Britain’s High Court has ruled that the government’s decision to outlawed the protest group Palestine Action as a terrorist organization was unlawful.
Judges Victoria Sharp, Jonathan Swift and Karen Steyn said “the nature and scale of Palestine Action’s activities” did not meet the "level, scale and persistence" that would justify proscription.
They said, though, that the ban will remain in place while the government considers whether to appeal.
Last year the U.K. government declared the pro-Palestinian group a terrorist organization alongside the likes of al-Qaida and Hamas, making membership in or support for Palestine Action a crime punishable by up to 14 years in prison. Since then, more than 2,000 people have been arrested for holding signs saying “I support Palestine Action.”
The government banned Palestine Action after activists broke into a Royal Air Force base in June to protest British military support for Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza. The activists sprayed red paint into the engines of two tanker planes and caused further damage with crowbars.
Palestine Action has carried out direct action protests at military and industrial sites in the U.K. since it formed in 2020, including breaking into facilities owned by Israeli weapons manufacturer Elbit Systems UK. Officials say the group’s actions have caused millions of pounds in damage that affect national security.
Supporters of Palestine Action and civil liberties groups say the arrests for peaceful protest ride roughshod over free speech and the right to protest.
