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- The National
Shetlanders raise £10k for Gaza through art exhibition
The pop-up event was organised by ex-SNP MSP turned painter Jean Urquhart and crofter Cilla Robertson.
A total of £10,433 was raised in 2025 after local artists and craftspeople donated all sorts of hand-made goods from Shetland, including knitwear, ceramics, books, paintings, home-dried herbs and decorative mosaics.
A similar amount – £10,072 – was also raised at a similar event organised by the pair in 2024.
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The exhibition was staffed by local artists and members of Palestinian Solidarity Shetland.
An original song was also offered, with the buyer able to then name and dedicate it. It was subsequently dedicated to the Palestinian people and sent to Palestinian ambassador to the UK Husam Zomlot.
Two of the items that were donated (Image: Jean Urquhart)
It has also been titled: 'Tae Palestine, Fae Shetland, Wae Love'.
The money raised has been split between Medical Aid for Palestinians and the Zaynab Project, whose founder Mina Shakib said: 'We're truly honored by support from the Shetland Islands. Knowing that your community chose the Zaynab Project because of our focus on food, water, and orphan support in Gaza means so much to us. We are honored to have received such a large, generous donation from Palestinian Solidarity Shetland and your community.'
Urquhart, meanwhile, said: 'There are groups like ours all across Scotland. All protesting against the Zionist Israeli government actions in Palestine and our own UK Government's complicity in the genocide.
"History shows Britain's involvement in the lives of Palestinians since the days of the British Mandate – it's time to make amends and help the people of Palestine, not destroy them. We owe them'.
