Shneur Zalman Odze with Israeli friends openly flaunting Bradford West MP George Galloway's proposed ban of Israelis. Photo: Twitter.

Nearly 5,000 people have signed an online petition to encourage British police to charge Parliament Member George Galloway with racial incitement for trying to ban Israelis from the city of Bradford West. But Israelis and supporters of the Jewish state at the weekend made a point of coming to Bradford West, and flying the Israeli flag.

The online petition said, “the facts constitute a prima facie case against Mr. Galloway and at this stage there is sufficient evidence to charge him and put him before the courts.”

Ten days ago, at a public meeting recorded on video, Galloway said, “We have declared Bradford an Israel-free zone.”

“We don’t want any Israeli goods, we don’t want any Israeli services, we don’t want any Israeli academics coming to the university or the college, we don’t even want any Israeli tourists to come to Bradford, even if any of them had thought of doing so,” Galloway said.

Shneur Zalman Odze, a former MEP candidate for the UKIP party, and a religious Jew, organized a trip to Bradford at the weekend and photographed himself with the many Israelis living there.

Odze then taunted Galloway on Twitter: “@georgegalloway in Bradford today with my Israeli friends, we got a tremendous reception – how’s your ban going?”

Thousands of people who were aghast at the behavior of Galloway, who is well known for his bile against Israel, signed the online petition.

Matt Pryor, in London, signed and then wrote, “I’m not Israeli or Jewish. Galloway’s comments constitute an incitement to violence. I am sure there ARE Israelis living in Bradford, and he is pretty much urging his supporters to force them out, and many of his supporters are violent types. What about people wearing kippahs? What about people at synagogues? Where does it end?”

“Please also remember that in France synagogues have been attacked, Jewish school children have been shot in the streets, Galloway knows how bad anti-Semitism is in Europe at the moment and knows exactly what his words will achieve,” Pryor said. “This rabble-rousing hate speech wouldn’t be tolerated against any other group, why are Israelis not entitled to the same rights as every other nationality?”

The petition said that under section 28.1(a) of Britain’s Crime and Disorder Act 1998, a crime is racially aggravated if: “At the time of committing the offence, or immediately before or after doing so, the offender demonstrates towards the victim of the offence hostility based on the victims membership (or presumed membership) of a racial or religious group or; (b) the offence is motivated (wholly or partly) by hostility towards members of a racial or religious group based on their membership of that group.”

The organizers said, “We would further submit that under S.28.4 a ‘racial group’ means a group of persons defined by reference to race, colour, nationality (including citizenship) or ethnic or national origins.”

“We, the undersigned, submit that these comments step way beyond the boundaries of free expression and legitimate debate and their only purpose was to cause harassment, alarm or distress to a specific group of people,” the petition said. “We further submit that this offence is a racially aggravated one.”

Watch British MP George Galloway decry Israelis in his town.