Pro-Palestinian group loses bid to block U.K. govt’s ban under anti-terrorism laws

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A Palestine Action protagonist  speaks into a megaphone extracurricular  the Royal Courts of Justice aft  a ineligible  situation  to suspend the group’s proscription nether  anti-terrorism laws failed connected  July 4, 2025, successful  London, England.

A Palestine Action protagonist speaks into a megaphone extracurricular the Royal Courts of Justice aft a ineligible situation to suspend the group’s proscription nether anti-terrorism laws failed connected July 4, 2025, successful London, England. | Photo Credit: Getty Images

The pro-Palestinian activistic radical Palestine Action mislaid a bid Friday (July 4, 2025) to artifact the British government's determination to prohibition it nether anti-terrorism laws aft activists broke into a subject basal past month and vandalized 2 planes.

At a proceeding astatine the High Court successful London, the radical had sought to temporarily artifact what it considered to beryllium an “authoritarian” ban, which volition spell into effect astatine midnight. The prohibition volition marque rank of the radical and enactment of its actions a transgression discourtesy punishable by up to 14 years successful prison.

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But Justice Martin Chamberlain, who spent each time listening to lawyers representing the radical and the government, declined to springiness the enactment interim alleviation from the ban, which was archetypal projected by Home Secretary Yvette Cooper and approved by lawmakers earlier this week.

While conceding that the bid to proscribe Palestine Action a violent enactment whitethorn person “wider consequences for the mode the nationalist understands the conception of ‘terrorism’,” helium said it is not "the court’s relation to remark connected the contented of the usage of the powerfulness successful the case.”

Huda Ammori, the co-founder of Palestine Action, was hoping the tribunal would temporarily artifact the authorities from banning the radical arsenic a violent enactment nether the Terrorism Act of 2000 earlier a imaginable ineligible challenge. Some 81 organizations are already proscribed nether the 2000 Act, including Hamas and al-Qaida.

Ammori's lawyer Raza Husain had asked the tribunal to suspend the “ill-considered” and “authoritarian maltreatment of statutory power” until a hearing, which is owed astir July 21.

“This is the archetypal clip successful our past that a nonstop enactment civilian disobedience group, which does not advocator for violence, has been sought to beryllium proscribed arsenic terrorists," helium said.

He added that his lawsuit had been “inspired” by a agelong past of nonstop enactment successful the UK, “from the suffragettes, to anti-apartheid activists, to Iraq War activists.”

The prohibition was triggered aft pro-Palestinian activists broke into a Royal Air Force basal successful Brize Norton, damaging 2 planes utilizing reddish overgarment and crowbars successful protestation astatine the British government's ongoing subject enactment for Israel successful its warfare successful Gaza.

Police said that the incidental caused astir 7 cardinal pounds ($9.4 million) worthy of damage, with 4 radical charged successful transportation with the incident.

The four, aged betwixt 22 and 35, were charged Thursday with conspiracy to perpetrate transgression harm and conspiracy to participate a prohibited spot for purposes prejudicial to the interests of the U.K. No pleas were entered astatine Westminster Magistrates’ Court successful cardinal London and the 4 are scheduled to look connected July 18 astatine the Central Criminal Court.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper announced plans to proscribe Palestine Action arsenic a violent enactment a fewer days aft the break-in. She said the vandalism to the 2 planes was “disgraceful,” adding that the radical had a “long past of unacceptable transgression damage."

Published - July 05, 2025 03:20 americium IST

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