Green party faces questions about social media posts of half a dozen other candidates
From 'Zionists' in the USSR 'killed 20 million Christians', to 7 October conspiracy theories, to describing 'Jewish cockroaches', see if your local Green candidate is included
The Green Party is facing further questions about another half-dozen of its local council election candidates, including an individual who claimed “Zionists” in the Soviet Union “killed 20 million Christians”, another who suggested Israel is harvesting organs from Palestinians “to help alter [the] DNA of Zionists to claim land”, and another who referred to “Jewish cockroaches”.
As reported in a series of articles by The Spectator, Green Party candidates in London, Bournemouth and Walsall have posted or shared highly questionable images and statements – often within the last 2 years. These include Feda Shahin, who in a videoed speech last year, said that “Before the Holocaust… do you know that the Zionists, before that, actually, during the Bolshevik [period], killed 20 million Christians. The committee that decided to kill these 20 million Christians had 500 people [on it], 480 of these people were Zionists.”
There were no ‘Zionists’ in the higher echelons of the Communist party, although there were some Jews. There was no such “committee” that decided to carry out any such mass murder.
Shahin, who is standing in Bournemouth’s Central, Westbourne and West Cliff ward, also gave a speech in February of this year in which she reportedly described Jeffrey Epstein’s private island as “a symbol of the headquarters of the Zionists who are trying to control the world.”
In London, Sabine Mairey, standing in Lambeth’s Clapham ward, shared a video on social media which described a recent terror attack in Michigan; the video was captioned: “Ramming a synagogue isn’t antisemitism. It’s revenge.” Mairey also shared a social media post suggesting that Israel is worse than Nazi Germany, writing about what she described as “the Israeli society enjoying the annihilation and displacement of Gazans by watching and blocking food trucks, whilst the Nazis had to hide what they were doing.”
This comes even as another previously identified Green candidate in Lambeth, Saiqa Ali, has been found to have shared further highly questionable images on her social media accounts. As reported last week, content shared by Ali included a poster claiming Donald Trump is “owned by Jews”, while another showed a caricature of a Jewish Israeli crying, along with the caption: “Don’t you know the rules?? We went through the Holocaust and now we get to kill everyone, forever!!” A third showed the globe caught in a stranglehold by a serpent emblazoned with the Israeli flag. In a caption alongside, Ali had written: “It’s time to cut the head of [sic] this snake.” She also separately posted that ““Today England has a government overrepresented with Zionists Jews [sic] and it appears they care more for Israel than England”, and wrote that in 2001, “Israel creates false flag attack on US soil”
It has now emerged that other images shared by Ali included a meme showing a child asking her mother: “Mommy, why won’t US politicians end the Gaza Holocaust?” The mother in the meme answers: “Because Israel is blackmailing them with the Epstein files, honey.” She also posted a headline in the wake of the Bondi Beach terror attack in Australia (reading “NSW parliament to be recalled over ‘urgent’ gun and reform and updated protest laws”). Ali’s social media post, alongside, referred to “A father and son who were twisted by hatred, and the Israel lobby (also twisted by hatred), funded by the Murdoch press and the Zionist billionaires, twisting terror laws to shut down criticism of the genocidal state of Israel.”
Ali subsequently released a statement saying that she “unequivocally reject[s] antisemitism in all its forms”, and claiming that her “comments were rooted in concern for the humanitarian situation in the Middle East, and I remain committed to speaking with care, responsibility and respect for everyone.” Last week the Green Party confirmed that they were looking at the case of Ms Ali, but have not confirmed that any action has been taken since.
The Labour Party has now written three times to the Green Party about the candidates in question; without response. In a video published on Wednesday, Claire Holland, leader of Lambeth’s Labour Party, said: “A week ago it was revealed that two Lambeth Green party candidates have been posting racist content online, and still no condemnation from the Green Party and they have not withdrawn them as candidates.
“Hate has no place in our wonderful diverse borough’ Lambeth rejects hate, and the Green Party must do the same.”
Further north, in Walsall, two council candidates for the same ward were found to have shared deeply concerning views. Joe Belcher was dropped as Green party Parliamentary candidate in 2024, after it was found that he had claimed that “the leaders of Israel and Gaza conspired to carry out what happened on Oct 7 for financial gain.” He also said: “Why would Hamas commanders order Oct 7 to then have their territory destroyed and their people killed or displaced from Gaza? For money? If so, who offered them this money? The Israel government?”
Other conspiracy theories embraced by Belcher include the claim that ISIS was run by Mossad and the suggestion that 9/11 was a “false flag”.
A Green Party spokesperson said: “These are old allegations which were investigated while Joe Belcher was serving a no fault suspension from the party. We, of course, look at any new complaint seriously.”
In the very same ward, Rushall Shelfield, Green candidate Raja Ateeq was found to have posted in December 2023 that “250k Jewish cockroaches who were relocated are refusing to go back to Gaza…400k Jewish have flown out of Israel…couple more Islamic countries to join and insha allah, Palestine will be free.” He also referred to the former Prime Minister of Pakistan, the vociferously anti-Zionist Imran Khan, as a “Yahoodi [Jewish] agent.”
A Green Party spokesperson told Jewish News:
“Mr Ateeq has removed the tweet and recognises that it was wrong to have posted it. We, of course, look at all complaints seriously.”
Meanwhile in Hackney’s Stoke Newington ward, Ifhat Shaheen responded a picture of a sewn-up corpse which social media users claimed had been harvested for organs by Israel by saying “are they trying to use the organs to help alter DNA of Zionists to claim land, ancestory [sic]?” As reported by The Spectator, Shaheen also posted in the wake of the firebombing of ambulances in Golders Green, saying: “since Golders Green is now in the news, I want to take the opportunity to make people aware that the Jewish community in North London host IDF soldiers in their synagogues and raise funds for the IDF during a ‘family fun day’.’
The Spectator also revealed comments made by a Green Party candidate in Lewisham, Dr Rebecca Jones, a local GP. Comments made by Dr Jones, on her Facebook page, ‘the vegan doctor’ include: “‘I’ve yet to see a Zionist act in kindness or with love and compassion”, and “I’ve often said that Zios seem to use doublethink and doublespeak a lot… I’m still amazed by the way they, the media and the colonialists try to make us believe that anti-zionism [is]….extreme. There’s only one side showing hate here, and it’s definitely not from this love-filled, vegan anarchist.’
“Zios” is a descriptor which was popularised by the far-right, most notably the former Imperial Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan, David Duke.
As per the weekly magazine, Jones also shared a video of someone reading the purported last will and testament of Yahya Sinwar, the Hamas leader who masterminded the October 7 attacks. Her comment alongside read: “This is so beautiful. It also reminds me of why the fight for Palestine is so important.”
In this case, a Green party spokesman told The Spectator: ‘Some of these posts do not represent Green party values. This has been discussed with the candidate and the posts have been deleted.’
The Green Party has been approached for further comment.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
