
One man, 26, arrested at Falkirk asylum seeker hotel protests
It comes after the group Save Our Future & Our Kids Futures announced plans to hold a protest outside the hotel known as the Cladhan.
In a social media post the group said it is 'standing against uncontrolled illegal immigration, with people being placed in our communities without transparency, accountability, or consultation'.
READ MORE: 'Home Office urged us to return to Syria – despite my kids facing death threats'
At 9pm on Saturday, Kemper Avenue in Falkirk was reopened following the protest which began around 11am, Police Scotland said.
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: "A proportionate policing plan was in place to ensure public safety and minimise disruption to the local community.
"A 26-year-old man was arrested in connection with a breach of the cordon line.
"Motorists are thanked for their patience."
READ MORE: Police Scotland 'breaching human rights to subdue Palestine protests', activists say
Dozens of demonstrators from each group stood on opposite sides of the road outside the hotel, with police keeping them separate.
Protesters, some waving Union flags, chanted 'send them home' and anti-racism demonstrators responded with chants of 'refugees are welcome here' and 'this is what community looks like'.

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The Guardian
14 minutes ago
- The Guardian
The Guardian view on Gaza's future: Israel should end the killing. Its allies must not remain complicit
Israel faces a stark choice. So do its allies. International condemnation pushed Israel into allowing a trickle of aid into Gaza. But it remains utterly insufficient, and Palestinians are still starving to death. Israel has killed more than 62,000 people, mostly women and children, according to Gaza's health ministry. Israel's former intelligence chief Aharon Haliva, in charge when the Hamas atrocities of 2023 took place, was recently recorded saying that 'For every person on October 7, 50 Palestinians must die. It doesn't matter now if they are children.' That isn't merely vengeful and obscene, it explicitly describes a war crime. The death toll is likely to soar again. The defence minister, Israel Katz, has authorised plans for the call up of 60,000 soldiers to seize and occupy Gaza City – forcing out hundreds of thousands of Palestinians and bringing further catastrophe to exhausted, desperate and traumatised civilians. Yet Benjamin Netanyahu has an alternative: agree to a ceasefire proposal, already accepted by Hamas, and reportedly 'almost identical' to an earlier plan presented by the US special envoy, Steve Witkoff, which Israel accepted. An embattled Mr Netanyahu believes a forever war can keep him at the top and fend off the corruption trial due to recommence imminently. But talks continue and the war faces growing opposition at home, though perversely, this could cement his reliance on his far-right coalition partners. Reports of military discontent should be regarded with caution: it has not prevented the Israel Defense Forces from drawing up and beginning to implement plans for the Gaza City offensive. But 74% of Israelis want the war to end, and there were huge protests at the weekend, mostly reflecting concern for hostages and the toll on soldiers. A survey last month found that 79% of Jewish Israelis were 'not very troubled' or 'not troubled at all' by reports of famine and suffering in Gaza. Internationally, however, it is the suffering of Palestinians that fuels demands for the war to end and daily erodes Israel's status and alliances. A survey for Reuters found that 58% of Americans now believe in the recognition of a Palestinian state, and 59% see Israeli actions in Gaza as excessive. Jordan described the Gaza City plan as 'killing all prospects for peace in the Middle East'. Emmanuel Macron, the French president, warned that it would bring 'true disaster'. Lashing out at critics such as Australia's 'weak' prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has merely made Mr Netanyahu look more desperate and isolated and heightened the criticism. Palestinians in Gaza City can choose only whether to stay and face the Israeli onslaught, or attempt to flee, in their weakened state, with nowhere safe to go. But others can choose to give them a future instead of remaining complicit with these atrocities. A ceasefire is more urgent than ever. Donald Trump could call a halt to the annihilation, ending Israel's impunity. Instead, on Wednesday, the US sanctioned more international criminal court officials over the case against the Israeli prime minister. But if Mr Trump still hopes for a broader Middle East deal, it cannot be built on the ruins of Gaza City. Other states should go beyond the important but symbolic step of recognising a Palestinian state. Much more critical is to end all arms transfers, to impose further sanctions and to leverage economic power – from ending tariff-free access to markets to suspending Israel from the Horizon Europe research scheme.


The Guardian
44 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Labour MSP Colin Smyth charged over indecent images
A Scottish MSP has been arrested and charged in connection with possession of indecent images. Colin Smyth, who has represented South Scotland since 2016, was arrested on Tuesday, resulting in his immediate suspension from Scottish Labour. He is due to appear in court at a later date. The Scottish parliament website now lists Smyth as an independent. A spokesperson for Police Scotland said: 'On Tuesday 5 August 2025, officers executed a warrant at a property [in] Dumfries. A 52-year-old man was arrested and charged in connection with possession of indecent images. He is due to appear at Dumfries sheriff court at a later date.' A spokesperson for Scottish Labour confirmed that the whip had been removed from Smyth, pending an investigation. 'We cannot comment further on this matter while the investigation is ongoing,' the spokesperson added. Smyth issued a statement on Wednesday, saying: 'These events have come as a shock and this is a deeply stressful time. I am obviously cooperating fully with any inquiries and hope the matter can be resolved quickly. 'I am not able to comment further at this stage, and in the meantime I would ask for the privacy of my family and friends to be respected.' Smyth was first elected as an MSP in 2016 and previously served as Scottish Labour's general secretary. He nominated Anas Sarwar in the 2021 Scottish Labour leadership election and was later appointed spokesperson for constitution, Europe and external affairs.

Western Telegraph
an hour ago
- Western Telegraph
‘They are turning him into a hero': Kneecap solidarity gig held in Dublin
Kneecap flags and logos hung from the windows in Connolly Books, which dubs itself Ireland's oldest radical bookshop, in solidarity with O hAnnaidh, Kneecap, and the people of Palestine. Pro-Palestine supporters criticised the decision by British authorities to bring a charge against the performer instead of focusing on the Israeli government's actions against the Palestinian people. O hAnnaidh, 27, who performs under the stage name Mo Chara, is accused of displaying a flag in support of Hezbollah at a gig in November last year. Hundreds of Kneecap supporters greeted O hAnnaidh as he arrived at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London on Wednesday morning, alongside fellow Kneecap rappers Naoise O Caireallain and JJ O Dochartaigh. During the hearing, his defence team argued the case should be thrown out, citing a technical error in the way the charge against him was brought. The case has been adjourned until September 26, when the judge will rule on whether he has the jurisdiction to try the case. At the protest session at Connolly Books on Wednesday afternoon, several artists played Irish traditional music in solidarity with the rappers and Palestine. Musician Ru O'Shea, who performed at the demonstration, said charging O hAnnaidh had turned him into 'a hero'. 'I think it's been a huge misstep by the powers that be to go after him in the first place,' he told the PA news agency. 'I reckon that they don't have a thing on him, and I think they are turning him into a hero, and I think we need a hero. Ispini na hEireann play at Connolly Books in Dublin's Temple Bar area (Niall Carson/PA) 'What's happening in Palestine right now, it's gotten to such an extreme that it's waking a lot of people up, including the British who might not have ever seen it otherwise and stayed in that bubble forever.' O'Shea's friend John Feehan said: 'I think people are maybe starting to look up a little bit in Britain, and I think things like what's happening with Kneecap is a catalyst for people to be like 'Oh, wait a minute, what's actually happening here?'. So I hope there's momentum, but I really don't know.' Dubliner Aoife Powell, 19, said she came out to protest because she is 'angry' at the decision to charge an artist rather than focus on what is happening to the people of Gaza. 'I'm here because it just worries me that the fact that governments are focused on artists expressing themselves rather than the actual problem, which is obviously the genocide in Gaza,' she told PA. 'It's a little bit disheartening to see there's so much pressure being put on these artists to stop saying what they truly think and to stop standing on the right side of history. 'I feel like it's a distraction from what's actually happening. 'When a government tries to silence people, they should learn that they can never silence people. I feel like the public would get more angry at that.' Sean O'Grady is from Coleraine in Northern Ireland but has lived in Dublin for almost 70 years. Kneecap's Liam Og O hAnnaidh, speaks to supporters as he leaves Westminster Magistrates' Court in London (Lucy North/PA) 'I'm delighted with them (Kneecap), that they've done what they're doing, and they're getting plenty of publicity. 'The British government are crazy, I mean, what are they at? 'They're supplying a lot of the bombs, and a lot of the arms and ammunition to Israel to do what they're doing. So they should be ashamed of themselves instead of bringing in these people (to court) for stupid reasons. 'It's getting good publicity over there for the cause of the Palestinians.' Dubliner Dermot Nolan said he attended his first Palestine protest in 1967, and while he remembers horrific events such as the Vietnam War, the scale of death and injuries in Gaza is the worst he has ever lived through. 'I'm here because it's important to for two reasons – first of all, to show our intolerance of the genocide and slaughter that's being carried out by the US, Nato and Israel. 'The second reason is the question of civil rights. We're protesting about the indictment of a member of the Irish group Kneecap. 'It is a sign of creeping authoritarianism which is happening in all the western countries and most clearly in Britain.'