AN artist in Scotland has held a weekly silent vigil to mark the “innocent lives lost” in Gaza and Lebanon and protest the UK’s “complicity” in the bombardment by Israel for eight months.
Since March 2024, Bill Williamson, an Ardentinny-based ceramics artist, has held a weekly silent vigil outside of Dunoon’s Burgh Hall.
He began the action in response to the killing of six-year-old Palestinian girl, Hind Rajab.
Rajab had been found killed nearly two weeks after she called rescuers pleading for help from a car surrounded by the bodies of her murdered family members.
READ MORE: Four dead and dozens injured after Israel attacks Gaza hospital camp
Her body was found in Gaza after Israeli forces left the area and the remains of a bombed ambulance dispatched to rescue her were found nearby. Her 15-year-old cousin and two ambulance members attempting to rescue the children were also found killed.
Over the months, Williamson has been joined by several members of the community supporting his vigil. Last weekend, the small group assembled in the town’s Argyll Street to read aloud all the names and ages of the more than 11,500 children who have lost their lives.
Williamson said: "A tragedy beyond comprehension is unfolding in Gaza and Lebanon, with over 41,000 innocent lives lost, equal to the entire population of Cowal. This is not a distant 'foreign war’ in which we have no part!
“It directly involves us as UK companies, based in Scotland, are profiting by producing vital parts for these deadly weapons and are being subsidised by our governments. It’s time we acknowledged this and demanded change. Otherwise, our silence is complicity."
The group are inviting anyone in the area who is interested in joining the weekly vigil to meet at 12pm on Saturday outside Dunoon Burgh Hall.
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