At Westminster Magistrates Court, eight more Palestine Action activists have been remanded to prison – after being raided and arrested after an action against Israel’s Elbit arms factory in Filton, Bristol, on 6 August. In an appeal at the Crown Court they will apply for bail – ahead of a trial in November 2025.
All eight, as with ten others charged in August, face criminal – not terror – charges, despite having been arrested and interrogated under Terrorism Act powers deployed to deny them their rights.
Palestine Action: more Elbit Filton activist remanded to prison
People came out and rallied in support of the Palestine Action Filton activists:
All eighteen are political prisoners, subjected to abuses of power and process by Counter Terrorism Policing South East and other police forces – for alleged acts of resistance against complicity in genocide. In August, activists drove a van into and dismantled the Filton, Bristol research hub of Elbit Systems, Israel’s largest arms company, causing £1m in damages against products including quadcopters.
Despite their repression, they are said to be faring well, smiling in the court in front of a packed public gallery – steadfast in the knowledge that they have been imprisoned by a state acting out of its deep complicity in Israel’s genocidal campaign.
They have all been charged with aggravated burglary and criminal damage, while six have also been charged with violent disorder – none charged under the terror laws which police have abused against them.
They continue to be investigated through Counter-Terrorism Policing investigatory powers, with rights experts having expressed alarm over these powers being deprive Palestine Action activists of the legal protections that should be afforded to them.
Severe restrictions
Those imprisoned for over a hundred days so far have been subjected to arbitrary and severe restrictions, including being denied reading materials, religious practice, medical privacy, and being prohibited to communicate with other prisoners:
From 5am on Tuesday 19 November, police raids broke down doors and detained the eight, along with others detained and not charged. The individuals and their families had property destroyed in police raids, with many family members unable to return to their homes since Monday.
At Westminster Magistrates Court and at the Hammersmith and Newbury police stations where activists were being held, hundreds have mobilised in solidarity with the Palestine Action political prisoners:
Featured image and additional images via Guy Smallman
