Protesters burn Clinton effigy outside Jewish charity dinner

TOM GORDON and ANDREW WALKER
PROTESTERS burned a life-sized effigy of Bill Clinton outside a Glasgow hotel last night where the former US president was guest speaker at a Jewish charity dinner.
Hundreds of jeering demonstrators heckled guests as they arrived at the Hilton hotel for the centenary dinner of the Jewish National Fund, aimed at raising money for a reservoir project in Israel.
The fund was set up 100 years ago to buy land throughout Palestine in the hope that a state of Israel would one day be established. Mr Clinton will speak at a second JNF dinner in Cheshire today and a third in London tomorrow.
However, the JNF's policy of buying land only for Jewish use has been denounced as "racist" by supporters of the Palestinian cause, who see it as a major obstacle to peace in the Middle East.
The demonstrators had gathered outside the Hilton from 6pm onwards last night waving placards and white lights.
Several times police struggled to keep the crowds contained as groups climbed upon a line of crash barriers. Chanting "Free Palestine", "intifada", and "Clinton murderer", the crowd tried its utmost to disturb Mr Clinton's rest in the hotel above.
At one point, about a dozen protesters ran towards the entrance of the hotel with a burning effigy of Mr Clinton.
They dumped the effigy around 20ft from the entrance to the hotel, and security staff rushed to put out the flames with fire-extinguishers.
Sana Dabbagh, a Palestinian, from Kirkintilloch, and a spokeswoman for the Campaign for Palestinian Rights, said Mr Clinton was guilty of double standards by agreeing to speak at the dinner.
She said: "I am here because the Jewish National Fund has invited Bill Clinton to speak at this dinner, despite the fact that he is supposed to be a mediator between the two sides.
"Obviously all this time he has been supporting the Israeli side."
One demonstrator, a 47-year-old businessman from Glasgow, who did not want to be named, said: "Why are Muslim people being oppressed all over the world? We want justice. We don't know how much more we can take. We want (Ariel) Sharon (the Israeli prime minister) shot and hanged."
Pauline McNeill, the Labour MSP for the local constituency of Glasgow Kelvin, said: "I think Bill Clinton is being exposed here as not an honest broker in the conflict between the Palestinians and Israelis. He's supporting an event for the buying of land which is utterly discriminatory. He's not the honest broker he claims and he should be exposed."
Tommy Sheridan, Scottish Socialist leader, attended the demonstration to voice his opposition against the treatment of the Palestinian people.
Mr Sheridan said: "I think it is important that ordinary citizens stand up against the injustice of an illegal occupation of Palestine supported and financed by the United States of America, both past presidents and present.
"We really have to say no to this hypocrisy which presents recognition of international law when it suits America, but supports ignoring international law when it does not.
"It is very important for the Scottish people to express what they think, having seen what they have seen in the last three years.
"This is an expression about how people feel about what they watch on TV."
Earlier in the day, Mr Clinton had declined to comment on the protests planned for outside the hotel.
He said: "I can't comment on the protests because I don't know what they are upset about."
Mr Clinton had flown into Scotland and played golf at Turnberry in Ayrshire, before heading on to Glasgow.
He arrived at the hotel still wearing casual golfing garb of windcheater and slacks.
He said: "I am going to be talking a little about current events and what we are going through now.
"I am quite confident that we are going to prevail in this conflict in Afghanistan. I think our defences will get better at home.
"I think we have to build a world where we have fewer terrorists and more partners, and that means we have work to do after this conflict is over that is every bit as important as what we are doing now."
Mr Clinton said he had never given any thought to cancelling his trip to Scotland.
"I think air travel is safe, and I think the purpose of terror is to make people change their lives, to make us afraid of today, afraid of tomorrow, afraid of each other - and we should not be," he said.
Mr Clinton added: "I first came to Glasgow when I was 22 years old."
Stanley Lovatt, a Glasgow businessman and JNF joint vice-president, who asked Mr Clinton to give the talk, said the invitation had been made in March, before any recent events in the Middle East.
"The money we are raising specifically from the three dinners is going towards the building of a reservoir in the Negev region, in the name of Bill Clinton," he said. "The Israeli problem is only going to form a small part of Mr Clinton's speech, the rest will be taken up with thoughts about US and British relations and his thoughts as a former world leader."
Around 750 guests paid £125 a head to hear the former president speak for an hour.
This was to be followed by a 30-minute question and answer session with the audience.