Police officers attended Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum after a pro-Israel vigil was met by protest from a pro-Palestinian group.

A memorial for those killed in the October 7 attacks, and the hostages taken by Hamas, was organised by Glasgow Friends of Israel.

The event featured speakers and performers, and called for "the immediate, unconditional release of the hostages".

Glasgow Friends of Israel describes itself as "Pro Israel, Pro Palestinian, Pro Peace".


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More than 200 hostages were taken into Gaza on October 7, 2023 in a series of attacks which saw 1,180 Israeli citizens killed, 797 of them civilians and 36 of them children.

So far 105 have been released as part of an exchange deal in November last year, eight were rescued by the IDF, and four were released unilaterally by Hamas. 101 remain in captivity.

The group were met by a counter-demonstration, with protestors waving Lebanese and Palestinian flags.

More than 40,000 people in Gaza, which is defined by the UK government and the United Nations as an occupied territory, have been killed by Israel in response to the October 7 attacks, and Oxfam says that even using conservative numbers more than 6,000 women and 11,000 children were killed by the IDF over the last 12 months.

Israel last week invaded its northern neighbour, Lebanon, with the country's health ministry saying more than 2,000 people have died including 127 children and 261 women.

A person with a megaphone could be heard shouting "hands off Lebanon" and "hands off Palestine".

With the two sides gathered outside of the museum, police attended and ensured the groups were separated.

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “We were aware of a protest ongoing at Kelvingrove Park in Glasgow. 

"Officers are in attendance and are engaging with protestors.”