NICOLA Sturgeon has branded vandalism targeted at a war memorial as “absolutely despicable, sickening and disgusting”.
The First Minister was asked about vandalism that took place at the war memorial in Edinburgh hours after Remembrance Sunday.
Police Scotland are continuing to investigate after poppy wreaths were set on fire.
Speaking at First Minister's Questions, Tory MSP for the Lothians, Miles Briggs, said it was “a mindless act and an appalling insult to our fallen war heroes”.
He added: “It has shocked and angered the local community in Edinburgh, and I hope that those who are responsible will be held to account in due course."
“Sadly, however, attacks on war memorials are increasing in Scotland.”
Ms Sturgeon said: “What happened in the early hours of Monday morning is almost beyond words—absolutely despicable, sickening and disgusting.
"It is beyond my comprehension—I am sure that it is beyond the comprehension of any of us in the chamber—how anybody could attack a war memorial at any time of the year, but particularly just hours after remembrance Sunday.
“It would not be appropriate for me to comment on an on-going police investigation; obviously, that is for the police to take forward.
“Where I will end these remarks, in agreement with the member, is that I really hope that those who are responsible for that despicable attack are identified and face the full force of justice.”
Police Scotland Chief Inspector Murray Tait, local area commander, said: “Our enquiries are ongoing after poppy wreaths were set on fire at the war memorial in High Street, Edinburgh around 5am on Monday, 14 November.
“Officers are carrying out enquiries and gathering CCTV footage to find out more information on whoever is responsible.
“I utterly condemn this appalling act of vandalism, especially at this time of year when remembrance services have just been held across the country. “
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel