |title=Jeremy Corbyn: I would never use nuclear weapons if I were PM |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/sep/30/corbyn-i-would-never-use-nuclear-weapons-if-i-was-pm |access-date=22 March 2019 |newspaper=The Guardian}}{{cite news |last1=Taylor |first1=Matthew |date=16 October 2015 |title=CND membership surge gathers pace after Jeremy Corbyn election |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/oct/16/campaign-nuclear-disarmament-cnd-membership-surge-jeremy-corbyn |access-date=22 March 2019 |newspaper=The Guardian}} In June 2016, he agreed to allow Labour MPs a free vote on the replacement of Trident. In the subsequent vote 140 Labour MPs voted with the government in favour of the new submarines, in line with party policy, and 47 joined Corbyn to vote against. During the debate Corbyn said "I do not believe the threat of mass murder is a legitimate way to deal with international relations".

= Donald Trump =

File:Nancy_Pelosi_meets_with_Jeremy_Corbyn_in_London.jpg Nancy Pelosi in 2019]]

Following the election of Donald Trump in the 2016 US presidential elections, Corbyn said that he believes that President Trump is not offering solutions to problems, but simply being divisive.{{Cite news |author=Cowburn |first=Ashley |date=9 November 2016 |title=Jeremy Corbyn responds to Donald Trump win: 'An unmistakable rejection of a political establishment' |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-responds-to-donald-trump-win-america-election-hillary-clinton-a7406941.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161112170647/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-responds-to-donald-trump-win-america-election-hillary-clinton-a7406941.html |archive-date=12 November 2016 |work=The Independent}} Corbyn also called for a proposed Trump state visit to the UK to be cancelled following his executive order banning visitors from certain majority-Muslim countries from entering the US.{{cite news |last=Merrick |first=Rob |date=9 February 2017 |title=Jeremy Corbyn: Donald Trump's state visit to the UK should be scrapped |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-donald-trump-uk-state-visit-banned-entry-us-president-muslim-ban-labour-leader-a7570641.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170416033159/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-donald-trump-uk-state-visit-banned-entry-us-president-muslim-ban-labour-leader-a7570641.html |archive-date=16 April 2017 |access-date=15 May 2017 |website=www.independent.co.uk |publisher=The Independent}}

Corbyn criticised Trump's involvement in British politics after Trump said Boris Johnson should become PM and Nigel Farage should be part of the Brexit negotiating team, saying that it was "not [Trump's] business who the British prime minister is" following Trump's endorsement of Boris Johnson as a possible future leader.{{cite news |date=13 July 2018 |title=Corbyn: It's not Trump's business who's PM |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-44819444 |access-date=24 August 2018 |work=BBC News}} Corbyn criticised Trump's attacks on Sadiq Khan as "unacceptable".

=Israel and Palestine=

File:Leader_of_the_Opposition_(51184221345).jpg in 2021]]

Corbyn is a member of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign,{{Cite news |last=Cohen |first=Nick |date=13 September 2016 |title=The Left's Jewish Problem: Jeremy Corbyn, Israel and Anti‑Semitism – review |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/sep/13/the-lefts-jewish-problem-corbyn-israel-and-antisemitism-dave-rich-review |access-date=23 November 2017 |work=The Guardian |issn=0261-3077}} campaigning, for example, against the killing of Palestinian civilians during the Gaza–Israel conflict.{{cite web |date=25 July 2014 |title=MPs, actors, authors and musicians among 21,000 demanding arms embargo on Israel |url=http://www.palestinecampaign.org/mps-actors-authors-musicians-among-21000-demanding-arms-embargo-israel |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150623234057/http://www.palestinecampaign.org/mps-actors-authors-musicians-among-21000-demanding-arms-embargo-israel/ |archive-date=23 June 2015 |access-date=23 June 2015 |website=Palestine Solidarity Campaign}} In 2012 and again in 2017, Corbyn called for an investigation into Israeli influence in British politics.{{cite web |last=JTA |date=16 January 2017 |title=Labour leader wants probe into Israel's influence on UK politics |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/labour-leader-wants-probe-into-israels-influence-on-uk-politics/ |website=The Times of Israel}} In August 2016, Corbyn said: "I am not in favour of the academic or cultural boycott of Israel, and I am not in favour of a blanket boycott of Israeli goods. I do support targeted boycotts aimed at undermining the existence of illegal settlements in the West Bank."Watts, Joe (29 November 2016) "[https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/israel-boycott-goods-jeremy-corbyn-tom-watson-labour-party-morally-wrong-a7446186.html Corbyn-backed boycotts of Israeli goods are 'morally wrong', says Tom Watson]". The Independent.

At a meeting hosted by Stop the War Coalition in 2009, six years before he became Labour leader, Corbyn said "It would be my pleasure and my honour to host an event in Parliament where our friends from Hezbollah will be speaking. I've also invited friends from Hamas to come and speak as well." He referred to Hamas as "an organisation dedicated towards the good of the Palestinian people," and said that the British government's labelling of Hamas as a terrorist organisation is "a big, big historical mistake."{{cite web |date=15 June 2015 |title=Jeremy Corbyn on Hamas and Hezbollah |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=52&v=pGj1PheWiFQ |url-status=unfit |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160625070313/https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=52&v=pGj1PheWiFQ |archive-date = 25 June 2016 |website=YouTube}}{{cite news |last1=Massie |first1=Alex |title=Britain's Labour Party Is Cutting Off Its Nose to Spite Its Face |url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2015/08/24/britains-labour-party-has-a-lefty-problem-jeremy-corbyn/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151228060809/http://foreignpolicy.com/2015/08/24/britains-labour-party-has-a-lefty-problem-jeremy-corbyn/ |archive-date=28 December 2015 |access-date=31 December 2015 |website=Foreign Policy |df=dmy-all}} Asked on Channel 4 News in July 2015 why he had called representatives from Hamas and Hezbollah "friends", Corbyn explained, "I use it in a collective way, saying our friends are prepared to talk," and that the specific occasion he used it was to introduce speakers from Hezbollah at a Parliamentary meeting about the Middle East. He said that he does not condone the actions of either organisation: "Does it mean I agree with Hamas and what it does? No. Does it mean I agree with Hezbollah and what they do? No. What it means is that I think to bring about a peace process, you have to talk to people with whom you may profoundly disagree … There is not going to be a peace process unless there is talks involving Israel, Hezbollah and Hamas and I think everyone knows that", he argued.

In January 2017, Corbyn expressed concern about Israeli involvement in British politics, after the broadcasting of The Lobby. He described the actions of the Israeli official, Shai Masot, as "improper interference in this country's democratic process" and was concerned on national security grounds that Boris Johnson had said the matter was closed.{{cite news |date=14 January 2017 |title=UK: Corbyn calls for probe into Israeli 'interference' |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/01/uk-corbyn-calls-probe-israeli-interference-170113202756949.html |access-date=7 June 2019 |publisher=al Jazeera}}

In his keynote speech at the 2018 annual Labour Party conference, Corbyn said that, if elected, his government would immediately recognise the Palestinian State as a way of supporting a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He declared that the Labour Party condemned the "shooting of hundreds of unarmed demonstrators in Gaza by Israeli forces and the passing of Israel's discriminatory nation-state law".{{cite news |last1=Bachner |first1=Michael |last2=Staff |first2=Toi |date=26 September 2018 |title=Corbyn says UK will immediately recognize Palestinian state if he's elected |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/corbyn-says-uk-will-immediately-recognize-palestinian-state-if-hes-elected/ |access-date=13 May 2019 |newspaper=The Times of Israel}}

In May 2019, Corbyn sent a message of support to the National Demonstration for Palestine in London in which Ahed Tamimi participated. He said the Labour Party condemned the "ongoing human rights abuses by Israeli forces, including the shooting by Israeli forces of hundreds of unarmed Palestinian demonstrators in Gaza – most of them refugees or families of refugees – demanding their rights".{{cite news |author=Toi Staff |date=11 May 2019 |title=Backed by Corbyn, over 3,000 march for 'free Palestine' in London |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/backed-by-corbyn-hundreds-march-for-free-palestine-in-london/ |access-date=13 May 2019 |newspaper=The Times of Israel}}{{cite web |date=14 November 2023 |title="Hamas is terror group": Newly appointed UK Home Secy James Cleverly confirms |url=https://theprint.in/world/hamas-is-terror-group-newly-appointed-uk-home-secy-james-cleverly-confirms/1844219/ |publisher=The Print}}

In a television interview following the 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel, Corbyn, when questioned, repeatedly refused to designate Hamas as a "terror group".{{cite news |last=Bullen |first=Jamie |date=14 November 2023 |title=Watch: Jeremy Corbyn refuses to call Hamas terrorists after Piers Morgan asks him 15 times |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/11/14/jeremy-corbyn-hamas-terrorists-piers-morgan-talktv-israel/ |access-date=4 December 2023 |work=The Telegraph |language=en-GB |issn=0307-1235}} Some days later, in an opinion piece in Tribune magazine, he wrote that Hamas is a "terrorist organisation" and that the Israel army has carried out "acts of terror too".{{cite news |last=Badshah |first=Nadeem |date=18 November 2023 |title=Jeremy Corbyn calls Hamas 'terrorist group' after previous demurral |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2023/nov/18/jeremy-corbyn-calls-hamas-terrorist-group-after-previous-demurral |access-date=4 December 2023 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}

=Tunisian wreath-laying controversy=

{{main|Corbyn wreath-laying controversy}}

In October 2014, Corbyn visited Tunisia to attend the "International Conference on Monitoring the Palestinian Political and Legal Situation in the Light of Israeli Aggression", organised by the Centre for Strategic Studies for North Africa. While there, Corbyn and other British parliamentarians attended a commemoration for victims of the 1985 Israeli air strikes on the PLO headquarters in Tunis.{{cite news |last1=Watts |first1=Joe |date=14 August 2018 |title=Tory peer admits he was also at Palestinian conference at centre of Jeremy Corbyn's wreath-laying controversy |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/conservative-jeremy-corbyn-wreath-laying-lord-sheikh-a8491641.html |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220608/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/conservative-jeremy-corbyn-wreath-laying-lord-sheikh-a8491641.html |archive-date=8 June 2022 |access-date=14 August 2018 |newspaper=The Independent}}{{cite news |date=15 August 2018 |title=Jeremy Corbyn wreath row explained |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-45196409 |access-date=18 August 2018 |publisher=BBC News}}{{cite web |date=16 August 2018 |title=FactCheck: Jeremy Corbyn and the wreath row |url=https://www.channel4.com/news/factcheck/factcheck-jeremy-corbyn-and-the-wreath-row |access-date=25 August 2018 |publisher=Channel 4 News}} The bombardment had been condemned by British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and US President Ronald Reagan, as well as the UN Security Council.{{cite news |last1=Prial |first1=Frank |date=3 October 1985 |title=Tunisia's Leader Bitter at the U.S. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/10/03/world/tunisia-s-leader-bitter-at-the-us.html |access-date=9 December 2018 |newspaper=The New York Times}}

In August 2018, the Daily Mail reported, with pictorial evidence, that during the event, Corbyn had also been present at a wreath-laying at the graves of Salah Khalaf and Atef Bseiso, both of whom are thought to have been key members of the Black September Organization, which was behind the 1972 Munich massacre.{{cite news |last=Sabbagh |first=Dan |date=14 August 2018 |title=Jeremy Corbyn: I was present at wreath-laying but don't think I was involved |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/aug/13/jeremy-corbyn-not-involved-munich-olympics-massacre-wreath-laying |access-date=25 August 2018 |work=The Guardian}} The Jerusalem Post commented: "In another photo, Corbyn is seen close to the grave of terrorist Atef Bseiso, intelligence chief of the Palestine Liberation Organization. Bseiso is also linked to the massacre."{{cite news |last=Sharon |first=Jeremy |date=12 August 2018 |title=Labour Leader Corbyn Photographed Laying Wreath For Munich Terrorists |url=https://www.jpost.com/Diaspora/Labour-leader-Corbyn-photographed-laying-wreath-for-Munich-terrorists-564636 |access-date=13 August 2018 |work=The Jerusalem Post}} There was condemnation from some of the British press, as well as from some members of the Labour Party and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.{{Cite news |last=Kentish |first=Benjamin |title=Benjamin Netanyahu says Jeremy Corbyn deserves 'unequivocal condemnation' for attending memorial to Munich terrorists |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-benjamin-netanyahu-munich-massacre-terrorists-wreath-twitter-antisemitism-a8490431.html |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220608/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-benjamin-netanyahu-munich-massacre-terrorists-wreath-twitter-antisemitism-a8490431.html |archive-date=8 June 2022 |access-date=13 August 2018 |work=The Independent}} A Labour spokesperson said that "a wreath was laid on behalf of those at the conference to all those who lost their lives, including families and children".

On 1 August, BBC News showed in a report from inside the cemetery that for the memorial for the 1985 victims, Corbyn would have stood in a designated confined covered area where all dignitaries typically stand during annual ceremonies, which also covers the graves of Bseiso and Khalaf. Corbyn said that he had been present during commemorations where a wreath was laid for Palestinian leaders linked to Black September, but did not think that he had actually been involved.{{cite web |last=Sabbagh |first=Dan |date=13 August 2018 |title=Jeremy Corbyn: I was present at wreath-laying but don't think I was involved |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/aug/13/jeremy-corbyn-not-involved-munich-olympics-massacre-wreath-laying |access-date=13 August 2018 |website=The Guardian}}{{cite web |date=13 August 2018 |title=Jeremy Corbyn 'thinks' he did not lay wreath to Palestinian terrorists |url=https://news.sky.com/story/jeremy-corbyn-thinks-he-did-not-lay-wreath-to-palestinian-activists-11471739 |access-date=13 August 2018 |work=Sky News}} A Labour spokesperson stated that Corbyn "did not lay any wreath at the graves of those alleged to have been linked to the Black September Organisation or the 1972 Munich killings. He of course condemns that terrible attack, as he does the 1985 bombing." The Labour Party initially made a complaint to the press watchdog Independent Press Standards Organisation against several newspapers' alleged misreporting of the event,{{cite web |last=Waterson |first=Jim |date=16 August 2018 |title=Labour complains to regulator over coverage of cemetery visit |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/aug/16/labour-complains-to-regulator-over-coverage-of-cemetery-visit |access-date=20 August 2018 |work=The Guardian |publisher=Guardian News and Media Limited}} although this was later dropped.{{cite web |last1=Walker |first1=Peter |last2=Waterson |first2=Jim |last3=Sabbagh |first3=Dan |last4=Crerar |first4=Pippa |date=1 October 2018 |title=Conservative conference: Ruth Davidson calls for 'practical, pragmatic' Brexit – as it happened |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/blog/live/2018/oct/01/conservative-conference-hammond-says-johnson-will-never-be-pm-politics-live |newspaper=The Guardian}}{{cite web |last=Tobitt |first=Charlotte |date=26 October 2018 |title=Labour drops complaint against six newspapers over Corbyn wreath coverage after email leak 'unacceptably compromised' IPSO process |url=https://www.pressgazette.co.uk/labour-drops-complaint-against-six-newspapers-over-corbyn-wreath-coverage-after-email-leak-unacceptably-compromised-ipso-process/}}

=Kosovo=

Unlike most Labour MPs at the time, Corbyn and a few other backbenchers opposed NATO intervention during the Kosovo War.{{cite journal |last1=Cragg |first1=Andrew |date=2017 |title=A Socialist Schism: British Socialists' Reaction to the Downfall of Slobodan Milosevic |page=41}} In 2004, Corbyn and 24 other backbenchers signed a parliamentary motion praising an article by journalist John Pilger for "reminding readers of the devastating human cost of the so-termed 'humanitarian' invasion of Kosovo, led by NATO and the United States in the Spring of 1999, without any sanction of the United Nations Security Council". The motion also congratulated Pilger "on his expose of the fraudulent justifications for intervening in a 'genocide' that never really existed in Kosovo". The motion said that initial estimates of casualties by the US Ambassador for War Crimes Issues were much higher than the later body count by the International War Crimes Tribunal.{{cite web |title=JOHN PILGER AND KOSOVO – Early Day Motions – UK Parliament |url=https://edm.parliament.uk/early-day-motion/26919 |website=edm.parliament.uk}} Balkan Insight wrote that, during the 2015 campaign for the Labour leadership, Corbyn was criticised by bloggers and journalists for "having once apparently dismissed Serbian war crimes in Kosovo as a fabrication".{{cite news |date=17 August 2015 |title=UK Labour Frontrunner Queried on Kosovo Motion |url=https://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/uk-labour-frontrunner-queried-on-kosovo-motion-08-17-2015 |agency=Balkan Insight}}

=Sri Lanka and the Tamil Tigers=

In 2006, Corbyn signed a petition calling for the lifting of the ban on the Tamil Tigers, which it referred to as the "supposedly terrorist Tamil Tigers", stating that "the Sri Lanka government is carrying out an undeclared war against the Tamil people who have been struggling for more than two decades for the legitimate right to self-rule" and calling for an end to aerial bombardment by the Sri Lankan government.{{cite news |date=12 September 2015 |title=Corbyn elected as UK's opposition leader |url=https://www.tamilguardian.com/content/corbyn-elected-uks-opposition-leader |agency=Tamil Guardian}} In 2009, Corbyn called for a total economic boycott of Sri Lanka, stating "the tourism must stop, the arms must stop, the trade must stop", he later stated the Sri Lankan cricket team should also be boycotted. He expressed outrage particularly at the reports of the depopulation of Tamil areas of Eastern Sri Lanka and the relocation of Tamils, stating that denying Tamils the right to return home was in contravention of international law, as well as reports of systematic sexual violence.

In 2016, after Corbyn released a video stating his "solidarity to stand with the Tamil community in the search for truth, justice, accountability and reconciliation", while the Labour Party reiterated its " full implementation of the UN Human Rights Councils resolution on Sri Lanka", some Tamil activists interpreted the video to be a signal of Jeremy Corbyn's "support for Tamil self-determination".{{cite news |date=19 May 2016 |title=UK's Labour Party supports Sri Lankan Tamil cause |url=https://www.deccanchronicle.com/world/asia/190516/uk-s-labour-party-supports-sri-lankan-tamil-cause.html |agency=Deccan Chronicle}} In 2017, John McDonnell stated that a Corbyn led Labour government would end arms sales to Sri Lanka.{{cite news |author=TU Senan |date=7 May 2017 |title=Corbyn Government Will End Military Aid To Sri Lanka: John McDonnell |url=https://www.colombotelegraph.com/index.php/corbyn-government-will-end-military-aid-to-sri-lanka-john-mcdonnell/ |access-date=13 February 2019 |agency=Colombo Telegraph}}

=Iran=

Corbyn has called for the lifting of the sanctions on Iran as part of a negotiated full settlement of issues concerning the Iranian nuclear programme, and the starting of a political process to decommission Israel's nuclear arsenal.{{cite web |date=14 January 2014 |title=Rebuilding relations with Iran |url=http://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/a-c23b-Rebuilding-relations-with-Iran |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923085954/http://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/a-c23b-Rebuilding-relations-with-Iran |archive-date=23 September 2015 |work=morningstaronline.co.uk}}{{cite news |last=Waugh |first=Paul |date=13 July 2015 |title=Jeremy Corbyn's Hamas Grilling Leaves Him Accusing Channel 4 News Of 'Tabloid Journalism' |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/07/13/jeremy-corbyns-hamas-gril_n_7788826.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150906220109/http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/07/13/jeremy-corbyns-hamas-gril_n_7788826.html |archive-date=6 September 2015 |access-date=24 September 2015 |newspaper=The Huffington Post UK}}{{cite news |date=13 July 2015 |title=Jeremy Corbyn: 'I wanted Hamas to be part of the debate' |url=http://www.channel4.com/news/jeremy-corbyn-i-wanted-hamas-to-be-part-of-the-debate |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150929024119/http://www.channel4.com/news/jeremy-corbyn-i-wanted-hamas-to-be-part-of-the-debate |archive-date=29 September 2015 |access-date=24 September 2015 |work=Channel 4 News}}

=Saudi Arabia=

Corbyn has criticised Britain's close ties with Saudi Arabia and British involvement in the Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen. In January 2016, after a United Nations panel ruled Saudi-led bombing campaign of Yemen contravened international humanitarian law, Corbyn called for an independent inquiry into the UK's arms exports policy to Saudi Arabia. Corbyn and Hilary Benn wrote to David Cameron asking him to "set out the exact nature of the involvement of UK personnel working with the Saudi military".{{cite news |last1=MacAskill |first1=Ewen |last2=Wintour |first2=Patrick |date=27 January 2016 |title=Labour seeks details of UK role in Saudi-led airstrikes on Yemen |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jan/27/labour-raises-pressure-on-cameron-to-explain-yemen-involvement |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161016180953/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jan/27/labour-raises-pressure-on-cameron-to-explain-yemen-involvement |archive-date=16 October 2016 |newspaper=The Independent}} Corbyn has constantly called for the British Government to stop selling arms to Saudi Arabia to show that Britain wants a peace process in Yemen, "not an invasion by Saudi Arabia".{{cite news |last=Stone |first=Jon |date=1 July 2017 |title=Jeremy Corbyn reiterates call for UK to stop selling arms to Saudi Arabia |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-saudi-arabia-arms-sales-yemen-famine-civilian-killed-a7818481.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170701173058/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-saudi-arabia-arms-sales-yemen-famine-civilian-killed-a7818481.html |archive-date=1 July 2017 |access-date=1 July 2017 |newspaper=The Independent}} In March 2018, Corbyn accused Theresa May's government of "colluding" in war crimes committed by Saudi forces in Yemen. He said that a "humanitarian disaster is now taking place in Yemen. Millions face starvation...because of the Saudi led bombing campaign and the blockade.""[https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-saudi-arabia-yemen-war-arms-supplies-uk-theresa-may-latest-a8243916.html Jeremy Corbyn accuses UK military of 'directing war' by Saudi Arabia in Yemen]". The Independent. 7 March 2018.

Corbyn called for the suspension of arms sales to Saudi Arabia after dissident Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi was murdered inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. Corbyn also called for an international investigation into the assassination of Jamal Khashoggi and Saudi's war crimes in Yemen.{{cite news |date=17 October 2018 |title=Jeremy Corbyn calls for Saudi arms sales suspension amid journalist's disappearance |url=https://www.itv.com/news/2018-10-17/corbyn-calls-for-saudi-arms-sales-suspension-amid-journalists-disappearance/ |work=ITV News}}{{cite web |date=25 October 2018 |title=Saudis change Khashoggi story again, admit killing was 'premeditated' |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/saudi-arabia-now-admits-khashoggi-killing-was-premeditated-n924286 |access-date=13 May 2020 |website=NBC News}}

=Chagos Islands sovereignty dispute=

The sovereignty of the Chagos Archipelago in the Indian Ocean is disputed between the United Kingdom and Mauritius.{{cite web |date=25 February 2019 |title=Chagos Islands dispute: UK obliged to end control – UN |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-47358602 |work=BBC News}}{{cite news |date=19 October 2020 |title=Chagos Islands dispute: Mauritius calls US and UK 'hypocrites' |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-54598084 |work=BBC News}} Corbyn said he would respect a UN vote calling on the UK to decolonise the Chagos Archipelago and return Chagos to Mauritius. He said that "What happened to the Chagos islanders was utterly disgraceful. [They were] forcibly removed from their own islands, unfortunately, by this country. The right of return to those islands is absolutely important as a symbol of the way in which we wish to behave in international law."{{cite news |date=22 November 2019 |title=Labour would return Chagos Islands, says Jeremy Corbyn |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/22/uk-set-to-defy-un-deadline-to-return-chagos-islands |work=The Guardian}}

=Cuba=

Corbyn is a longtime supporter of the Cuba Solidarity Campaign, which campaigns against the US embargo against Cuba and supports the Cuban Revolution.{{cite news |author=Editorial Staff Opinion |date=26 September 2016 |title=Jeremy Corbyn promises socialism, the poisonous dogma that has killed millions of innocents |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/2016/09/28/jeremy-corbyn-promises-socialism-the-poisonous-dogma-that-has-ki/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170405170505/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/2016/09/28/jeremy-corbyn-promises-socialism-the-poisonous-dogma-that-has-ki/ |archive-date=5 April 2017 |work=The Telegraph}}{{cite news |last=Jones |first=Simon |date=26 November 2016 |title=Fidel Castro: Jeremy Corbyn praises 'huge figure' |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-38117068 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170328130735/http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-38117068 |archive-date=28 March 2017 |work=BBC News}}{{cite news |last1=Riley-Smith |first1=Ben |last2=Horton |first2=Helena |date=26 November 2016 |title=Jeremy Corbyn praises Fidel Castro's 'heroism' after death announced |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/11/26/fidel-castros-cuba-beacon-light-says-ex-london-mayor-ken-livingstone/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170328195515/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/11/26/fidel-castros-cuba-beacon-light-says-ex-london-mayor-ken-livingstone/ |archive-date=28 March 2017 |access-date=27 March 2017 |work=The Telegraph}} In November 2016, following the death of former communist President of Cuba Fidel Castro,{{cite news |last1=Graham |first1=Chris |last2=Rothwell |first2=James |last3=Alexander |first3=Harriet |date=26 November 2016 |title=Fidel Castro, Cuba's communist revolutionary, dead aged 90 – latest news, world's reaction, and what his death means for the county |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/11/26/fidel-castro-cubas-revolutionary-icon-dead-aged-90-latest/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170805092556/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/11/26/fidel-castro-cubas-revolutionary-icon-dead-aged-90-latest/ |archive-date=5 August 2017 |access-date=15 June 2017 |work=The Telegraph}} While saying that Castro had "flaws" and was a "huge figure of modern history, national independence and 20th Century socialism...Castro's achievements were many", Corbyn also praised his revolutionary "heroism".{{cite news |last1=Keate |first1=Georgie |last2=Fisher |first2=Lucy |date=28 November 2016 |title=Corbyn walks into a row by hailing dictator's 'heroism' |url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/article/corbyn-walks-into-a-row-by-hailing-dictators-heroism-kn3qbdw8h |access-date=2 April 2017 |work=The Times}} {{subscription required}}{{cite news |last=Jones |first=Simon |date=26 November 2016 |title=Fidel Castro: Jeremy Corbyn praises 'huge figure' |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-38117068 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161126152400/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-38117068 |archive-date=26 November 2016 |work=BBC News}} Internal Labour party critics of Corbyn accused him of glossing over Castro's human rights abuses.

=Venezuela=

When Hugo Chávez, the United Socialist Party President of Venezuela died in 2013, Corbyn tweeted that "Hugo Chavez showed that the poor matter and wealth can be shared. He made massive contributions to Venezuela & a very wide world".[http://islingtonnow.co.uk/2013/03/07/islington-mp-jeremy-corbyn-pays-tribute-to-hugo-chavez/ "Islington MP Jeremy Corbyn pays tribute to Hugo Chavez"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170516191645/http://islingtonnow.co.uk/2013/03/07/islington-mp-jeremy-corbyn-pays-tribute-to-hugo-chavez/|date=16 May 2017}}, Retrieved 11 June 2017. In 2014, Corbyn congratulated Chávez's successor, President Nicolás Maduro on his election to the presidency.{{cite news |last1=Elgot |first1=Jessica |last2=Asthana |first2=Anushka |date=3 August 2017 |title=Labour speaks out on Venezuela as pressure mounts on Corbyn |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/aug/02/labour-concerns-on-venezuela-raise-pressure-on-jeremy-corbyn-to-speak-out |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170802202055/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/aug/02/labour-concerns-on-venezuela-raise-pressure-on-jeremy-corbyn-to-speak-out |archive-date=2 August 2017 |access-date=3 August 2017 |work=The Guardian}} In February 2019, he said that "intervention in Venezuela and sanctions against the government of Nicolás Maduro were wrong" and that "only Venezuelans have the right to decide their own destiny". He was against outside interference in Venezuela, "whether from the US or anywhere else". He said there "needed to be dialogue and a negotiated settlement to overcome the crisis".{{cite web |last1=Stephens |first1=Philip |date=7 February 2019 |title=Ideology blinds Jeremy Corbyn to Venezuela's plight |url=https://www.ft.com/content/83424336-2a29-11e9-88a4-c32129756dd8 |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210/https://www.ft.com/content/83424336-2a29-11e9-88a4-c32129756dd8 |archive-date=10 December 2022 |access-date=3 April 2021 |website=www.ft.com}}

=Kurdistan and Kurds=

In 1988, Corbyn was one of the first MPs to raise the issue of Saddam Hussein's Halabja chemical attack against the Kurdish people, at a time when Hussein was still an ally of the west.{{cite web |last=MacAskill |first=Ewen |author-link=Ewen MacAskill |date=17 August 2018 |title=Jeremy Corbyn's foreign causes: a blessing or a curse? |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/aug/17/jeremy-corbyn-foreign-causes-a-blessing-or-a-curse |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200126025350/https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/aug/17/jeremy-corbyn-foreign-causes-a-blessing-or-a-curse |archive-date=26 January 2020 |access-date=17 August 2018 |website=theguardian.com}}{{cite news |last1=White |first1=Michael |author-link=Michael White (journalist) |date=26 September 1996 |title=Two MPs for price of one in gentle firebrand Corbyn |work=The Guardian |page=5 |quote=... he was, for instance, the first MP to make a fuss about Saddam Hussein's gassing of Kurdish villages in 1988, when the Iraqi leader was still the West's ally.}}{{cite book |last1=Nunns |first1=Alex |author-link=Alex Nunns |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8wZQDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT349 |title=The Candidate: Jeremy Corbyn's Improbable Path to Power |date=30 January 2018 |publisher=OR Books |isbn=978-1-68219-105-7 |edition=2nd |page=349}} In the aftermath, he called upon the Tory government to institute sanctions against Iraq and Iran to end the Iran–Iraq War, and to end the use of chemical weapons against the Kurds.{{cite book |last1=Rai |first1=Milan |author-link=Milan Rai |url=https://archive.org/details/regimeunchangedw0000raim |title=Regime Unchanged: Why the War on Iraq Changed Nothing |date=20 August 2003 |publisher=Pluto |isbn=978-0-7453-2199-8 |page=[https://archive.org/details/regimeunchangedw0000raim/page/32 32] |url-access=registration}}

In 2016, Corbyn said that "if peace is wanted in the region, the Kurdish people's right to self-determination must be accepted." Referring to the Kurdish nationalist leader Abdullah Öcalan, he remarked "if there will be a peace process and solution, Öcalan must be free and at the table."{{Cite news |date=16 September 2016 |title=British main opposition leader: Öcalan must be free for peace |url=https://anfenglish.com/news/british-main-opposition-leader-ocalan-must-be-free-for-peace-16426 |access-date=24 August 2018 |work=Firat News Agency}}

At Chatham House in 2017 he was asked if he would "condemn the genocide which is going on against the Kurds in Syria and in Turkey," Corbyn responded with "I would be very strong with the Turkish government on its treatment of Kurdish people and minorities and the way in which it's denied them their decency and human rights." On warfare by Turkey against the Kurds, Corbyn stated, "If arms are being used to oppress people internally in violation of international law then they simply should not be supplied to them."{{Citation |title=Jeremy Corbyn on Labour's Defence and Foreign Policy Priorities |date=12 May 2017 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGzPo8Wx1n0&t=3076 |access-date=24 August 2018 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211028/VGzPo8Wx1n0 |archive-date=28 October 2021 |publisher=Chatham House}}{{cbignore}}{{Cite news |date=14 May 2017 |title=UK Labour leader: All Mideast settlements must ensure Kurdish rights |url=http://www.rudaw.net/english/world/14052017 |access-date=24 August 2018 |work=Rudaw Media Network}}

Immigration

In 2016, Corbyn said that the EU allowed migrants to undercut UK workers' wages and called for an EU-wide minimum wage that would be tied to living costs.{{cite web |last1=Hughes |first1=Laura |title=Jeremy Corbyn tells Labour voters: I don't think too many EU migrants have come to Britain |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/04/14/eu-referendum-jeremy-corbyn-to-say-uk-should-vote-to-remain-in-t/ |website=The Daily Telegraph |access-date=19 October 2024 |language=en |date=14 April 2016}}

Accusations of antisemitism

{{Main|Antisemitism in the British Labour Party|The work of the Labour Party's Governance and Legal Unit in relation to antisemitism, 2014–2019}}

Corbyn's critics,{{Cite news |date=18 November 2020 |title=A guide to Labour Party anti-Semitism claims |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-45030552 |work=BBC News}} including British Orthodox rabbi Jonathan Sacks, former Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth,{{Cite news |date=28 August 2018 |title=Ex-chief rabbi condemns Corbyn comments on British Zionists |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-45333268 |work=BBC News}} have accused him of antisemitism in relation to past associations and comments as well as his handling of allegations within the party while defenders have cited his support for Jews against racism. These associations{{cite news |last=Shirbon |first=Estelle |title=British Jews protest against Labour's Corbyn over anti-Semitism |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-labour-antisemitism/british-jews-protest-against-labours-corbyn-over-anti-semitism-idUSKBN1H21H1 |publisher=Reuters}} included hosting a meeting where Holocaust survivor and anti-Zionist political activist Hajo Meyer compared Israeli actions in Gaza to elements of the Holocaust; Corbyn stated of this event, "In the past, in pursuit of justice for the Palestinian people and peace in Israel/Palestine, I have on occasion appeared on platforms with people whose views I completely reject. I apologise for the concerns and anxiety that this has caused."{{cite news |last=Marsh |first=Sarah |date=1 August 2018 |title=Corbyn apologises over event where Israel was compared to Nazis |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/aug/01/jeremy-corbyn-issues-apology-in-labour-antisemitism-row |access-date=2 August 2018 |work=The Guardian}}{{cite news |last=Zeffman |first=Henry |date=1 August 2018 |title=Jeremy Corbyn hosted event likening Israel to Nazis |url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/article/jeremy-corbyn-hosted-event-likening-israel-to-nazis-6sb5rqd5x |url-access=subscription |access-date=2 August 2018 |newspaper=The Times}} Corbyn attended "two or three" of the annual Deir Yassin Remembered commemorations in London, with Jewish fellow Labour MP Gerald Kaufman, organised by a group founded by Paul Eisen, who has denied the Holocaust,{{cite news |last=Mendick |first=Robert |date=20 May 2017 |title=Jeremy Corbyn's 10-year association with group which denies the Holocaust |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/05/20/jeremy-corbyns-10-year-association-group-denies-holocaust/ |access-date=31 October 2020 |work=The Telegraph |issn=0307-1235}}{{cite web |last=Sokol |first=Sam |date=5 April 2016 |title=Britain's Labour Party expels activist over Holocaust denial |url=https://www.jpost.com/Diaspora/Britains-Labour-party-expels-activist-over-Holocaust-denial-450309 |website=The Jerusalem Post}} but it is not known whether Eisen attended the commemorations.{{cite news |last=Mendick |first=Roberet |date=20 May 2017 |title=Jeremy Corbyn's 10-year association with group which denies the Holocaust |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/05/20/jeremy-corbyns-10-year-association-group-denies-holocaust/ |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |quote=Mr Corbyn was considered to be a “stalwart” supporter of an anti-Israel campaign group Deir Yassin Remembered (DYR) for several years after its organisers were exposed publicly for their extreme anti-Semitic views.}}{{cite web |last=Eisen |first=Paul |date=2008 |title=My Life as a Holocaust Denier |url=https://www.righteousjews.org/article27a.html |website=www.righteousjews.org}} Corbyn stated that he was unaware of the views expressed by Eisen, and had associated with Mayer and others with whom he disagreed in pursuit of progress in the Middle East.{{cite web |date=13 July 2015 |title=Jeremy Corbyn: 'I wanted Hamas to be part of the debate' |url=https://www.channel4.com/news/jeremy-corbyn-i-wanted-hamas-to-be-part-of-the-debate |access-date=16 December 2017 |publisher=Channel 4 News}}{{cite web |last=Mason |first=Rowena |date=17 August 2015 |title=Jeremy Corbyn says antisemitism claims 'ludicrous and wrong' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/aug/18/jeremy-corbyn-antisemitism-claims-ludicrous-and-wrong |quote=Corbyn said he did attend a few meetings some years ago of a group called Deir Yassin Remembered |newspaper=The Guardian}}{{cite news |last1=Elgot |first1=Jessica |date=8 March 2018 |title=Labour suspends party members in 'antisemitic' Facebook group |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/mar/08/labour-suspends-party-members-in-antisemitic-facebook-group |access-date=29 July 2018 |work=The Guardian}}

Corbyn has been criticised for his defence of Palestinian-Israeli cleric and activist Raed Salah, who was arrested in 2011 due to a deportation order one day before he was due to attend a meeting with MPs including Corbyn.{{cite web |last=Travis |first=Alan |date=29 June 2011 |title=Leading Palestinian activist arrested in London |url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/jun/29/sheikh-raed-salah-arrest-london |website=The Guardian}} Salah was accused of spreading the "blood libel" (the myth that Jews in Europe had used children's blood in making holy bread), a claim which he strongly denied. He had also written an article suggesting that 4,000 "Jewish clerks" had been absent on the day of the 9/11 attacks attacks, alluding to the conspiracy theory that the Israeli secret service Mossad was involved in the attack.{{cite news |last=Ware |first=John |author-link=John Ware (TV journalist) |date=29 June 2011 |title=Questions over Sheikh Raed Salah's UK ban |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-13969105 |publisher=BBC News}} In a statement, Salah condemned antisemitism{{cite web |date=20 February 2014 |title=A response to accusations made against Shaikh Raed Salah, Head of the Islamic Movement |url=https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20140220-a-response-to-accusations-made-against-shaikh-raed-salah-head-of-the-islamic-movement/ |access-date=24 August 2020 |website=Middle East Monitor}} and denied the accusation of blood libel, of which he was later convicted and sentenced to eight months in prison{{cite web |date=4 March 2014 |title=Sheikh Raed Salah gets 8 months for incitement to violence |url=http://www.jpost.com/National-News/Sheikh-Raed-Salah-gets-8-months-for-incitement-to-violence-344246 |access-date=26 September 2015 |website=The Jerusalem Post}} before he successfully appealed his deportation. Corbyn said that Salah was "a voice of the Palestinian people that needs to be heard" and accused then-Home Secretary Theresa May of giving "an executive detention order against him".{{cite news |date=2 April 2019 |title=The Londoner: Jeremy Corbyn's articles open old wounds |url=https://www.standard.co.uk/news/londoners-diary/the-londoner-jeremy-corbyns-articles-open-old-wounds-a4107141.html |newspaper=Evening Standard}} Following Salah's successful appeal against deportation, Corbyn said he was looking forward to inviting the cleric to "tea on the House of Commons terrace, because you deserve it". A Labour source also stated in response, "Jeremy Corbyn is a determined supporter of justice for the Palestinian people and opponent of anti-Semitism. He condemns support for Palestinians being used as a mask for anti-Semitism and attempts to silence legitimate criticism of Israel by wrongly conflating it with anti-Semitism. There was widespread criticism of the attempt to deport Raed Salah, including from Jews for Justice for Palestinians, and his appeal against deportation succeeded on all grounds."

In 2012, the artist Mear One publicised on social media that his mural Freedom for Humanity, about exploitative bankers and industrialists, was being censored; Corbyn responded at the time by questioning the removal of the artwork, and then in 2018 was criticised by Jewish leaders for not recognising an antisemitic canard. In response to that criticism, Corbyn said he regretted that he "did not look more closely at the image", agreed it was antisemitic, and endorsed the decision to remove it.{{cite news |last=Stewart |first=Heather |date=23 March 2018 |title=Corbyn in antisemitism row after backing artist behind 'offensive' mural |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/mar/23/corbyn-criticised-after-backing-artist-behind-antisemitic-mural |access-date=14 February 2019 |work=The Guardian}}{{cite book |last=Lipstadt |first=Deborah E. |author-link=Deborah Lipstadt |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aWJKDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA60 |title=Antisemitism: Here and Now |publisher=Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group |year=2019 |isbn=978-0-8052-4338-3 |pages=59–61}} In 2020, the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) revealed that an antisemitism complaint had been made against Corbyn in April 2018 over his defence of the mural and that members of Corbyn's office "directly interfered in the decision not to investigate the case", an example of political interference which the EHRC concluded was "unlawful".{{cite news |last1=Courea |first1=Eleni |last2=Fisher |first2=Lucy |last3=Elliott |first3=Francis |date=29 October 2020 |title=Jeremy Corbyn suspended from Labour after antisemitism verdict |url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/article/jeremy-corbyns-labour-guilty-of-multiple-failures-on-antisemitism-b6dsd3mq3 |website=The Times}} Corbyn was criticised for a 2013 speech in which he spoke of certain Zionists who had "berated" the Palestinian speaker at a meeting, "they don't want to study history and secondly having lived in this country for a very long time, probably all their lives, they don't understand English irony either" (used by the speaker).{{cite news |last1=Stewart |first1=Heather |last2=Sparrow |first2=Andrew |date=24 August 2018 |title=Jeremy Corbyn: I used the term 'Zionist' in accurate political sense |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/aug/24/corbyn-english-irony-video-reignites-antisemitism-row-labour |access-date=12 September 2018 |work=The Guardian}}{{Cite news |last=Paul |first=Jonny |date=20 January 2013 |title=Palestinian envoy to Britain dismisses two-state solution |url=https://www.jpost.com/Diplomacy-and-Politics/Palestinian-envoy-to-Britain-dismisses-two-state-solution |access-date=27 August 2018 |newspaper=Jerusalem Post}}{{Cite news |last=Corbyn |first=Jeremy |date=29 August 2018 |title=Full text of that speech by Jeremy on the Palestinian ambassador to the UK, English irony and certain Zionist critics, ['Britain's Legacy in Palestine' conference, 19 January 2013, Friends Meeting House, Palestinian Return Centre] |url=http://labourbriefing.squarespace.com/home/2018/8/29/full-texxt-of-that-speech-by-jeremy-on-zionists-and-a-sense-of-irony |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180911225611/http://labourbriefing.squarespace.com/home/2018/8/29/full-texxt-of-that-speech-by-jeremy-on-zionists-and-a-sense-of-irony |archive-date=11 September 2018 |access-date=30 August 2018 |newspaper=Labour Briefing website}}{{cite news |date=26 August 2018 |title=Remarks about Zionists draw official complaint against Jeremy Corbyn |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/aug/26/jeremy-corbyn-official-antisemitism-complaint |access-date=30 August 2018 |work=The Observer}} The remarks were criticised for appearing to perpetuate the antisemitic canard that Jews fail or refuse to integrate into wider society.{{cite magazine |last=Mead |first=Rebecca |date=27 August 2018 |title=Jeremy Corbyn and the English Fetishization of Irony |url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/cultural-comment/the-english-fetishization-of-irony |access-date=9 April 2019 |magazine=The New Yorker}}{{cite news |last=Hattenstone |first=Simon |date=24 August 2018 |title=I still don't believe Corbyn is antisemitic – but his 'irony' comments unquestionably were |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/aug/24/jeremy-corbyn-antisemitism-labour-zionists-2013-speech |access-date=9 April 2019 |newspaper=The Guardian}} Corbyn responded that he was using Zionist "in the accurate political sense and not as a euphemism for Jewish people". Jonathan Sacks, a former Chief Rabbi, described the remark as "the most offensive statement made by a senior British politician since Enoch Powell's 1968 'rivers of blood' speech."{{cite web |date=10 June 2021 |title=Corbyn's "Zionist" remarks were "most offensive" since Enoch Powell, says ex-chief rabbi |url=https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/uk/2018/08/corbyn-s-zionist-remarks-were-most-offensive-enoch-powell-says-ex-chief-rabbi |website=www.newstatesman.com}}

Following coverage of alleged antisemitic statements by party members, Corbyn commissioned the Chakrabarti Inquiry and supported changes to the party's rules and procedures to make hate speech and expressions of racism a disciplinary offence.{{cite news |last=Elgot |first=Jessica |date=26 September 2017 |title=Labour to adopt new antisemitism rules after conference row |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/sep/26/labour-to-adopt-new-antisemitism-rules-after-conference-row |access-date=25 November 2017 |work=The Guardian}} In July 2018, Labour, with Corbyn's support, agreed a code of conduct which excluded or amended some of the examples from the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism relating to criticism of Israel. Britain's three main Jewish newspapers jointly called a Corbyn-led government an "existential threat to Jewish life" in Britain.{{cite news |date=17 July 2018 |title=New Labour anti-Semitism code faces criticism |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-44863606 |access-date=8 May 2020 |publisher=BBC News}}{{cite news |last1=Rawlinson |first1=Kevin |last2=Crerar |first2=Pippa |date=26 July 2018 |title=Jewish newspapers claim Corbyn poses 'existential threat' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/jul/25/jewish-newspapers-claim-corbyn-poses-existential-threat |access-date=9 April 2019 |work=The Guardian}} Corbyn was accosted by Labour MP Margaret Hodge in the Commons; she then told him she believed he was "an antisemitic racist" because of his perceived reluctance to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's definition of antisemitism in full.{{cite web |date=18 July 2018 |title=Labour acts against Margaret Hodge for calling Corbyn racist |url=http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/jul/18/labour-party-to-take-action-against-mp-who-called-corbyn-a-racist |website=The Guardian}} In an opinion piece for The Guardian, Hodge explained that, for her, as the daughter of Holocaust survivors, the issue of racism was personal.{{cite web |date=18 July 2018 |title=I was right to confront Jeremy Corbyn over Labour's antisemitism | Margaret Hodge |url=http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/jul/18/jeremy-corbyn-labour-antisemitism-margaret-hodge |website=The Guardian}} The party began disciplinary action against Hodge but dropped the charges in August, claiming she had "expressed regret for the manner in which she raised her views", but Hodge denied this was the case.{{cite web |date=6 August 2018 |title=Labour ends action against Margaret Hodge in antisemitism row |url=http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/aug/06/labour-ends-action-against-margaret-hodge-in-antisemitism-row |website=The Guardian}}

In 2019, Corbyn was criticised{{cite news |last=Finkelstein |first=Daniel |date=30 April 2019 |title=Corbyn's praise for deeply antisemitic book |url=https://www.thetimes.com/article/corbyn-s-praise-for-deeply-antisemitic-book-6jfcmh5fp |via=www.thetimes.co.uk}} for a foreword he wrote in 2011 for a republication of the 1902 book Imperialism: A Study by John A. Hobson, as the book contains the antisemitic assertion that finance was controlled "by men of a single and peculiar race, who have behind them many centuries of financial experience" who "are in a unique position to control the policy of nations". In his foreword, he called the book a "great tome" and "brilliant, and very controversial at the time".{{cite news |last1=Marsh |first1=Sarah |last2=Stewart |first2=Heather |date=1 May 2019 |title=Jewish leaders demand explanation over Corbyn book foreword |url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2019/may/01/jeremy-corbyn-rejects-antisemitism-claim-over-book-foreword |access-date=31 August 2020 |newspaper=The Guardian}} Corbyn responded that the language used to describe minorities in Hobson's work is "absolutely deplorable", but he stated that his foreword analysed "the process which led to the first world war" which he saw as the subject of the book and not Hobson's language.

In 2020, former Corbyn advisor Andrew Murray suggested Corbyn may have struggled to empathise with the Jewish community during his leadership, stating: "He is very empathetic, Jeremy, but he's empathetic with the poor, the disadvantaged, the migrant, the marginalised. [...] Happily, that is not the Jewish community in Britain today."{{Cite news |title=Pride, prejudice and a problem that struck at Corbyn's core |url=https://www.thetimes.com/article/pride-prejudice-and-a-problem-that-struck-at-corbyns-core-mwjpl36s9 |work=The Times}}{{cite book |last1=Maguire |first1=Patrick |title=Left Out: The Inside Story of Labour Under Corbyn |last2=Pogrund |first2=Gabriel |date=2020 |publisher=The Bodley Head |page=120}} Corbyn raised the question in internal debates of whether there was a risk of giving the Jewish community 'special treatment'. In 2021 Corbyn was a guest at the Cambridge Union. He was asked by the society's President, Joel Rosen, what he had done to stop Luciana Berger, a Jewish MP for Liverpool Wavertree, from being "hounded out" of the Labour party. Corbyn replied that Berger "was not hounded out of the party. She unfortunately decided to resign from the party."{{Cite news |last=Boycott-Owen |first=Mason |date=11 June 2021 |title=Jewish MP was not hounded out of Labour Party, says Jeremy Corbyn |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2021/06/11/jewish-mp-not-hounded-labour-party-says-jeremy-corbyn/ |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2021/06/11/jewish-mp-not-hounded-labour-party-says-jeremy-corbyn/ |archive-date=11 January 2022 |newspaper=The Telegraph}}{{cbignore}}{{Cite news |last=Harpin |first=Lee |title=Corbyn tells Cambridge Union: Luciana Berger 'was not hounded out' of Labour |url=https://jewishnews.timesofisrael.com/corbyn-tells-cambridge-union-luciana-berger-was-not-hounded-out-of-labour/ |website=jewishnews.timesofisrael.com}}

A September 2018 poll carried out by polling firm Survation, on behalf of the Jewish Chronicle, found that 86% of British Jews and 39% of the British public believed Corbyn to be antisemitic.Sugarman, Daniel (13 September 2018). [https://www.thejc.com/news/uk-news/more-than-85-per-cent-of-british-jews-think-jeremy-corbyn-is-antisemitic-1.469654 "More than 85 per cent of British Jews think Jeremy Corbyn is anti-Semitic"]. The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 31 August 2020. A poll conducted in 2021 by YouGov, again on behalf of the Jewish Chronicle, found that 70% of Labour members dismissed the idea that the party had a problem with antisemitism, and 72% believe Corbyn should not have been expelled from the party.{{cite news |last=Wallis Simons |first=Jake |date=30 March 2021 |title=70% of Labour members still think the party has no problem with Jew hate and don't want Corbyn expelled |url=https://www.thejc.com/true-views-of-labour-membership-revealed-in-new-poll-1.513656 |access-date=31 March 2021 |work=The Jewish Chronicle}}

In November 2019, a number of British public figures urged voters in a letter published in The Guardian to reject Corbyn in the impending general election, alleging an "association with antisemitism".{{cite news |date=16 November 2019 |title=UK public figures, writer John le Carré oppose Corbyn due to antisemitism |url=https://www.jpost.com/Diaspora/Antisemitism/UK-public-figures-writer-John-le-Carr%C3%A9-oppose-Corbyn-due-to-antisemitism-607920 |work=Jerusalem Post}} The Labour Party responded by noting their robust actions in dealing with it and that several of the signatories had themselves been accused of antisemitism, Islamophobia and misogyny and/or were Conservatives and Liberal Democrats.{{cite news |last=Mason |first=Rowena |date=14 November 2019 |title=Labour antisemitism row: public figures say they cannot vote for party under Corbyn |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/nov/14/labour-antisemitism-row-public-figures-say-they-cannot-vote-for-party-under-corbyn |access-date=16 November 2019 |work=The Guardian}}

References

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