Green Party Calls Zionism Racist, Israel Bans Leader Polanski From Entering

The Green Party of England and Wales has voted to define Zionism as a form of racism and declare itself an "anti-Zionist party", in a dramatic motion passed 1,022 to 813 at the party's conference in Brighton on Sunday. Within hours, Israel's foreign ministry barred Green leader Zack Polanski from entering the country, accusing the party of legitimising "the destruction of the State of Israel".

Green Party leader Zack Polanski, who is Jewish, did not take part in Sunday's conference vote.

The Vote That Stunned Brighton

The motion, put forward by the campaign group Greens for Palestine, was adopted on Sunday afternoon after what party officials described as a serious and deeply felt debate among members. Supporters chanted "say it loud, say it clear, Zionists are not welcome here" as they gathered to speak to journalists, according to The Independent.

Under Green Party rules, policy approved by conference members becomes official party policy, though it does not automatically have to be included in the party's manifesto at the next general election. The result exposes a sharp divide inside a party that has been surging in the polls, with 813 members voting against the motion.

What the Motion Actually Says

The motion defines Zionism as an ideology supporting "an ethnonationalist Jewish state" and declares that the movement should be "treated as any other form of racism". It formally names the Greens an "anti-Zionist party".

It also commits the party to supporting "a single democratic Palestinian State in all of historic Palestine with Jerusalem as its capital". In its text, the motion describes the "real, material, manifestation of Zionism" as "the historic and ongoing dehumanisation, displacement, dispossession, disenfranchisement and destruction of Palestinians".

Salma Yaqoob, a former councillor and supporter of the motion, told journalists the policy would not be used to expel Zionists from the party. "We're saying that if you want to champion Zionism, it will be called out as racism," she said. "But, no, this is not a disciplinary issue. Nobody will be removed, challenged, disciplined, suspended because they put forward or articulate their belief in Zionism."

Polanski Skips the Vote

Noticeably absent from the vote was party leader Zack Polanski, who is Jewish and did not take part. He had left the conference early on Friday to campaign in the Holborn and St Pancras by-election, where he is standing as the Green candidate.

In a joint statement with the party's five MPs and his deputy leaders, Polanski said there is "no conflict between supporting the rights of Palestinians and the rights of Jewish people". A party spokesman confirmed he was on the campaign trail.

According to the Religion Media Centre, two amendments backed by Polanski — including one aimed at protecting Jewish members from being disciplined over links to Zionist institutions — were rejected

The Board of Deputies of British Jews, pictured at an earlier protest against antisemitism, called the motion 'an attack on the Jewish community'.

by conference delegates.

The Backlash: "An Attack on the Jewish Community"

Reaction was swift and fierce. The Board of Deputies of British Jews and the Jewish Leadership Council issued a joint statement calling the motion an "attack on the Jewish community", arguing that Zionism is anti-racism because it created a refuge for Jews in their ancient homeland. They warned that branding most British Jews and Jewish institutions as racist would stoke anti-Jewish hatred.

The Movement for Progressive Judaism condemned the motion as "antisemitic in its formulation and intention", while the Israeli embassy in London said the Green Party had become "a body that gives legitimacy to terrorism".

Israel's Knesset in Jerusalem. Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar barred Polanski from entering Israel on Sunday evening.

Israel Bars Polanski From Entering

Then came the most dramatic escalation. On Sunday evening, Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar had declared Zack Polanski barred from entering Israel.

The ministry said the Greens' resolution "constitutes a clear antisemitic text according to the IHRA definition, as it denies the Jewish people's right to self-determination". It added: "Therefore, as a first step, foreign minister Gideon Sa'ar has decided this evening to declare Green Party leader Zack Polanski barred from entering 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 statement said.

What This Means

The vote marks one of the most significant ruptures in British politics over the Israel-Palestine question. For the Greens, a party riding a wave of popularity as a progressive alternative to Labour, the motion creates an immediate tension between its activist base and its leadership — a Jewish leader now formally banned from Israel by a party whose conference declared itself anti-Zionist.

Critics say the motion crosses the line from criticism of Israeli policy into hostility toward Jewish identity itself. Supporters argue it targets an ideology, not a people, and that their stance is rooted in the Palestinian experience of displacement.

The episode also highlights the party's unusual structure: policy is decided directly by members at conference, which means leaders can find themselves at odds with the movement they lead. Polanski's absence from the vote — and his failed amendments — suggest he may have seen this fight coming and chose not to lose it in public.

What Happens Next

Polanski, who remains on the campaign trail for the Holborn and St Pancras by-election, has not indicated whether he will seek to overturn or soften the policy before the next general election. Because conference policy does not automatically enter the manifesto, the party's election platform may end up quieter on the question than its policy book.

Whether Jewish voters and pro-Israel campaigners accept the distinction — policy on paper versus discipline in practice — remains to be seen. The Board of Deputies has shown no sign of softening, and Israel's entry ban on a major British party leader is a diplomatic signal that will be hard for the Greens to ignore.

For now, the Green Party has made its position official. The argument over what that position means — and who it hurts — is only just beginning.