A woman has become the first person in Scotland to be arrested and charged under new abortion protest laws.
Police were called to respond to a group of protesters outside the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow at around 2pm on Wednesday.
A 74-year-old woman was arrested and charged in connection with breach of the exclusion zone on Hardgate Road.
She will be reported to the Procurator Fiscal.
Police Scotland said officers remained at the scene and enquiries were ongoing.
Channel 4It is the first arrest and charge in Scotland under the Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) (Scotland) Act 2024.
The legislation creating protected zones of 200 metres around abortion services came into force in September.
The safe access zones, of buffer zones, stop anti-abortion protesters gathering, leafleting, holding vigils, or showing graphic images to people near the sites.
The Scottish Government said the law is designed to safeguard public health and protect the right of women to access healthcare without obstruction.
Those who break the law can be fined up to £10,000, or an unlimited amount if they go to trial before a judge and jury in more serious cases.
Last week, US Vice President JD Vance hit out at Scotland’s law wrongly claiming those who lived within the zones had been sent letters by the Scottish Government warning them that praying within their homes could be illegal.
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