UK Green Party Declares Zionism Racist, Calls for Palestinian State

The UK's Green Party has adopted a resolution declaring Zionism to be a form of racism, leading to the party's opposition to the current state of Israel and support for a Palestinian state in its place. The decision was made at the party's conference following a heated debate. The party's leader, Zac Polansky, who has been critical of Israel, did not participate in the vote. The resolution, passed by a vote of 1,022 to 813, now becomes binding policy for the party in England and Wales. It calls for Zionism to be treated like any other form of racism, defining it as support for an "ethno-nationalist Jewish state" and advocating for a "Palestinian state" with equal rights for all in place of Israel. The group that promoted the proposal was "Green Left for Palestine." Jewish members who sought to moderate or change the resolution found their proposals rejected. The resolution states that Zionism is "inherently racist" because it "prioritizes one ethnic group based on the oppression of other groups." The Guardian reported that Jewish members of the party have privately stated they may not be able to remain members. Four out of the party's five members of parliament condemned the resolution, while Polansky largely abstained from the internal debate. The Green Party has seen significant growth in the past year, partly due to its embrace of protests against Israel concerning events in Gaza, which the party has labeled "genocide." This shift has also influenced the new Labour government's stance, with Britain recently announcing a "change of direction" in its relations with Israel, threatening sanctions on settlement goods and financial penalties, freezing arms export licenses, and speaking out against alleged "ethnic cleansing" by settlers. The Israeli Foreign Ministry strongly condemned the decision, calling it a "stain on the history of the United Kingdom" and stating that the Green Party had "officially adopted the green color of Hamas and its ideological doctrine which calls for the elimination of the State of Israel through armed struggle." The ministry urged all British parties to disavow the resolution.