Humza Yousaf has been urged to end the SNP’s coalition with the Scottish Greens after an MSP from the party sparked fury with a tweet about Israel.
In a letter to the Scottish First Minister today, Scottish Tory MSP Jackson Carlaw said the “vile comments” by Scottish Green MSP Maggie Chapman must be the final straw for the “toxic Bute House Agreement”.
Ms Chapman prompted a backlash yesterday after taking to Twitter to blame Israel for the attacks by Hamas terrorists over the weekend which have left hundreds of people dead.
Mr Carlaw insisted her remarks show the Scottish Greens are “totally unfit to be a party of government”.
The Scottish Conservative MSP said: “Maggie Chapman’s vile comments in the wake of Hamas’ appalling attack, which has killed hundreds of Israeli civilians, has rightly provoked outrage on social media.
“It lays bare the disgusting bigotry that pollutes the Scottish Greens and makes them totally unfit to be a party of government.”
Mr Carlaw highlighted how the Scottish Greens are the only party in Holyrood who have not signed up to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism.
He added that Ms Chapman’s comments are at odds with Scottish External Affairs Secretary Angus Robertson, who said there was “no justification” for Hamas’s attacks.
He said: “This post doesn’t come in isolation – her colleagues regularly post or like messages that are grossly offensive to Jews, while the Greens’ refusal to sign up to the IHRA definition of antisemitism tells you all you need to know about their extremism.
“But Maggie Chapman’s comments are so unacceptable that Humza Yousaf must end the toxic Bute House Agreement and kick the Greens out of his government. If not, he will be deemed an apologist for antisemitism.
“Angus Robertson, like every right-minded person, has condemned Hamas’ actions, so we can only assume he is uncomfortable being in government with a party which refuses to view Hamas as a terrorist organisation.
“It defies belief that Maggie Chapman can hold views as callous and abhorrent as these while serving on the equalities committee. Her position on that committee is now untenable.”
Ms Chapman has come under heavy criticism for her tweet on Sunday.
She said: “What’s happening in Palestine is a consequence of apartheid, of illegal occupation and of imperial aggression by the Israel state.
“Palestinian civilians have seen their homes destroyed, their water stolen and their land appropriated illegally.”
It comes after Mr Yousaf was labelled an “embarrassment” by Scottish Tory MSP Stephen Kerr after he avoided condemning Hamas’s attacks on Israel.
