Politiek · Green Party splitPolanski Opposes Greens’ Zionism Motion as Passed as Leadership Split DeepensGeschreven 9 oktober 2026 om 11:58 UTCKijkenTranscript0:09On October 6th, we reported the Greens' Zionism vote.0:12Now Polanski rejects its unamended wording.0:15Four of five Green MPs opposed it, and senior members have left.0:19Will the party change the policy?0:20Zach Polanski now says he wouldn't have voted for the motion as passed.0:24On the morning of October 9th, he called it imperfect and said he would have0:28supported an amended version.0:29His explanation follows days of unanswered questions.0:32His reservations leave the adopted policy in place.0:35They also come after a by-election defeat and criticism from former Green leader0:39Caroline Lucas.0:40The dispute now reaches beyond his personal position to how the party will treat0:43members who identify as Zionist.0:45Conference members adopted a policy defining Zionism as a form of racism, proposed0:51by Lubna Spatin.0:52It describes the ideology through support for an ethno-nationalist Jewish state.0:57It backs a single democratic Palestinian state throughout historic Palestine,1:02including modern-day Israel.1:03The motion passed by 1,022 votes to 813 on October 4th.1:08Its previously published wording envisaged equal rights for everyone, Jerusalem as1:13the capital and a Palestinian right of return.1:15Supporters distinguish opposition to a political ideology from hostility toward1:19Jewish people.1:20Critics question what that distinction means for Jewish members who consider1:24themselves Zionist.1:25Polanski left Brighton before the final vote to campaign in Holborn and St.1:29Pancras.1:30He backed an amendment that was rejected, then took no part in the vote that adopted1:34the policy.1:35His morning remarks explain how he would have voted.1:37Four of the party's five MPs opposed the motion.1:40Members also rejected an amendment intended to protect Jewish people who identify as1:44Zionist from repercussions.1:46That proposed protection covered pressure or discipline connected to Zionist1:50identifying synagogues and Jewish organizations.1:52On Election Day, October 8th, Polanski repeatedly declined questions about whether1:57Zionism is racism and why he hadn't voted.1:59He said he was talking to residents and would speak later.2:02His eventual clarification changes that unanswered position, although the full2:06wording of the amendments he wanted still isn't clear.2:09Caroline Lucas said Polanski had failed to show leadership.2:12She criticized his handling of the dispute and his absence from the debate.2:16Asked about him continuing as leader.2:18She declined to endorse him, but also declined to say whether he should stand down.2:22Andy Burnham urged Green leaders to reverse the motion and ensure it didn't remain2:26party policy.2:27Speaking in Berlin on October 8th, he argued that its single-state position ruled2:31out a two-state solution.2:33The prime minister also called for reversal.2:35Polanski insisted he could remain leader after losing the by-election.2:39Asked whether he could continue, he said, of course I can carry on.2:43In those post-result remarks, he hadn't yet explicitly rejected the motion.2:47That clarification came later in the morning.2:49He also spoke of an ongoing genocide and the displacement of the Palestinian people.2:54Israel denies that its actions in Gaza amount to genocide.2:57South Africa's case against Israel is before the International Court of Justice,3:01where the accusation awaits a final judicial determination.3:04Labors, Sagal, Abdi Wali won Holborn and St.3:08Pancras with 12,292 votes.3:12Polanski received 8,928, giving Labor a majority of3:163,364.3:19Voting took place on October 8th, and the results were published on October 9th.3:24The Greens finished second.3:25Turnout was 38.76%.3:28The Greens' showing was reportedly their second best ever in a Westminster3:32by-election.3:33That strong placing supports Polanski's defense of his leadership, but voters3:37elected Labor's candidate.3:39Nobody has measured how much this motion helped or hurt him.3:42The Conservatives finished third with 1,922 votes, ahead of Reform UK.3:47Reform received 1,612 votes and Restore Britain 692, putting Reform ahead of3:53Restore in the published totals.3:55Phil Davies resigned as Welsh Green deputy leader and canceled his membership on3:59October 6th.4:00He'd belonged to the party for seven years and became deputy in 2024.4:04Kieran Dams, the 23-year-old Waterloo Ward Councillor in Sefton, also left to sit as4:10an independent.4:10The departures already included former councillor Andre Fries and Sandy Ruthven,4:15chair of Amnesty International UK.4:17Further councillors have left, but there's no complete count of members leaving over4:21the motion.4:21Jewish Greens chair Vivian Lichtenstein has belonged to the party for 29 years.4:26She said it was quite possible she would leave and that the motion crosses a line.4:30She also wanted scrutiny of recently joined members.4:32Her departure hasn't been confirmed.4:34Jewish members hold different views.4:36Some supported the motion, while others fear for their place in the party.4:40Polanski has said nobody should be made unwelcome because of their faith or where4:44they worship.4:44Members still need to know what safeguards would apply if the policy became a basis4:48for discipline.4:49Greens for Palestine says Palestinians and anti-Zionist Jews drafted the motion with4:54more than 40 Palestinian liberation organizations endorsing it.4:57Membership reportedly grew more than threefold in a year.5:00A separate figure of 230,000 members lacks an official date or confirmation.5:05Those figures can't give a reliable starting membership.5:08Internal critics say the influx included hard-left campaigners focused on the Middle5:13East.5:13Some allege organized infiltration.5:15Party growth alone doesn't show who newcomers are, how they voted, or whether they5:19coordinated their arrival.5:21Labor and Liberal Democrat MPs asked the Equality and Human Rights Commission to5:25consider whether the policy broke the law.5:27An investigation hasn't been announced.5:29The practical concern is whether members could face exclusion, pressure, or5:33discipline, and what protections the party would provide.5:36Israel's foreign minister Gideon Sa'ar announced Polanski's entry bar on October5:404th.5:41The decision was described as coordinated with the relevant authorities.5:45That announcement was part of the earlier dispute.5:47The bar's duration and appeal process still aren't clear.5:50It's also unclear whether the final policy retained calls to lift the Palestine5:55action ban and release people detained for non-violent direct action.5:58Polanski separately opposes that ban.6:00His position doesn't settle which clauses conference adopted.6:03The Greens haven't announced a date for another policy decision.6:06Polanski has clarified that he would have opposed the motion as written, and the6:10by-election has ended in defeat.6:12His personal reservations leave the conference policy in place, while its6:16application to Jewish and Zionist identifying members remains unresolved.Lees het artikelTijdlijn van het verhaalHeyDexDe korte video ↗Wie meldde watPunten die meer dan één medium melddeAlleged electoral effects of voter-list revisions8 mediaCalls for the election chief to resign8 mediaProtests over voter-list revisions7 media✓Green Party conference vote on Zionism motionOnafhankelijk bevestigd · 6 mediaNames removed from voter lists6 mediaAbdiwali elected for Holborn and St Pancras5 mediaProtester detentions in New Delhi on Saturday5 mediaInternet and mobile service shutdowns5 mediaCockroach movement leaders detained at Delhi airport4 media✓Green Party MPs' positions on the motionOnafhankelijk bevestigd · 4 media✓Israel's entry ban on PolanskiOnafhankelijk bevestigd · 3 mediaRahul Gandhi detained on Wednesday3 mediaPolice preventing protesters from reaching the site3 media✓Motion's proposed Palestinian stateOnafhankelijk bevestigd · 3 mediaLichtenstein's call for Polanski to resign3 mediaAllegation about approval for voter-list deletions3 mediaPolanski's position on an amended motion3 mediaPunten die maar één medium meldde1Alleen gemeld door The HinduFIRs filed over Wednesday's protest8 okt, 0:23 UTCElke regel is de bewering zoals wij die uit het bericht van dat medium hebben vastgelegd. 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