City seals twinning deal with Palestinian city of Hebron

Preston City Council has formally signed a friendship agreement with the Palestinian city of Hebron.

- by Paul Faulkner

The gathering for the signing of the friendship agreement between Preston and Hebron, which Preston City Council leader Matthew Brown

A ceremony at the town hall last Thursday marked the culmination of an at times controversial journey that began more than 18 months ago, when the authority responded to a call from 14 of Preston's mosques to find a friendship partner in Palestine as war raged between Gaza and Israel.

The move was criticised by members of the city's Jewish community-and some councillors-amid claims it amounted to Preston taking sides in the conflict.