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Labour’s anti-semitism report author Shami Chakrabarti has defended Jeremy Corbyn after he was accused of equating Israel to ISIS.

The Labour leader faced attacks and a formal complaint to the party’s compliance unit over comments he made at the report's launch yesterday.

Labour's leader said: “Our Jewish friends are no more responsible for the actions of Israel or the Netanyahu government than our Muslim friends are for those of various self-styled Islamic states or organisations.”

Within minutes there was outrage from groups including Labour Friends of Israel and We Believe In Israel.

Asked if he was comparing the two Mr Corbyn later said: “No, no of course I’m not.”

And today Ms Chakrabarti defended the Labour leader - as she blasted ‘deliberate misrepresentation’ of his speech.

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She told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “He was making no comparison whatsoever between Israel and ISIS or anyone else. He was making the comparison which I make in my report.

“My understanding was he was referring to all those states or organisations that would describe themselves as Muslim or Islamic.

“I take responsibility for what felt like the deliberate misrepresentation of the leader’s speech by people who are very quick to misunderstand and condemn.”

She also apologised to Jewish Labour MP Ruth Smeeth, who stormed out of the launch in tears after being berated by an activist.

Ms Smeeth fled the event after being accused of colluding with the right-wing media - and later hit out at Jeremy Corbyn for failing to speak up.

But Shami Chakrabarti said it was her event and she “didn’t give [Mr Corbyn] the chance to jump in".

She added: “I have been to see Ruth Smeeth and I’ve apologised to her, because it was my press conference, I was chairing it and I’m really sorry that she was treated in that way.

She slammed the heckler for “abusing not just Ms Smeeth but me and abusing the privilege of asking a question at a national press conference.”

She added: “She had good cause for being upset, treated rudely at my press conference.

“I take responsibility for the gentleman who behaved frankly incredibly rudely at my press conference."