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Jeremy Corbyn calls for 'difficult conversations' with Saudi Arabia and Gulf states over extremism funding

Labour leader says PM cannot talk about addressing issues of extremism while suppressing a report about one of its sources

Caroline Mortimer
Thursday 08 June 2017 11:47 EDT
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Jeremy Corbyn says the UK government is turning a blind eye to Saudi Arabia's funding of extremist groups
Jeremy Corbyn says the UK government is turning a blind eye to Saudi Arabia's funding of extremist groups (BBC)

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Jeremy Corbyn has said the “difficult conversations” Theresa May wants to have about Islamist extremism should start with “Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states [which] have funded extremist ideology”.

In a speech in Carlisle following the terror attack in London Bridge which killed at seven people, Mr Corbyn was responding to Ms May’s comments on rooting out extremism.

He criticised her alleged suppression of a report into foreign funding of UK-based extremism which was originally due to be published in 2016 but was held back over due to its "sensitive" contents.

He said: “Our democratic values must be maintained. We must resist Islamophobia and division and turn out on 8 June united in our determination to show our democracy is strong.

“And, yes, we do need to have some difficult conversations starting with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states that have funded and fuelled extremist ideology.

“It is no good Theresa May suppressing a report into the foreign funding of extremist groups. We have to get serious about cutting off the funding to these terror networks, including Isis, here and in the Middle East.”

Earlier that day Ms May gave a speech outside Number 10, saying rooting out terrorism would involve some “difficult and embarrassing conversations”.

“While we have made significant progress in recent years there is, to be frank, far too much tolerance of extremism in our country,” she said.

“So we need to become far more robust in identifying it and stamping it out across the public sector and across society.”

The Conservative government has been criticised for increased arms sales to Riyadh.

Saudi Arabia is one of the top destinations for UK arms export licences with recent sales exceeding £3.5bn.

The arms are widely believed to be being used in the brutal conflict in neighbouring Yemen where the Saudis intervened in 2015 to prop up exiled Sunni Yemen President Abdrabbuh Mansir Hadi against Houthi forces who are backed by their arch-enemy Iran.

The conflict has so far claimed over 10,000 lives and two thirds of the population are at risk of famine.

Members of Ms May’s government have even expressed disquiet at Riyadh’s actions with Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson speaking of his “profound concern” about Yemen in December last year.

He said stability in the country could not be brought about by force alone.

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