Israel bars British Green Party leader over ‘Zionism is racism’ policy

Move follows party vote backing single democratic state across historic Palestine with equal rights for all

Israel decided Sunday to bar the leader of the Green Party of England and Wales from entering the country after his party adopted a policy declaring Zionism a form of racism. Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar ordered the ban on Zack Polanski in coordination with relevant Israeli authorities, the Foreign Ministry said. Earlier Sunday, Green Party members approved the motion at their conference in Brighton, making opposition to Zionism part of the party’s official policy. The motion describes Zionism as a racist ideology and backs a single democratic Palestinian state across historic Palestine with equal rights for all. Israel’s Foreign Ministry accused the party of legitimizing armed resistance against Israel and denying Jewish self-determination, saying the policy amounted to antisemitism under the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition. Earlier, the ministry accused the Greens of having become “supporters of terrorism” and called on British political parties, including the governing Labour Party, to reject the motion. The Green Party rejected any equation of anti-Zionism with antisemitism, describing Zionism as an ethnonationalist political project. The party has also reaffirmed its support for Palestinian self-determination, the right of return and a full arms embargo on Israel.