Green member Zionism motion al-Qaeda connection revealed in court
A Green Party activist behind a controversial Zionism motion was revealed in court as a close friend of a man jailed for supporting al-Qaeda.
Key Takeaways
- Lubna Speitan, who authored the Green Party's Zionism-is-racism motion, offered to testify for Minh Quang Pham, jailed for 40 years in the US for al-Qaeda support
- Court documents named Speitan as Pham's 'close friend' who could provide testimony about his mental state during his 2015 extradition trial
- The revelation has deepened divisions within the Green Party over the motion, with councillors and deputy leaders resigning in protest
A Green Party member whose Green member Zionism motion al-Qaeda connection to a convicted terrorist was revealed in court documents this week has sparked a fresh crisis for the party, according to BBC News. Lubna Speitan, a British-Palestinian artist, authored the controversial motion defining Zionism as racism that the party passed as official policy on Sunday, but court papers from 2015 show she offered to testify on behalf of Minh Quang Pham, a man later jailed for 40 years in the United States for supporting al-Qaeda.
The revelation deepens the fallout over the Green member Zionism motion al-Qaeda debate already dividing the party’s membership, with Green councillors and senior figures now resigning in protest at both the motion and the handling of Speitan’s background.
| Jail sentence | Minh Quang Pham sentenced to 40 years in US prison in 2016 |
|---|---|
| Green member Zionism motion timing | Motion passed by Green Party conference on Sunday, 6 October 2026 |
| Court testimony offer | Speitan offered to testify as defence witness in 2015 trial |
| Letter date | Speitan wrote letter to US judge in 2016 describing Pham as 'kind and sincere' |
| Pham arrest | Arrested at Heathrow Airport in July 2011 with live ammunition |
| Party resignations | Green councillors and deputy leader Phil Davies resigned over motion |
The Green member Zionism motion al-Qaeda connection in court records
Court documents filed during Pham’s 2015 US extradition hearing listed Speitan as a “close friend” who would provide “critical testimony regarding Pham’s mental state”, according to the filings. She wrote a letter to the US District Judge in 2016 describing him as one of the “kindest, honest, most sincere, trustworthy and respectful people I have ever known.”
The documents stated that Speitan’s evidence would be “crucial in establishing a mental health defence” and would bear on “the issue of guilt”. The court papers noted she had a medical condition that prevented her from giving evidence in person.
In her letter, Speitan wrote that if the judge “truly knew the Minh that others grew to love and respect”, they may have “probably had the whole case dismissed”. She acknowledged he “may have had and developed some behavioural issues” but insisted this did not define him.
Who Pham was and why he was arrested
Pham, a Vietnamese-born British national who had lived in London, was arrested at Heathrow Airport in July 2011 after spending seven months in Yemen. He was found carrying a live round of ammunition.
US prosecutors alleged that Pham had been directed by al-Qaeda leader Anwar al-Awlaki to detonate explosives in Heathrow’s arrivals area after receiving training in Yemen. Pham was extradited to the United States in 2015 and pleaded guilty to three counts related to support for al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, an offshoot of al-Qaeda. He was sentenced to 40 years in prison in 2016.
Pham denied planning a suicide attack. The BBC and court documents contain no suggestion that Speitan knew of his criminal activities at the time they knew each other.
Why does the Green member Zionism motion al-Qaeda story matter now?
The timing is explosive: the revelation came just days after Speitan’s motion passed, redefining Zionism as an ideology supporting “an ethnonationalist Jewish state” and calling for “a single democratic Palestinian state in all of historic Palestine”, which includes modern-day Israel. When asked by the Telegraph if she remained friends with Pham, Speitan replied: “Yes, it’s still the case.” She has reportedly said she believed Pham had been “targeted” by “the system”.
How this splits the Green Party further
The Green member Zionism motion al-Qaeda revelation has accelerated rifts already opening over the Zionism motion itself. Green Party leader Zack Polanski, who is Jewish, said on Monday he would not accept anyone being excluded “because of the religious or communal body they are part of” and insisted that “antisemitism and criticism of the Israeli state are, and must always be, completely distinct”.
However, several Green figures have rejected this line. Phil Davies, the party’s deputy leader in Wales, resigned on Tuesday and cancelled his membership, describing the motion as “the final nail in the coffin”. Other Green councillors have also resigned since the motion passed.
Israel banned Polanski from entering the country in response to the motion. Jewish groups described it as an “attack” on their community, and MPs from Labour and the Liberal Democrats have reported the party to the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
The Green Party said Speitan holds no official positions and that it “takes all allegations of this nature seriously”. A party spokesperson added that “where members have expressed views that do not fit in with the party’s values, we have internal processes to investigate.” Speitan has not responded to requests for comment from the BBC.
As the Green member Zionism motion al-Qaeda controversy unfolds, pressure is building on party leadership to clarify what action, if any, it intends to take regarding Speitan’s involvement with Pham and her continued membership.
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Originally reported by BBC News. Facts verified; analysis and wording are Thewealthora’s own.
Sophia Bennett
Executive Editor, World
Sophia Bennett is Executive Editor of Thewealthora's World desk, which covers the stories outside the market pages that eventually end up on them: elections and policy shifts, energy and commodity supply, trade rules, conflict, and the slow events that reprice something months after they happen.
