Palestine Action was officially proscribed as a terrorist organisation under the UK’s Terrorism Act 2000 effective from midnight on July 5
July 6, 2025 13:10
Metropolitan Police arrested 29 individuals on suspicion of terrorism offences on Saturday after they showed support for the newly banned Palestine Action group, hours after the proscription came into effect.
The direct-action protest group was banned on Friday after a last-minute legal appeal failed. The proscription now means that inviting support, expressing approval, or displaying symbols of Palestine Action is punishable by up to 14 years in prison.
About half an hour passed between the start of the vigil, which took place near the Mahatma Gandhi statue in Parliament Square in London, and the arrests, with police rapidly intervening to enforce the new ban, which went into effect several hours before at midnight.
Protesters carrying signs and placards that indicated support for Palestine Action were arrested under Section 13 of the Terrorist Act 2000, which makes it a criminal offence to display support or wear clothing items that “arouse reasonable suspicion” of supporting proscribed groups. Among those detained was an 83-year-old retired priest.
The campaign group Defend Our Juries, which organised the demonstration, said “a priest, an emeritus professor and a number of healthcare professionals” were among those arrested, but many were released on Sunday pending investigation.
Palestine Action has been prosecuted multiple times for public nuisance, aggravated trespass, and for causing criminal damage to sites around the UK, often targeting companies such as Elbit Systems UK or banks it accuses of cooperating with Israel, such as Barclays.
The group’s latest stunt, breaking into RAF Brize Norton and causing an estimated £7 million in property damage to two Voyager planes, were cited by the UK government as terrorist-level sabotage.
Palestine Action-caused vandalism after the group broke into RAF Brize Norton (Credit: X)[Missing Credit]
Their proscription followed a parliamentary vote on July 2 (385-26 in favour), approval by the House of Lords on July 3, and the failure of the group’s legal appeal on the same day.
Defending the move, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said violence and criminal damage have no place in legitimate protest and the group’s activities justify the ban.
Palestine Action is now one of 81 proscribed groups in the UK under anti-terrorism laws, which includes the likes of Hamas and ISIS.
