Author of Green Party Zionism Motion Named in US Court Filings as Friend of Convicted Al Qaeda Terrorist
Lubna Speitan, author of the Green Party’s motion declaring Zionism racist and backing a Palestinian state replacing Israel, was named in US court filings as a close friend of convicted al Qaeda terrorist Minh Quang Pham, the Jewish Chronicle reports. She praised his character and urged a judge to consider dismissing his case.
Pham received a 44 year sentence in 2025 for terrorism offences, including a Heathrow suicide bombing plot. The Greens are investigating Speitan, who holds no party leadership position. There is no evidence she knew of his terrorist activities when they were at college.
What the court filings say
According to the report, Speitan appears in US court filings as a close friend of Pham. In the filings she praised his character and urged a judge to consider dismissing his case.
Letters of support for a defendant are a common feature of criminal proceedings, and they are usually written by friends and relatives who speak to the person they know. Such a letter describes the writer’s view of the defendant. It is not evidence about what the defendant did.
The conviction
Pham, described as a convicted al Qaeda terrorist, received a 44 year sentence in 2025 for terrorism offences. They include a plot to carry out a suicide bombing at Heathrow, one of the busiest airports in the world.
Speitan and Pham knew each other from college. There is no evidence that she knew of his terrorist activities at that time.
The motion and the party’s response
Speitan wrote the Green Party’s motion declaring Zionism racist and backing a Palestinian state replacing Israel.
The Greens are investigating Speitan. She holds no party leadership position.
What has not been established
The report does not allege that Speitan took part in, or knew about, Pham’s terrorism. It documents a friendship from their college years and her appeal to a judge on his behalf.
The next developments are likely to come from the Greens, who are investigating, and from any response by Speitan to the report.
