I missed the recent election of Mothin Ali as co-deputy leader of the Greens. Good lord. The man who shouted Allahu akbar and described getting a seat on Leeds city council as a “win for the people of Gaza”.
He was also involved in the harassment of a Jewish university chaplain, who was driven from his home.
A rabbi targeted in an antisemitic hate campaign has expressed concern that a businessman who played a key role in amplifying the attacks has become deputy leader of the Green Party.
On October 7, 2023, Rabbi Zecharia Deutsch was working as a student chaplain at Leeds University. An Israeli citizen, he was called up as a reservist for a tour of duty with the Israel Defence Forces. Deutsch acted as a guard for food and ammunition convoys entering Gaza.
His presence in Gaza provoked protests back in Leeds, but these took on a particularly vicious hue upon his return to the city in early February 2024. Days later, Mothin Ali, the influencer Dilly Hussain and the Muslim Association of Britain all attacked Deutsch online. Ali’s post on TikTok picked up traction and Deutsch — along with those who supported him — view his social media activity as having been a central factor in the hate campaign that followed…
In one post, subsequently deleted, Ali referred to him as a “creep” and a “low-life”. He said: “Leeds University should be protecting its students against this kind of animal. You should be protecting people. You should be protecting students from this kind of animal, because if he’s willing to kill people over there, how do you know he’s not going to kill your students over here?”
Almost immediately, the Deutsches started receiving phone threats to their home in Woodhouse, central Leeds. “Tell that Jewish son of a bitch we’re coming for him,” said one male caller, speaking in a local accent to Deutsch’s wife, Nava. “We’re coming to his house and we’re going to kill him, and you as well, you f***ing racist bitch. Stupid little slag.”
In answerphone messages that have been heard by The Sunday Times, another caller said: “We know your address. We’re ten minutes away.” Another said: “You killed innocent Muslims, and they’re going to get you.”
The couple received 400 calls in one night, February 8. The onslaught slowed but continued for weeks. At one point, advised by West Yorkshire police, the couple left Leeds and took their two young children to stay with friends in Nottingham. “It was scary,” Deutsch later recalled. “They were threatening my wife and children. There’s no real way to protect yourself here.”
The Deutsches returned to Israel last summer, at the end of their chaplaincy posting in Leeds.
A fine victory for the Greens. Let's hope they're proud.
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