CROWDS gathered in Glasgow for a pro-Palestine demonstration as part of a number of rallies throughout the country.
Demos took place in Aberdeen, Dundee, Glasgow, Edinburgh and Inverness as the border crossing between Egypt and Gaza was opened to let desperately needed aid flow to Palestinians.
Chants of “free, free Palestine” could be heard at the Buchanan Steps, following on from a number of demonstrations which also took place in the country last week.
The border crossing let a trickle of aid into Gaza for the first time since Israel sealed it off two weeks ago.
Israel is still launching waves of airstrikes across Gaza that have destroyed entire neighbourhoods.
It has insisted that nothing would enter Gaza until Hamas released all of the captives from its attack, and the Palestinian side of the crossing had been shut down by Israeli airstrikes.
Egypt’s state-owned Al-Qahera news, which is close to security agencies, said just 20 trucks had crossed into Gaza on Saturday, out of more than 200 trucks carrying roughly 3,000 tons of aid that have been positioned near the crossing for days.
Hundreds of foreign passport holders hoping to escape the conflict were not allowed to cross into Egypt.
The head of the UN’s World Food Programme said the aid was insufficient. “The situation is catastrophic in Gaza,” Cindy McCain told The Associated Press.
“We need many, many, many more trucks and a continual flow of aid,” she said, adding that some 400 trucks were entering Gaza daily before the war.
Meanwhile, the UK Government has called for Israel to act with “discipline” in its military response to Hamas attacks.
Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, speaking at an international peace summit in Cairo, warned the Israel-Hamas dispute must not trigger wider instability in the region.
He said: “The UK is clear and has been consistently clear that Israel has the right to self-defence and the right to secure the release of those who are kidnapped on October 7.
“And we are also clear that we must work, and they must work, to alleviate the suffering of the Palestinian people in Gaza, and that their actions are in accordance with international law.”
Elsewhere, reacting to the news of the border crossing, Scotland’s First Minister Humza Yousaf said:
“We need more aid in & we need a humanitarian corridor opened to let the innocent people of Gaza out.
“We continue to join others in the international community demanding the release of all hostages.
“We need a ceasefire now. Too many innocent people have lost their lives already.”
