Stand up to Racism Scotland says pro-Israel groups 'not welcome'

On 17 July 2025 Stand Up To Racism Scotland issued a statement saying that GFI and COFIS are not welcome at SUTR events. SACC has been pressing SUTR Scotland to adopt this position since 2018. See our response to the statement. The SUTR Scotland statement was published on the Stand Up to Racism Glasgow account. The full text of the statement appears below.

"Are Glasgow Friends of Israel and COFIS welcome at SUTR Scotland events?
NO!
and here is why...

The Stand Up to Racism Scotland steering committee wishes to publicly clarify beyond any doubt that the Glasgow Friends of Israel and COFIS groups are NOT WELCOME at SUTR Scotland events.

They have never been invited to any SUTR event, spoken as part of any SUTR platform, or been part of discussions with SUTR Scotland.

The focus of SUTR Scotland's campaigning activities involves building broad-based mass anti-racist action in solidarity with refugees and migrants, supporting justice campaigns against police and institutional racism, and facilitating a united response to the Islamophobic and antisemitic far-right, fascist groups, and particularly now the threat of Reform UK.

SUTR aims to unite people of all faiths, Muslim, Jewish, Catholic, Protestant, and none, against racism, Islamophobia, antisemitism and the far-right, and they are all welcome at our events and initiatives.

However, we reject the presence of GFI and COF organisations whose activity involves:

• support for the far-right, internationally and here in Scotland
• joining the efforts by politicians to push the Islamophobic lie that the millions protesting in solidarity with Palestine are 'hate marchers'
• justifying and applauding the actions by the state of Israel, which is engaged in carrying out genocide, apartheid and ethnic cleansing

Firstly, Glasgow Friends of Israel have a history of relationships with far-right organisations - including here in Scotland.

Their stall in the city centre is regularly visited by prominent figures involved in Reform UK, the racist far-right party.

Reform councillor Thomas Kerr is amongst those who regularly appear at their stall.

Another regular at the GFI stalls is John White - until last year, Reform UK Scotland organiser, who had to take a back step after being exposed as an enthusiastic supporter of the French fascist party National Rally, with a long history of anti-semitism and Holocaust denial.

White went to France to campaign for Marine Le Pen's party, and got his photo taken with RN's president Jordan Bardella, who wants to wage a "cultural battle" against Islamism.

No organisation that supports Nigel Farage's racist outfit, which is trying to convince millions of voters that refugees, migrants and Muslims are to blame for society's problems, and in the process opening the door to dangerous fascist forces, is welcome at SUTR Scotland events.

Secondly, there should be no place in the anti-racism movement for organisations who oppose the prosecution by international court laws of Yoav Gallant, who called Palestinians 'human animals', and of Binyamin Netanyahu, who described Gaza as a 'city of evil' and framed Israel's attacks on it as a fight against 'monsters'.

We encourage others across Scottish civil society who are opposed to Islamophobia, antisemitism and racism to also condemn the racism of GFI and COFIS.

We need a united movement to beat back the racists

Keir Starmer's 'island of strangers' capitulation is opening the door to the racist far-right party of Nigel Farage, who leads a project committed to demonising refugees and migrants and characterises Muslims as a 'fifth column' in our society. We have  launched a campaign to oppose Reform UK at the Holyrood election in 2026, and are mobilising to stop fascist groups inspired by them wherever they mobilise. To do this, need unity across the whole of the movement to challenge racist scapegoating and to expose Reform's hollow claims of being a party 'against the establishment'.

United we can stop them."

More Information

The SUTR Scotland statement was reported in The Herald and The National.

The implication in the statement that it is merely a "clarification" of a pre-existing position is misleading in our view. See the background notes to our response.