Israel’s Haifa port. Credit: Zvi Roger – Haifa Municipality.

A far-left London borough moved this week to sever its nearly six-decade partnership with Haifa—one of Israel’s most ethnically and religiously diverse cities—before being forced to apologize for initially demanding a response from the Israeli municipality on the anniversary of the Oct. 7 Hamas massacre.

Hackney Council in east London voted Tuesday to approve “in principle” the termination of its 58-year twinning relationship with Haifa, fulfilling a major election promise of the Green Party administration that seized control of the borough in May.

Board of Deputies of British Jews President Phil Rosenberg condemned the decision, accusing Hackney’s new government of targeting a city known internationally for Jewish-Arab coexistence.

“Haifa is a diverse city, widely seen as a model of ethnic and religious coexistence,” Rosenberg said. “The city is led by a progressive mayor and its council includes representatives from Green, Arab and Communist parties.”

“If the Hackney Greens had any genuine interest in peace, they would celebrate Haifa, not censure it,” he added. “This vote represents the prioritization of spite over sense.”

The measure targets Israel’s third-largest city, where roughly 39,000 Arab residents make up more than 13 percent of the population. Haifa is home to substantial Muslim and Christian communities alongside its Jewish majority, as well as mixed neighborhoods, joint Jewish-Arab institutions, and the international headquarters of the Bahá’í faith.

The controversy deepened after Hackney Mayor Zoë Garbett wrote to Haifa Mayor Yona Yahav following the vote and gave the city until Oct. 7, 2026—the third anniversary of the Hamas-led terrorist attack on southern Israel—to respond.

The Oct. 7, 2023, massacre killed roughly 1,200 people and resulted in 251 others being taken hostage.

After Jewish organizations condemned the choice of deadline as grotesquely insensitive, Garbett withdrew the letter, moved the deadline to Oct. 14, and issued an apology Thursday.

“I am aware that the 7th October marks the anniversary of the horrific Hamas terrorist attacks, a day that carries profound grief and distress for many,” Garbett wrote.

“As Mayor, I take full responsibility for the correspondence issued under my name,” she added. “Overlooking the significance of this date was insensitive and a serious mistake, and for this, I offer my sincere apologies.”

The council said it had selected a ten-week consultation period intended to avoid ending during the Jewish holidays in September but had failed to notice that the resulting deadline fell on Oct. 7.

During Tuesday’s meeting, Green councilors portrayed ending the Haifa partnership as a moral obligation in response to Israel’s war against the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas in Gaza.

Green councilor Sam Mathys, who introduced the proposal, said the borough’s international relationships must reflect the administration’s political commitments.

“It is our responsibility as a Green-led council to ensure that our institutional relationships are consistent with our values and commitment to human rights, international law, justice and international solidarity,” Mathys said.

“Our manifesto promised to end Hackney’s current twinning relationship with Haifa at its earliest convenience, which is what we are delivering today,” she added.

Mathys also invoked the International Court of Justice case against Israel, incorrectly suggesting that the court had found it plausible that Israel was committing genocide in Gaza. The court has made no such determination, ruling only that Palestinians had plausible rights under the Genocide Convention that warranted protection while the case proceeded.

Green councilor Manal Massalha, who described herself as the daughter of Nakba survivors, also defended the measure.

“Never again is never again for everyone,” she said. “Detwinning is not about opposing a people, a religion or a culture. It’s about ensuring that our institutional relationships reflect those values.”

Opponents accused the Green administration of engaging in a performative ideological gesture that would destroy one of Hackney’s few concrete avenues for dialogue with Israelis.

Conservative councilor Simche Steinberger, an Orthodox Jew, called the proposal “a disgrace” and said Green officials had failed to consult Jewish councilors before moving forward.

Steinberger pointed to medical exchanges facilitated by the partnership, under which doctors and nurses from Haifa’s Rambam Medical Center worked with counterparts at Homerton Hospital in Hackney.

“It’s probably the only twinning which actually does something,” he said.

Labour councilor Ben Lucas also opposed the proposal, despite emphasizing his party’s condemnation of Israel’s conduct in Gaza.

“Haifa is not perfect, but for those who want peace, it represents a model of coexistence, a fighting chance for peace,” Lucas said.

“You are punishing people for the actions of a government,” he continued. “This is a performative gesture that will only inflame community tensions. Let’s be bridge builders, not burners.”

The decision carries particular significance in Hackney, home to one of Europe’s largest Orthodox Jewish communities. Although the 2021 census found that 6.7 percent of residents identified as Jewish, outside estimates place the borough’s Orthodox population alone at roughly 12 percent. Muslims account for approximately 13.3 percent.

Under Hackney’s previous Labour administration, repeated campaigns by anti-Israel activists to end the relationship were rejected or watered down. The Green Party then made formally terminating it a campaign promise before winning 42 of the council’s 57 seats in May.

The partnership will not end immediately. A cross-party working group will consult Haifa and other interested parties, conduct an equalities assessment, and make a final recommendation expected in January 2027.

Hackney and Haifa were twinned in 1968 because of their large Jewish populations and shared reputations for diversity. Council records said Haifa was chosen for its “harmonious multicultural, multi-faith populations and good records in community relations.”