Former MP George Galloway sacked from radio show over Champions League Israel tweet

Former Labour MP George Galloway has been sacked as a radio host after he said that Tottenham Hotspurs’ defeat in the Champions League final meant there would be “no Israel flags on the Cup”. Talk Radio said it “does not tolerate antisemitic views” and was cancelling Mr Galloway’s weekly show “Unleashed” with immediate effect. The 64-year-old, who was previously a presenter on the Iranian state-controlled channel Press TV and makes regular appearances on RT-owned Sputnik, made the offensive comment on Twitter while congratulating Liverpool for their win on Saturday. “Congratulations to the great people of #Liverpool to the memory of the socialist miner #BillShankley to the fallen #96 to those who fought for justice for them and to the Liverpool dockers. No #Israël flags on the Cup!” he wrote. Tottenham Hotspur, based in north London, has traditionally had a strong Jewish fan base and a number of the club’s chairmen have been Jewish, including current chairman Daniel Levy. Liverpool’s Head of Club and Supporter Liaison Tony Barrett replied to Mr Galloway’s tweet, writing: “Please don’t include Liverpool Football Club in this b*******. “It’s the club of Ronnie Rosenthal and Avi Cohen. It’s the club of Mo Salah and Sadio Mane. It’s the club of Parson Jackson and Bill Shankly (with no e). It’s a club of all flags, all religions, all nations and none.” While Tottenham Hotspur said in a statement published by Sky News: "It's astounding in this day and age to read such blatant antisemitism published on a social platform by someone who is still afforded air time on a radio station on which he has previously broken broadcast impartiality rules." Former Spurs owner Lord Alan Sugar said Mr Galloway was “trash” and a “total anti-semite”. The broadcaster, who was expelled from the Labour Party in 2003 and later became a Respect Party MP, appeared to threaten legal action over his sacking. “I’ve just been sacked by @talkRADIO See you in Court guys. #Palestine #Moats Long live Palestine,” he wrote. “The Mother of All Talkshows - Unleashed- will not be silenced. Stay tuned for further details. #Moats.”

Former MP George Galloway sacked from radio show over Champions League Israel tweet

Talk Radio said it did not tolerate “antisemitic views”