Green Party leader clashes with pro-Palestinian motion calling for Israel's dissolution
Green Party leader Zack Polanski warned that a motion demanding the destruction of Israel and a single Palestinian state is a distraction and will not be supported.
Zack Polanski, leader of the Green Party of England and Wales, criticized a forthcoming conference motion that calls for the abolition of Israel and the creation of a single democratic Palestinian state throughout historic Palestine, with Jerusalem as its capital. The motion, authored by London-based artist Lubna Speitan, labels Zionism as an apartheid system and calls for extensive boycotts and divestment against Israel, mirroring sanctions once applied to South Africa.
Polanski told a Zeteo UK event at the Barbican that the proposal is a distraction and beyond the party’s remit, emphasizing the need to protect both Palestinian and Israeli rights. Speitan’s pamphlet also urges safeguards for Jewish members who oppose occupation, arguing the motion should not discriminate against them. The initiative is backed by the Greens for Palestine and was previously rejected at the party’s spring conference, despite support from deputy leader Mothin Ali.
