&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "Palestine Action explained: The activist group now designated as terror organisation in UK")
Thousands gathered in London’s Parliament Square on Saturday (September 6) to oppose the British government’s decision to outlaw the activist network Palestine Action, which was officially proscribed as a terrorist organisation in July. The Metropolitan Police estimated the turnout between 1,000 and 1,400 people, figures that matched the numbers claimed by organisers.
Tensions rose when officers moved in to make arrests, prompting chants of “shame on you” and “you’re supporting genocide” from the crowd, UK media reported. Police reinforcement was called in midway through the demonstration, though no arrest tally was released by Saturday evening. The ban has stirred broader debate in the UK around civil liberties and the boundaries of legitimate protest.
Who are Palestine Action?
Formed in 2020 by activists Huda Ammori and Richard Barnard, Palestine Action has carried out direct action campaigns targeting arms manufacturers linked to Israel. Its first operation was aimed at shutting down facilities of Elbit Systems, Israel’s biggest weapons producer, which also operates in Britain. The group has pledged to disrupt what it calls “Israel’s genocidal and apartheid regime.”
Since then, Palestine Action has staged occupations, blockades, and property damage at sites connected to companies such as UAV Tactical Systems and Leonardo. Symbolic actions have included spray-painting and defacing a portrait of Arthur Balfour at Cambridge University and seizing busts of Israel’s first president, Chaim Weizmann, from Manchester University.
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The turning point came in late June 2025, when activists broke into RAF Brize Norton, Britain’s largest airbase, and vandalized two Airbus Voyager refueling aircraft with paint and crowbars. Days later, then–Home Secretary Yvette Cooper—recently appointed foreign secretary—used anti-terror laws to formally ban the group. The move, which placed Palestine Action on the same legal footing as Hamas, al Qaeda, and ISIS, drew sharp criticism from UN experts, rights organizations, and opposition lawmakers.
Why did the UK government outlaw it?
Officials pointed to an assessment by the Joint Terrorism Assessment Centre, arguing that Palestine Action had moved from disruptive protest into acts of sabotage. Cooper said the group’s record of criminal damage made the designation necessary for national security. Authorities had signaled concern well before this summer. A government-commissioned review in 2024 warned that the group’s tactics—and those of climate campaigners like Just Stop Oil—bore resemblance to extremist organizations and suggested they be subject to bans.
