Eastwood has pro-Palestine rally charge dropped
The former SDLP leader had been charged with taking part in an unnotified procession in support of Palestine
- Published
The SDLP MP Colum Eastwood has had a charge of attending an illegal pro-Palestine rally dropped after he accepted a formal reprimand.
The former SDLP leader, 42, had been charged, alongside others, with taking part in an unnotified procession in support of Palestine in Londonderry on 14 February 2024.
Prosecutors formally withdrew the charge at Londonderry Magistrates' Court on Wednesday after a defence solicitor said the MP had accepted what is known as an "informed warning".
The lawyer said this had been administered and accepted on 1 November.
The latest development means that the criminal case against Mr Eastwood has now ended without a criminal conviction, though the reprimand will stay on his record for a year.
Five other people accused of taking part in the same Pro-Palestine march are to contest the charges and a trial is due to take place on a date to be fixed.
All of the defendants are currently on bail.
In Northern Ireland, organisers must give 28 days' notice to the Parades Commission, the body that adjudicates on contentious parades, to hold a parade or procession.
