Lena Hallengren critical of El-Haj’s answer about the Palestine conference

Jamal El-Haj has broken the silence about the participation in the mentioned Palestine conference.

His answer is met with criticism from the S management.

– I think he should be remorseful, says group leader Lena Hallengren (S).

Member of Parliament Jamal El-Haj (S) has recently been interviewed in SVT and in DN. He gives his view of why he participated in the Palestine conference in Malmö and what his relationship with terror detainee Abu Rashid looks like.

The Social Democrats’ group leader in the Riksdag, Lena Hallengren, has taken part in the interviews. She notes that El-Haj does not seem to regret his participation in the conference, which she considers unfortunate.

– It was inappropriate for him to participate, we advised against it, but he did not follow our advice. He should regret doing it given all the aftermath, she says.

Trust may be tested at the next election

The question of whether El-Haj still has the party’s trust is up to his party district in Skåne to decide, says Hallengren.

– It is a trust he carries from his members, it must be tested and reconsidered before the next election.

Are you urging the district to act, to test the trust?

– No, I do not. I tell you how it works in our party. That it is local you get your trust.

El-Haj chose the conference over the party, can you act like that and still represent S?

– I think he made the wrong assessment and we advised him not to participate. But being excluded, that’s something else. Excluding someone is a very big deal and nothing that happens because you went to a conference that you were advised against.

Serious allegations

Hallengren thinks that some of the criticism against Jamal El-Haj has been unfair, for example when he is portrayed as a security risk.

– I think you should think before you say something like that. These are extremely serious allegations. Jamal must take responsibility for not following my advice, I cannot say that there is any basis for the other claims.

Hallengren emphasizes that she does not believe that El-Haj sympathizes with Hamas, nor has she seen any information that indicates that.

– The journalist corps and the right have dug a lot into this. I assume that it would have come to light if it were so.

Jamal El-Haj says in the DN interview that he had failed his family and the entire Palestinian people if he did not participate in the conference. He also says that he did not know about Abu Rashid’s suspected terrorist connection, that he did not know who he was before the conference.

Aftonbladet has asked S leader Magdalena Andersson questions about El-Haj’s answers in the interviews. She refers to Lena Hallengren.