Councillors in Newcastle were evacuated from a meeting for the second time in six weeks because of pro-Palestine protests.

Wednesday night’s meeting of Newcastle City Council was brought to a halt when campaigners began chanting from the public gallery.

Politicians were ushered from the room as demonstrators unfurled a Palestinian flag and shouted “ceasefire now” and “shame on you” to the councillors beneath them, before being removed from the building by police officers.

This was the second full council meeting in succession that has been disrupted by pro-Palestine protests, following similar scenes in January.The Northern Echo: Pro-Palestine protesters are removed from Newcastle Civic Centre's council chamber by policePro-Palestine protesters are removed from Newcastle Civic Centre's council chamber by police (Image: LDR)

International negotiations aimed at brokering a ceasefire in the Israel-Gaza war are yet to yield an agreement.

The overall Palestinian death toll in the conflict is more than 30,000, according to Gaza’s health ministry.  Dozens of protesters had gathered next to the back entrance to Newcastle Civic Centre, where councillors were entering the building ahead of Wednesday’s annual budget-setting meeting at 6pm.

A small number were then allowed into the public gallery to observe the meeting itself, before interrupting the proceedings after roughly half an hour.

The council chamber was emptied for around five minutes while police ordered the demonstrators out of the room.

However, once the meeting resumed and councillors began debating the authority’s proposed £15 million budget cuts for 2024/25, chanting continued outside and was audible for some time.

In December, the Labour-run council was presented with a petition signed by more than 4,000 people which called on the authority to “speak out in support of an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and the cessation of Israeli air and ground assault on Gaza”.

While city Labour leader Nick Kemp said then that his group had already given support to five separate requests within that petition, including calling for an end to Israel’s siege and denouncing antisemitism and Islamophobia, the council stopped short of calling for a ceasefire.

Repeating a statement made following January’s protests, city council leader Nick Kemp said: “We understand the anger of some members of our community in relation to the conflict in Gaza and Israel. I share their calls for peace in the region and an end to the loss of innocent lives.

Most read: 

Get the latest news, sports, and entertainment delivered straight to your device, for just £2 for 2 months click here

 

“Our thoughts remain with all those who have been killed in the region, as well as those residents in Newcastle who have friends, relatives or loved ones in both Gaza and Israel.

“The Council has always condemned Hamas’s appalling attacks and killing of civilians in Israel, and the collective punishment and killing of Palestinians in Gaza by the Israeli government.

“We would continue to call on the support of the Newcastle Council of Faiths, and all community groups, to come together and work to ensure that Newcastle remains a City of Sanctuary – a city that cannot be divided.”