Jewish leaders have demanded that a pro-Gaza activist who shouted “Allahu Akbar” when he was elected as a Green councilor be suspended after claiming Hamas 'had the right to fight back' against Israel.
Motion Ali had labeled Israelis as 'white supremacists' after the Palestinian terror group killed 1,400 people in devastating cross-border attacks from Gaza on October 7 last year.
The 42-year-old said Israel had tried to “erase the legitimacy of an indigenous population” and claimed that “they [Israelis] are not victims, but occupiers” in videos posted on social media.
The father-of-three had claimed his election victory in the Gipton and Harehills ward of Leeds City Council was a “victory for the people of Gaza” – an area he previously called a “concentration camp”.
He is now being investigated by the Green Party for his “worrying” views, while British Jewish leaders called for him to be suspended for spreading “extremist nonsense”.
Mothin Ali shouted 'Allahu Akbar' as he won a Leeds City Council seat in the Gipton and Harehills ward last week
After the Hamas terrorist attacks Israel on October 7 last year, Mr Ali – who runs a gardening blog – labeled Israelis as “white supremacists” in social media videos.
He claimed that Gaza was 'the largest concentration camp the world has ever seen' and called on viewers to support “indigenous people's right to fight back.”
Mr Ali also said Israel would use the “pretext of the fightback by Hamas fighters” to launch an attack on Gaza's civilian population.
The Greens' decision to investigate “issues” relating to Ali comes after it emerged that the party is set to confront the government's independent adviser on anti-Semitism.
Lord Mann, the former Labor MP, will hold talks with party officials in the aftermath on Thursday local electionsgiving the Greens almost 75 council seats.
Along with Ali, there were also concerns about the views and inflammatory social media posts of others newly elected to represent the party last week.
An analysis found that more than 40 councilors – including a number of Greens – were elected in England last week after making the Middle East crisis part of their campaign.
The 42-year-old father of three claimed his election as Green candidate to the city council was a 'victory for the people of Gaza'
Following the Hamas terror attacks on Israel on October 7 last year, Mr Ali – who runs a gardening blog – labeled Israelis as “white supremacists” in videos on social media.
The Green Party is set for a showdown with Lord Mann, the government's independent adviser on anti-Semitism
After his election as Leeds City Council last week, Mr Ali shouted 'Allahu Akbar' and said: 'We will not be silent, we will raise the voice of Gaza, we will raise the voice of Palestine.'
Standing in front of a Palestinian flag, he also hailed his election to the council as a “victory for the people of Gaza.”
It has previously been revealed how, in the aftermath of the Hamas attacks on Israel, Mr Ali said in a video on social media: 'Every person, every people has the right to fight back, every people has the right to live freely . of occupiers.
'That also applies to people who are brown, that also applies to people who are Muslim, that also applies to people who are Arab.
“Just because they are brown and Arab doesn't mean they don't have the right to fight back.”
In another video on his TikTok account, he said: “The latest round of hostilities began when Hamas fighters began fighting back against the Israeli occupation.
“The country was ethnically cleansed by European settler-colonialists – white supremacists. If people want to talk about it, you have to remember that it is white supremacy.
'White supremacists have always been successful in portraying indigenous people as barbarians, as some kind of bloodthirsty savage.
'That's what they did to the Indians, that's how they dehumanized them, that's what they did to the aborigines, that's how they dehumanized them, that's what they did to the Africans, that's why they were able to take them as slaves.'
Leaders of Britain's Jewish community branded the Green Party “breathtakingly foolish, dangerous and insensitive” for choosing Mr Ali as its candidate and demanded his immediate suspension for spreading “extremist nonsense”.
In an open letter to co-leaders Carla Denyer and Adrian Ramsay, Leeds Jewish Representative Council chairman Simon Myerson KC wrote that Mr Ali had a “substantial history of views of importance to the Jewish community”.
Myerson accused the Greens of “hypocrisy” for failing to distance themselves from him and said it was “completely wrong” for the party to continue associating itself with Ali.
He wrote that while the newly elected councilor had “absolute right” to express his views on Gaza, it was “clear that his appeal to voters was nakedly based on that, and not on the platform that your party publicly espouses.”
Mr Myerson accused Mr Ali of trying to justify “rape, murder and kidnapping” and using “anti-Semitic tropes”.
He added that it was “breathtakingly foolish, dangerous and insensitive” for the Greens to nominate him as their candidate as deputy mayor of West Yorkshire, responsible for policing at last week's election, given fears about the rise of anti-Semitic hate crimes in the province.
“These matters, I suggest, call into question the Green Party's own integrity,” Mr Myerson wrote.
“The deliberate exploitation of a particular issue that will never be addressed through the election of a councilor as a major factor in that councilor's election campaign is nothing short of opportunistic.
'Populist policy is usually seen as a policy of the extreme right. It is very unfortunate that you have degraded your own party to behave like this in my city.
'Because this matter is so serious, I am treating this correspondence as public.
'You have been aware of Mr Ali's views for some time.
“It's been 48 hours since he was elected, and your silence has now passed the time when you must have, I admit, thought about exactly how to deal with the disastrous consequences of the video of his conduct during his count.
“It's time to stop thinking about yourself and start thinking about the people who are directly affected by your choices.
'I'm curious about your explanation. Finally, I ask you to formally suspend Mr Ali from the Green Party.
'It is completely wrong for your party to try to profit from his views and his behaviour.
“It's against the ethics you boast about. It's nothing but hypocrisy.
'You must take immediate action and then provide an explanation.'
Claudia Mendoza, CEO of the Jewish Leadership Council, backed the concerns, saying: “At a time of such division and fear, we need politicians who are willing to work to secure community cohesion, not undermine it.
“Mr Ali's record speaks for itself and if the Green Party is serious about tackling anti-Semitism rather than just paying lip service to it in meetings with community leaders, action will be taken.”
Adding to the storm of criticism, the Council of Deputies of British Jews said the Greens needed to 'answer serious questions'.
“We are shocked by comments made by a newly elected Green Party councilor in Leeds in which he appeared to celebrate and attempt to justify the October 7 mass terrorist attack on Israel,” a spokesperson said.
“While we understand the Greens are investigating this, the party has serious questions to answer about its complete lack of due diligence, including the appointment of Mr Ali for the role of Deputy Mayor for Police and Crime.”
According to The TelegraphMr Ali has not been suspended by the Greens and will continue to represent the party as a councilor during the investigation.
A party spokesperson said: 'The Green Party is investigating issues brought to our attention regarding Councilor Mothin Ali and therefore cannot comment further.
“However, we are clear that we will never support anything that glorifies violence.”
Lord Mann will reportedly explore the possibility of the Green Party suspending or revoking the whip of some elected councilors and improving the selection and vetting of candidates.
He told The times he met with the Greens this week “to discuss what they are going to do in response to these people and also more broadly in relation to their membership and their candidate selection.”
He suggested one response could be to copy Labour's response to discovering that its Rochdale by-election candidate Azhar Ali had made unacceptable comments about Israel.
“If he had been elected he would not have been included in the party structures,” Lord Mann said.
The Green Party has been contacted for comment.