The Labour party’s position on Gaza appears to have cost it votes in the UK election

London CNN — Despite Labour’s landslide win in the UK general election, the party lost several seats after a strong showing from pro-Palestinian independent candidates, in a sign of anger towards Keir Starmer over Labour’s position on Israel’s war in Gaza.

Five independent candidates who have been vocal in their support for Gaza won parliamentary seats, while a surge in votes for independents elsewhere denied Labour a victory in areas they were expected to win, leaving a small dent in its otherwise huge majority but raising questions about its foreign policy positions.

In Leicester South, a seat in an industrial city in the English Midlands, Labour shadow cabinet member Jonathan Ashworth lost his seat by 979 votes to Shockat Adam, an independent candidate who made his support for Gaza a key part of his electoral pledge to voters.

“This is for Gaza,” Adam declared in his victory speech.

Ashworth’s defeat comes as a huge shock. At the last general election, when Labour slumped to its worst defeat since 1935 under the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn, Ashworth still won the seat with a huge majority, receiving 67% of the vote.