Scottish First Minister Swinney Calls for Palestinian State at Vigil for the October 7th Hostages

Scotland's First Minister John Swinney is at it again. During a vigil for the hostages still being held in captivity by Hamas, Swinney saw fit to call for a Palestinian state drawing the anger and ire of the crowd. The tone-deaf Swinney unsurprisingly defended his behavior:

I quite understand that there is a lot of anger and distress within the Jewish community in Scotland today.

But there is a lot of anger and distress in many communities and what I have got to do is set out the principled position that the only pathway to peace is a two-state solution that involves the recognition of a sovereign state of Palestine. 

That is the way to peace in the Middle East and it is important that, whatever audience I am engaged with, that I set out that point of principle.

As with other leaders, Swinney's call for a Palestinian state effectively rewards Hamas' tactics especially as they are still holding 48 hostages of whom 20 are believed to be still alive. For Swinney to make such a declaration at a vigil is doubly cruel.

This isn't the first time Swinney has stepped into it. Back in August, Swinney extolled the virtues of free speech at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival only to defend the Festival's decision to ban two Jewish comedians including one who attended a vigil for the hostages. All of which makes wonder if John Swinney will be allowed to attend the Edinburgh Fringe Festival next year. 

Swinney's statement reminded me of the reception Newton Mayor Ruthanne Fuller received at a vigil for the hostages following the attack on the Run for Their Lives vigil in Boulder, Colorado back in June. Fuller said anti-Semitism shouldn't be weaponized against institutions of higher learning much to the ire of those assembled who drowned her out. It was neither the time nor the place. 

Yet if I have to compare the two remarks, Swinney's was far more inappropriate. It is worth remembering that Swinney has also accused Israel of committing genocide. I shudder to think what the reaction would have been had he saw fit engage those wishing for the release of the hostages with that "principled position."