{"id":58673,"date":"2026-04-24T12:50:52","date_gmt":"2026-04-24T16:50:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/councillor-suspended-for-linking-lgbt-community-with-hamas-support\/24\/04\/2026\/"},"modified":"2026-04-24T12:50:52","modified_gmt":"2026-04-24T16:50:52","slug":"councillor-suspended-for-linking-lgbt-community-with-hamas-support","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/councillor-suspended-for-linking-lgbt-community-with-hamas-support\/24\/04\/2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Councillor suspended for linking LGBT community with Hamas support"},"content":{"rendered":"

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A Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) councillor has been suspended for three months by a standards watchdog over comments linking the LGBT community with support for Hamas.<\/p>\n

Colin Kennedy made the remarks at a meeting<\/a> of Ards and North Down Borough Council in 2023 during a debate on the Israel-Gaza war.<\/p>\n

The Northern Ireland local government standards commissioner found his comments “overstepped what may be regarded as acceptable political speech”.<\/p>\n

Margaret Kelly found it therefore “went beyond the protections afforded as a political representative under Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights”. The DUP has been approached for comment.<\/p>\n

Kennedy was speaking in October 2023 as councillors debated a DUP motion condemning attacks by Hamas on Israel and expressing hope for “an end to the bloodshed in Israel and Gaza”.<\/p>\n

During the debate he said: “Do not be surprised when those who enthusiastically endorse the LGBTQIA alphabet soup agenda in the West are the very same people who are now seeking to defend Hamas.”<\/p>\n

Former Alliance Party councillor Hannah Irwin, who was the council’s deputy mayor at the time, had urged Mr Kennedy to retract his comments.<\/p>\n

“As a member of the LGBTQ community I feel pretty personally offended by it,” she added.<\/p>\n

Kennedy said he would not withdraw his remarks, but added he was happy to speak to Irwin afterwards to “assuage any concerns she might have”.<\/p>\n

Independent councillor Ray McKimm, who is gay, left the chamber in response to the exchange and others criticised Kennedy’s remarks.<\/p>\n

‘Personally hurtful’<\/h2>\n

A police investigation into the comments found they did not amount to hate speech, the office of the Local Government Commissioner for Standards said.<\/p>\n

Complaints were separately made to the standards watchdog and an adjudication hearing was held on Friday.<\/p>\n

The commissioner found Kennedy’s remarks breached the councillors’ code of conduct.<\/p>\n

The standards body said the finding against the councillor was “not a criticism of his right to express his political views”.<\/p>\n

“Rather some of what he said went beyond the acceptable bounds of proper political speech, affected individuals who had protected characteristics in Northern Ireland law, and was personally hurtful to a number of individuals,” it added.<\/p>\n

The commissioner found Kennedy had brought his position as a councillor “into disrepute”.<\/p>\n

She imposed a three-month suspension after considering other factors, including a previous breach of the code of conduct.<\/p>\n

Israel-Gaza war<\/h2>\n

The Palestinian militant group Hamas – designated as a terrorist group by the UK and other countries – launched an attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023.<\/p>\n

Israel said around 1,200 people were killed and hundreds of people were taken hostage.<\/p>\n

Israel’s attacks on Gaza since then have killed more than 72,000 people, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.<\/p>\n

A fragile Israel-Hamas ceasefire was announced last October, which they have accused each other of breaching.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) councillor has been suspended for three months by a standards watchdog over comments linking the LGBT community