During the “Up Close and Personal” interview, groups held up bits of paper that spelled the word “genocide”. Some had pictures of starving Gazan children.
Police called as around 40 protesters kicked out of John Swinney’s Edinburgh Fringe show at the Stand. pic.twitter.com/ZSLeubAbFV
— Andrew Learmonth (@andrewlearmonth) August 2, 2025
The protesters shouted at the First Minister, demanding he describe the ongoing crisis in Gaza as a “genocide.”
As police tried to remove them from the venue, they chanted “call it genocide.”
They also asked him to stop funding arms companies through the Government’s commercial arm Scottish Enterprise.
There were around six interruptions over the course of the hour, with the final seeing two groups standing at the same time, angrily shouting at Mr Swinney.
Members of the First Minister’s security team stood in front of the stage.
A number of uniformed police officers arrived at the venue to get the protesters out.
The final disruption came from a woman in the crowd, who asked the First Minister why he had not responded to her letter about heavy metal band Disturbed playing at the Hydro in Glasgow.
The band’s lead singer David Draiman was pictured signing an Israeli bomb.
The woman accused the First Minister of hypocrisy for not speaking out about Disturbed after saying it would be inappropriate for Kneecap to play the TRNSMT festival.
The First Minister said his comments on Irish band had been in response to questions from the media and he “didn’t particularly” want to speak about the band earlier this year.
He added that he did not want to choose what art people do and do not consume.
The woman became increasingly angry with the First Minister’s response and was eventually dragged from the venue by a police officer.
Speaking to journalists after the event, Mr Swinney said he understood the anger and frustration that exists about the situation in Gaza.
He said: “And I’m trying to do everything I possibly can do to make sure that we we apply the pressure to do what should be done, which is to get a ceasefire now, to get humanitarian aid in place, and to get recognition of the Palestinian State as an independent, sovereign state as part of a two state solution.
“So that is what I am trying to do. I appreciate people are frustrated that is not happening, but I’m using every opportunity I possibly can find to advance those arguments.”
protesters hold up bits of paper spelling out the word ‘genocide’ (Image: Andrew Learmonth/NQ)
Asked if he would describe the situation as a genocide, the First Minister said: “Well, it’s quite clear that there is a genocide in Palestine. It can’t be disputed, and I have seen reports of terrible atrocities which have the character of genocide.
“So I’ve expressed that, and obviously it’s not reached all those individuals. But that’s my belief.”
A number of international rights organisations, UN human rights experts, and academics have long accused Israel of committing a genocide in Gaza.
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is also examining a case brought by South Africa alleging that Israeli forces are committing genocide against the Palestinians in Gaza.
Israel has always vehemently denied the allegation,
Elsewhere in the interview the First Minister said he thought modern politics has become more tribal and aggressive.
Speaking at the event, hosted by comedian Susan Morrison, he said: “If I look at the direct inbox that comes to me as a member of the Scottish Parliament, it’s a challenging read on a daily basis.
“And most of it’s got nothing to do with the purpose of that inbox, which is to give access to my constituents to raise issues with me.
“But it can be a lot of stuff that is coming at me that in my inbox as First Minister, I don’t see that readily. My wonderful team are interacting with that, but there will be just as much tough stuff in there.
“And there is an undertone of language which is pretty aggressive”
Asked if he thought the public was expecting too much out of our politicians, Mr Swinney replied: “I’ve got, obviously, a lot of experience. I’ve been a member of parliament for 28 years. I’ve grown a lot of resilience in in that time. But I know there are some of my peers who find it really, really difficult to deal with that, and find it, personally, a lot to handle that they’re on the receiving end of that aggression, and particularly some of the material that comes at them through social media.
Despite the challenges, he said moments of kindness from the public were “utterly precious” and help sustain him in the job. “I had a woman come to my surgery last week facing a very painful personal situation. If I can help her find her strength again, that’s the most fulfilling thing.”
At the end of the session, a young person asked Mr Swinney if he would recommend a career in politics.
“I think it is,” he said, “but I would say go into it with your eyes wide open, because essentially, you’ve seen that up close today, I suppose all sides of it.
“You’ve seen how tough and how challenging it can be, and how demanding it can be, and how you very hard things can be said to you about what you have said and done equally. ”
He added: “You’ll have tough days and you’ll have generous days. And, but I do come back to what I said at the outset, go into it because you, you believe in something. That’s the best way to do it, because you’ve got an anchor to what it is you’re doing and what you’re trying to achieve in your politics.”
