BRADFORD East MP David Ward, who was earlier forced to apologise over a controversial tweet about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, has said online that those behind an attack on a Jerusalem synagogue were “driven to madness” by an international failure to deal with the situation.

Mr Ward tweeted on Tuesday: “Attack by #Palestinians in Jerusalem Sickening madness – driven to madness by failure of international community to deal with #Israel.”

His comments have been condemned on Twitter as justifying or excusing terrorism, but Mr Ward yesterday told the Telegraph & Argus: “It says that this brutal attack was an act of sickening madness – I really do not see how I am being criticised for that part. That’s a very clear statement about my views on this attack, which is sickening. How more powerful can I be in condemning this attack?

“But that doesn’t get us very far in stopping these atrocities in the future.”