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The UK Green Party has voted to formally adopt an anti-Zionist position at its 2026 conference, prompting Israel to bar the party's leader, Zack Polanski, from entering the country.
The motion passed by 1,022 votes to 813, according to a Green Party press release issued on Sunday, defines Zionism as an ethnonationalist political project and states that anti-Zionism should not be equated with antisemitism. Zionism is a nationalist movement that emerged in Europe in the late 19th century, seeking to establish and support a Jewish homeland. The policy also reaffirms the party's support for Palestinian liberation, the right of return, Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS), and a full arms embargo against Israel. It further backs the right to self-determination and calls for the establishment of a single democratic state throughout historic Palestine. A Green Party spokesperson said the decision followed a "serious and deeply felt debate" among its membership. This has been a serious and deeply felt debate within our membership. Our members value the ability to bring forward and decide party policy, and conference has now made its decision, the spokesperson said. The party said its position was rooted in its opposition to racism and its stated support for equality, justice and human rights. The Green Party is an anti-racist party and has consistently opposed the illegal occupation of both Palestinian and Syrian land, called for an end to arms sales to the Israeli government and spoken out fearlessly about the devastating situation in Gaza and the West Bank. Those positions remain central to our approach. So too does our deeply held commitment to equality, justice and human rights for all and opposition to racism in all its forms, the spokesperson added. Following the adoption of the policy, Israel's Foreign Ministry accused the Green Party of legitimising armed struggle against Israel. "Today, the Green Party in Britain adopted a resolution equating Zionism with racism, legitimising armed struggle against Israel, and calling for the establishment of a Palestinian state from the river to the sea - meaning the destruction of the State of Israel," the Israeli Foreign Ministry said in a statement. The ministry said it considered the resolution antisemitic under the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition and accused it of denying Jewish self-determination. "The resolution constitutes a clear antisemitic text according to the IHRA definition, as it denies the Jewish peoples right to self-determination," it said. Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar subsequently decided to bar Green Party leader Zack Polanski from entering Israel, according to the ministry. "Therefore, as a first step, Foreign Minister Gideon Saar has decided this evening to declare Green Party leader Zack Polanski barred from entering Israel. The decision has been coordinated with the relevant authorities," the statement added. (ANI)
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