PRO-PALESTINE action groups gathered outside the Scottish Parliament on Wednesday in protest against a parliamentary reception for arms companies supplying Israel.
The Edinburgh Gaza Genocide Emergency Committee called the protest, which saw groups gather outside Holyrood to object to the event, which was initially sponsored by Labour MSP and former BAE Systems employee Paul Sweeney before he withdrew.
Jackson Carlaw, the MSP for Eastwood, took up the sponsorship for the ADS Group event.
The protesters waved flags and unfurled a giant list of people who had been killed in Israel’s brutal onslaught on Gaza as the meeting went ahead inside.
READ MORE: Jackson Carlaw urged to cancel ADS Group 'arms dealer' event
The ADS arms industry body has been criticised for its links to Israel, with several of the companies involved known to have sold weapons parts to Israel from Scotland or have other sites internationally which sell military kit to the Middle Eastern country.
Scottish Greens MSP Ross Greer called it an "arms dealer propaganda vehicle".
Campaigners gathered outside Holyrood yesterday to protest against an 'arms deal propaganda' event for the weapons industry.
— The National (@ScotNational) February 22, 2024
We previously told how Tory MSP Jackson Carlaw was slammed for backing the event. pic.twitter.com/NLGUgtuPfB
A Scottish PSC spokesperson said, in the run up to the protest: “The Scottish Parliament’s decision to host a Parliamentary Reception for arms company executives as they profit from Israel’s bombardment of Gaza is despicable.
"In November, members of the very same parliament called for an immediate ceasefire. Now, the Scottish Parliament is hosting those who profit from the continuation of violence against the Palestinians. Scotland’s economy cannot be dependent on genocide and ethnic cleansing."
They added: "‘As Gazans starve in makeshift tents and children undergo amputations without anaesthetic, our politicians are wining-and-dining those who profit from their suffering.
"We call on the public to join us and make clear our opposition to the Scottish Parliament being used to host profiteers of genocide. We call on the Scottish Parliament to cancel this event and refuse to be complicit in Israel's genocide against Palestinians."
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