Britain’s Greens Vote to Define Zionism as Racism
Britain’s Green Party has voted at its 2026 conference to adopt an explicitly anti-Zionist policy, defining Zionism as an ethnonationalist political project and backing a single democratic state across historic Palestine. The motion passed by 1,022 votes to 813.
The party said the motion reaffirms support for Palestinian self-determination, the right of return, Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions, and a full British arms embargo on Israel. It also states that anti-Zionism should not be equated with antisemitism.
The vote comes amid continuing anger over Israel’s war in Gaza and the humanitarian consequences for Palestinians. Pamphlets recently reported that more than 100,000 Gazans remain unable to return home, one part of the broader displacement crisis that has shaped political debate across Europe.
The decision exposed a real split inside the Greens. Reuters reported that many senior figures opposed the motion, while party leader Zack Polanski did not take part in the vote. After the result, the party’s five MPs, leader and co-deputy leaders issued a joint statement saying they would continue to defend both Palestinian rights and the rights of Jewish people and would not tolerate discrimination or harassment.
Jewish members of the party are themselves divided. A survey published by Jewish Greens before conference found that a majority of respondents identified as anti-Zionist or non-Zionist, but the group remained split over whether the specific motion should be opposed. Some members feared the policy could make discrimination against Jews more likely, while others argued that criticism of Zionism as a political ideology should not be treated as hostility to Jewish people.
External criticism was sharper. The Movement for Progressive Judaism said the policy amounted to antisemitism, while Israel’s foreign ministry called the motion antisemitic under the IHRA definition and said it denied Jewish self-determination. Israel also announced that Polanski would be barred from entering the country.
Supporters of the motion reject that framing. The Green Party said the policy is directed at Zionism as it defines the ideology, not at Jewish people, and said its opposition to antisemitism remains unchanged. Deputy leader Mothin Ali has argued that the scale of Palestinian death and displacement is essential context for understanding why party members backed the motion.
The vote therefore marks both a major shift in Green Party policy and a test of how Britain’s growing left-wing opposition to Israel will handle disputes over Jewish identity, Zionism and antisemitism. The political argument is unlikely to end with the conference: it will now follow the party into elections, Parliament and its relations with other European Green parties.
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