This is the moment a rabbi standing as a Conservative party candidate is ‘abused and intimidated’ by a pro-Palestine supporter while visiting a local mosque.
Arnold Saunders, who is trying to win the Bury South seat, was on a visit to the Bilal Mosque in Prestwich on June 21 when a worshipper began hounding him on his position on the war in Gaza.
Throughout the clip, which has been widely spread on social media, the man aggressively approaches the rabbi telling him to condemn Israel‘s attacks in Gaza following the October 7 attacks carried out by Hamas.
‘Condemn the IDF, condemn the killing of children, of women, of old people, of livestock,’ the man shouts.
Rabbi Saunders, who had been invited to the mosque by local elders, tries to speak and stars saying that he ‘regret(s)’ something before being interrupted once again by the worshipper, who calls him a ‘snake’.
Rabbi Arnold Saunders, who is trying to win the Bury South seat for the Conservative Party, was approached by a worshipper outside Bilal Mosque in Prestwich
Throughout the clip, which has been widely spread on social media, the man aggressively approaches the rabbi (pictured) telling him to condemn Israel ‘s attacks in Gaza following the October 7 attacks carried out by Hamas
‘Don’t regret. Condemn in the strongest terms. What was your stance on the ceasefire? Did you vote for it? Were you willing to condemn?’ the unnamed man adds.
When the Rabbi tries to explain he was unable to vote on the ceasefire, as he is currently not a MP, he is interrupted again and is told ‘you’re not getting out vote’.
The man shouts and tells the Mosque’s leader: ‘Tell him to go. He should go. Ask him to go. We don’t want to engage with you people. We don’t want to engage with you.
‘You justify child killers. You say that it’s right that they cut off water and electricity supplies. You say that with your own people and then you come here and smile like a snake.
‘Until he goes I am not going. I’ve asked him 10 times to condemn it.’
After a three-minute rant the Rabbi is seen being helped up by security staff and led away from the chaos.
Rabbi Saunders was the only candidate to turn up at the hustings held at the mosque last month, although others were invited.
‘I was warned before I went there that people attending the mosque might want to engage with me robustly, but that was beyond the pale,’ he told MailOnline.
‘I never thought I’d have any problems. Maybe I was naïve.
‘I had been there for about an hour-and-a-half before the incident happened.
‘The vast majority of people attending the mosque were very courteous, I was able to engage with them without any issues.
‘It was just this one individual who began shouting at me.
‘He was leaning over and invading my personal space. It went on for about four minutes.
‘The elders at the mosque were trying to reason with him.
‘There was security there as well, but they could probably have done more to deal with it.
‘I didn’t feel physically threatened at any stage. I’ve never run away from anything in my life.’
The clip has sparked widespread condemnation from the Jewish community and beyond.
The Board of Deputies of British Jews said: ‘We are disgusted by the abusive treatment of Rabbi Arnold Saunders, a candidate in Bury South.
‘Rabbi Saunders had been invited by the elders of a local mosque; the video shows that some of the attendees took issue with this and the footage clearly shows the Rabbi was being targeted in this fashion due to his religion.
When the Rabbi tries to explain he was unable to vote on the ceasefire, as he is currently not a MP, he is interrupted again and is told ‘you’re not getting out vote’
After a three-minute rant the Rabbi is seen being helped up by security staff and lead away from the chaos
‘We urge all who care about the health of democracy to call out this bigotry.’
A statement from the Jewish Representative Council of Greater Manchester and the region said: ‘Rabbi Saunders is a much respected communal figure and we unequivocally condemn his treatment in this video.
‘The fact he has been attacked emphasises how individuals are importing the tragic conflict taking place in Israel and Gaza onto the streets of the UK,’ it added.
‘This is manifesting itself in politicians campaigning in a General Election being targeted, abused and unable to freely move around the constituencies they are seeking to represent.’
Christian Wakeford, until the general election was called the Labour MP for Bury South and the party’s candidate on July 4, said in a statement on X: ‘Both Bilal Mosque and Rabbi Saunders have undertaken many years of progressive interfaith work which is in stark contrast to this individual’s behaviour which is totally unacceptable.
‘We get nowhere in the world without dialogue and this is not representative of Bury South.
‘Despite political disagreements myself and Rabbi Saunders have always had an excellent relationship and I hope he is ok following this incident.’
Richard Holden, the Conservative chairman and parliamentary candidate for Basildon and Billericay, told the Telegraph: ‘What’s happening here to Arnie Saunders, the Conservative candidate for Bury South, is appalling, disgusting and should not be part of our democratic process.
‘I hope the Labour leadership and Bury South Labour candidate condemns this hatred.’
In a statement the mosque said most people had ‘engaged positively’ with Rabbi Arnold’s visit.
It continued: ‘Unfortunately, one or two individuals questioned the rabbi in a hostile manner and this clip has been widely circulated. This clip was recorded by one of the individuals himself.
‘The rabbi was a guest of the mosque, and he was treated inappropriately and disrespectfully. Any genuine political questions should have been raised respectfully.
‘We regret what has happened, we have already apologised to the rabbi for how he was treated and wish to extend our apologies to others who have seen the clip and are upset by it.
‘This incident is not reflective of the congregation of the mosque or the Muslim community in Bury.
‘Rabbi Saunders, a seasoned politician with many years of experience, and a former member of the Conservative Muslim Forum has himself taken the incident very calmly.
‘Masjid E Bilal has a long track record of good inter-faith relations and positive relations with the Jewish and other faith communities.
‘The Muslim community itself suffered some incidents during this year’s Purim celebrations at the hands of some youth activists.
‘None of these incidents are reflective of most of the people in the area.
‘We call on anyone attending any election events, wherever it may be, to remain calm and respectful whilst questioning candidates or holding politicians to account.’
