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The party said last week that Estrin resigned because of the confusion he had caused, not because of his views, and spokesman Julian Morelli reiterated this Tuesday. Morelli said he could not reveal the contents of the meeting at which Estrin stepped down, but said the meeting was “very respectful” on all sides.

Party leader Elizabeth May also tweeted at the time of Estrin’s resignation, “Any member can post a blog. This is not party policy. It is not my view. We respect free speech.” Estrin himself wrote last week, “I never intended to create confusion or have any of my actions negatively impact the party. Therefore, I tender my resignation, effective immediately.”

But in his current Canadian Jewish News article, Estrin writes: “Those who wanted me out … made it as simple as possible. They offered me a choice: An ‘easy’ resignation where I would get to walk away relatively unscathed, or a ‘hard’ resignation that would – well, let’s just say it would have been bad.”

Estrin, who is Jewish, wrote that while many Greens take a “balanced and fair” approach to Israel, “they are not the majority.

“I still believe one can be concerned about the environment and human rights and at the same time support the State of Israel. In my mind, that hasn’t changed. What has changed is I am now convinced one simply can’t do so within the confines of the Green Party of Canada.”

Morelli, however, said there is room for divergent views about Israel and Gaza in the party and that Estrin’s resignation had come not because of his opinion but because he “made a mistake” in attaching his title as party president to his personal views on the Greens’ website.