Praise for Reverend Bob as he stands down as chairman of Falkirk's Palenstine friendship group

The Antonine Friendship Link (AFL) was established in 2004 after a public meeting and selected Reverend Bob Philip as their chairman.

Now, 20 years on, Reverend Phillip celebrated his 85th birthday with colleagues and supporters of AFL on Saturday as the group selected their new leader, local trade union activist Kevin Robertson.

The theme of the original meeting – and the link in the group's name – was the Antonine Wall and the wall that Israel had then just started building in the West Bank of Palestinian occupied territories.

The group stated both walls were claimed to be for security but subsequently proved to be ways of depriving the local populations of their land, dislodging communities and taking over their lives.

The AFL’s purpose was to raise money for educational and agricultural projects in the town of Jayyous in the West Bank, which sits in the shadow of the Israeli wall, and to raise awareness of the Palestinian situation among residents in the Falkirk area.

The group have done just that for the last two decades, holding public meetings, film screenings, street stalls and creating a scroll, signed by local community leaders, condemning Israel's treatment of the Palestinians.

Saturday's special meeting of the AFL was joined by Mustafa Mustafa, a former resident of Jayyous, now living and working in Scotland as a highly successful orthodontist.

Mustafa gave personal thanks to Reverend Philip and other AFL activists and supporters on behalf of Jayyous and Palestinians everywhere.