The UK government has announced plans to ban the pro-Palestinian activist group Palestine Action under counter-terrorism legislation, following a recent sabotage of military aircraft by the group’s members.
The proposed proscription order, announced by Home Secretary Yvette Cooper on Monday, will classify Palestine Action alongside groups such as Hamas and ISIS under UK law. If passed by Parliament on June 30, it will become a criminal offence to be a member of, or to publicly support, the group—punishable by up to 14 years in prison.
Palestine Action has led a series of high-profile protests targeting UK-based companies with ties to Israeli defence firm Elbit Systems, especially since the escalation of the conflict in Gaza in 2023. The group claims that the UK is complicit in Israeli military operations through its arms trade and defence collaborations.
In its most recent operation, two activists broke into the Royal Air Force base at Brize Norton in central England on Friday. The pair allegedly sprayed paint into the engines of two Voyager aircraft and used crowbars to cause further damage.
“This disgraceful attack on Brize Norton is the latest in a long history of unacceptable criminal damage committed by Palestine Action,” said Cooper in a statement to Parliament. “The UK’s defence enterprise is vital to our national security, and this government will not tolerate threats to that security.”
Cooper cited the increasing aggression of the group’s activities and the financial cost, claiming the group had caused millions of pounds in damages. Under British law, a group may be proscribed if it is believed to be involved in or supportive of terrorism.
Palestine Action has condemned the proposed ban as a politically motivated attack on dissent. In a public statement, the group accused Cooper of spreading “categorically false claims” and described the decision as an “unhinged reaction.”
“The real crime here is not red paint on warplanes,” the statement read, reiterating their stance that Britain’s support for Israel constitutes active participation in the Gaza conflict.
On the same day, police blocked the group from staging a protest outside Parliament, forcing them to relocate the demonstration to an alternate site.
