Zack Polanski ripped apart by Zia Yusuf on BBC QT – ‘should be ashamed’ | Politics | News
In his devastating rebuke on BBC Question Time after the Golders Green attacks, Reform England’s Zia Yusuf said Zack Polanski “should be ashamed” of the Greens’ record on antisemitism. The explosive debate erupted during Thursday’s episode, when panelists discussed how to keep Jewish communities safe in the wake of Wednesday’s horrific stabbings.
A Reform UK home affairs spokesman highlighted the arrest on Thursday of two Green council candidates on suspicion of inciting racial hatred with allegedly anti-Semitic comments. He criticized Green’s co-chairman Mothin Ali, saying “Hamas’ actions on October 7 were just a fight against them” and then attacked Polanski himself. The panelist said the Greens had become a “toxic vehicle for extremism and antisemitism” and that Mr Polanski “should be ashamed”.
Mr. Yusuf questioned “whether the 3,700 anti-Semitic incidents recorded last year alone could convince Mr. Polanski of the scale of the problem.” “I wonder if two Jewish men fighting for their lives after being stabbed multiple times in Golders Green can convince Zack Polanski that the threat is indeed real.” he got angry.
He concluded by saying the Greens had been “hijacked by extremists” and had become “an instrument of sectarianism”.
Greens deputy leader Rachel Millward, who appeared on the panel in Maidenhead, said it was “unimpressive for the party to play political football” and suggested politicians needed to “get beyond hate”.
He added: “This is not just antisemitism, there is a racist hatred in our societies that I have never known in my life.”
Speaking earlier in the show, Conservative Shadow Environment Secretary Victoria Atkins said antisemitism was a “national emergency” and was “spreading on university campuses”.
He called for the Government’s Counter-Terrorism Prevention strategy to be expanded to intervene earlier to stop those at risk of falling into extremism.
Mr Polanski sparked outrage on Thursday when he shared a post online criticizing the actions of police officers as they detained the assault suspect. Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley accused her of sharing an “inaccurate and misinformed” social media post.
A Green Party spokesman said: “Zack saw the video like everyone else, he doesn’t know the full picture and knows this is a very difficult situation for the authorities, but we need to know more about the response.”
