British Green Party Member Embraces 'Hamas Terrorist, Anti-Semite' Label

Lubna Qumsieh, a British Green Party member responsible for a resolution labeling Zionism as racism, stated she would "be happy to be labeled a Hamas terrorist, anti-Semite" due to her stance against Israel. The British-Palestinian artist and activist was reportedly recorded comparing Hamas fighters to Jews who fought in the Warsaw Ghetto uprising. Qumsieh authored the proposal, which passed with 1,022 votes in favor and 813 against, stating Zionism would be treated like any other form of racism by the Greens.

Last week, the Green Party announced an internal investigation into Qumsieh after it emerged that in 2015, she offered to testify for Minh Quang Pham, a British citizen and Al-Qaeda terrorist who planned a suicide bombing at Heathrow Airport. In a video released in July, Qumsieh said, "Every oppressed person has the right to resist. One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter." She added, "When it comes to Palestinian lives, we are terrorists. We need to condemn ourselves and we need to condemn our resistance. It's nauseating, and it's the same that was attributed to Jews who fought in the Warsaw ghettos as terrorists, the Congolese were terrorists, the Irish were terrorists, and the South Africans."

Qumsieh concluded, "So, we are all terrorists. Okay, that's a label we'll have to carry for fighting against injustice, for fighting against our erasure, so be it, we'll be happy to be labeled 'Hamas terrorists, anti-Semites.'" Senior Greens had warned that Jewish members would feel "frightened and unwelcome" following the resolution. Party chair Zac Goldsmith did not vote, with a party spokesperson explaining he was campaigning for a by-election. Green members also rejected two amendments, including one intended to protect Jewish Greens from racism complaints for visiting "Zionist" locations like synagogues.

In a separate online event seven months prior, Qumsieh claimed Palestinians were subjected to "organ harvesting" and held in "Israeli torture camps." She also stated the Holocaust is "used as a weapon" by Israel to justify the oppression of Palestinians, calling it "bitter irony that the historical trauma of the Jewish people caused in Europe is now used as a weapon to justify our oppression." Qumsieh asserted that definitions of antisemitism, including the IHRA's, are "designed to silence us" and "protect Israel from criticism and patronize racism."

The Green Party stated that Qumsieh holds no party position other than being a member and that the party takes such allegations seriously. They added that internal processes are in place to investigate where members' views do not align with party values, and an investigation is ongoing.