In October 2023, pro-Palestinian and anti-war protests began to take place in Edinburgh and Glasgow, in response to Israel’s bombing campaign in Gaza following the 7 October attacks by Hamas.
Photojournalist Rayna Carruthers began documenting these protests, and has continued to capture demonstrations on Scotland’s streets this year.
“It was hard to imagine at the time that the bombardment and genocide in Gaza would have continued until now and expanded into Lebanon,” she told The Ferret.
Israel denies accusations of genocide, and says it is fighting to destroy Hamas after the attack on 7 October which killed 1,200 people. There were also 250 people kidnapped and taken to Gaza.
The health ministry in Gaza says more than 43,000 people have been killed since the Israeli attack began.
There are, of course, opposing views on this decades-long conflict, but The Ferret is a non-partisan platform and does not endorse any political position.
This is Carruthers’ photo essay, which provides a snapshot of how some people in Scotland have responded to a seismic political event.
During a national demonstration for Palestine in Edinburgh on December 2, 2023, protesters carry a string displaying the names, stories, and pictures of Palestinians killed during Israel’s siege on Gaza. By the end of November and the beginning of December, the Palestinian death toll in Gaza had reached nearly 15,000.
A woman holds a sign reading “If not now, when?” as she participates in the national march for Palestine in Glasgow on November 18, 2023. Thousands of protesters joined the march, calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.
At a pro-Palestinian march in Glasgow Green on November 18, 2023, Saroush and Nabil pose for a portrait. Saroush stated: “We are all human, and we often take our human rights for granted. If they are being denied in one part of the world, it is our obligation to stand up and fight for those rights everywhere else.”
Activists engage with passersby at the Glasgow Friends of Israel stall on Buchanan Street on October 26, 2024. “Most people give us a thumbs up; we have the silent majority,” says Sammy, chairman of Glasgow Friends of Israel. “Most people know that the only solution is peace. They just talk about hate,” he claims, regarding pro-Palestinian protesters.
Hundreds of protesters occupied Waverley Station in Edinburgh on November 4, 2023, as part of a larger demonstration that included a similar protest in Glasgow Central.
Protesters sit on the Clyde Arc, known locally as the Squinty Bridge, in Glasgow during a pro-Palestinian march on October 26, 2024, holding a red cloth symbolizing the blood of those killed in Gaza. As of October 31, the estimated death toll in Gaza stands at more than 43,000.
Dr Ibrahim Khadra, chair of the Scottish Palestinian Community, addresses a pro-Palestinian crowd outside the BBC building in Glasgow on October 26, 2024. Emphasising the impact of ongoing global demonstrations, Khadra claimed: “The tide is turning because of the millions of people taking to the streets.”
Zahara, a young Lebanese activist, leads a chant during a pro-Palestinian march toward the BBC building in Glasgow on October 26, 2024. Reflecting on the recent escalation in Lebanon in September, Zahara remarked: “We had a feeling it was coming but seeing my family affected has been so hard.”
A protester carries a sign reading, “When will it be enough?” during a pro-Palestinian march in Glasgow on October 26, 2024.
At a pro-Palestinian march outside the BBC building in Glasgow on October 26, 2024, a protester poses for a portrait. He was carrying a sign featuring a press jacket, calling attention to what activists claim are “blatant omissions, false framing, and gross bias” in British media coverage, according to a Glasgow Genocide Emergency Committee statement.
The protest highlighted concerns for journalist safety, as at least 131 journalists have been reported killed in Gaza, per the Committee to Protect Journalists. The protester sought to obscure his identity.
On October 21, 2023, a protester climbs atop the Donald Dewar statue at the bottom of Buchanan Steps in Glasgow, where thousands have gathered for a pro-Palestinian demonstration.
Words: Rayna Carruthers and Billy Briggs.
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All photography by Rayna Carruthers
