It was last Friday that the Social Democrats announced that they lack confidence in Jamal El-Haj. He was then asked by the party to leave his parliamentary seat. The decision was made, among other things, due to El-Haj’s participation in the European Palestinian conference last year.
On Monday, it was announced that Jamal El-Haj is leaving the party, but that he will retain his parliamentary seat, which he announced in a letter to the party that SVT has seen.
“Most painful decision”
“In the battle between truth and lies there is a critical point when the lie is at its greatest and the truth reaches its ultimate test. With these words, I want to inform you that I am leaving the Social Democrats,” writes El-Haj in the letter and continues:
“I will keep my seat in the Riksdag. It would not be right towards our voters and towards Swedish democracy to leave my assignment”.
The decision is the most “painful” he had to make in his adult life, writes El-Haj.
“But it is not possible to stay when the party leadership no longer has confidence in me and the drive has become too great”.
He intends to continue to fight “for the equal” value of all people:
“It was with that conviction that I attended the Palestinian conference”.
Hallengren: “Unacceptable behavior”
In a comment to TT, the Social Democrats’ group leader in the Riksdag, Lena Hallengren, writes that El-Haj’s decision is “unacceptable”.
“This is an unacceptable action by Jamal El-Haj and further proof that he puts his own interests ahead of the party’s”.