CAMPAIGNERS are planning to protest outside Bristol City Museum at the weekend against the sponsorship of its Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition.

The exhibition, which opened last weekend in the Queen's Road museum, is sponsored by the French company Veolia.

Local Palestine campaigners say the company is "benefiting from the Israeli occupation of Palestine".

They have already held protests outside the museum, and are planning another one for midday today.

"We are not trying to stop people going in," said Vanessa Whiteley, a member of Bristol Palestine Solidarity Campaign. "We just want them to be very aware of who it is that is sponsoring the exhibition."

The group are challenging the council to honour its policy to boycott Israeli connections.

The exhibition, which runs until March, is no stranger to controversial sponsorship deals – recent years saw Shell acting as sponsor and in previous years the exhibition was the target of protests, some with campaigners dressed as dying polar bears.

The campaigners say that the council made a decision to remove investment from Israel following the Israeli attack on the Freedom Flotilla last year, in which nine people died.

Ms Whiteley said: "The museum says it wasn't aware of the issues involving Veolia and Israel – now we want to ask them what their intentions are. Given our council's commitment to human rights we want to know why Bristol Museum can host this exhibition sponsored by Veolia.

"On the whole, the council has been very good when it comes to human rights issues."

Ms Whiteley said. "Our protest at the weekend went very well – we had a good turnout and handed out all of our leaflets."

She said the group planned to protest every weekend during the exhibition. Bristol City Council spokesman James Easey confirmed that the museum's managers were due to meet with the group.

This weekend's protest will take place at midday today outside the Bristol Museum and Art Gallery.

Supporters are asked to bring placards, whistles, banners, and to wear Palestine T-shirts, Palestine flag colours, or keffiyeh scarves.