Church of England leaders closed a Gaza memorial exhibition at Leeds Minster after Jewish representatives identified at least 25 names on its tapestry as Hamas or Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorists. The controversy intensified when the rector, Canon Paul Maybury, reportedly told protesters that “history is complex” when asked to condemn the kidnapping and killing of members of the Bibas family, prompting condemnation from Jewish leaders and relatives of October 7 victims.

The exhibition, titled Stitch Their Names Together, displayed at least 90 panels containing 16,800 names drawn from figures published by Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry. Researchers said several named individuals had been described by militant groups as “martyrs” and shown in military clothing, while the Bishop of Leeds withdrew the event after receiving their dossier; Maybury later apologised and condemned violence, hostage-taking and civilian deaths. The dispute follows a separate row over the Archbishop of Canterbury’s withdrawal of an award given to a cleric who had praised Osama bin Laden.