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Police detained protesters who gathered outside Westminster
Magistrates’ Court shouting “I oppose genocide, I support
Palestine Action,” as onlookers shouted “Shame!” The
Metropolitan Police force said 117 people had been arrested,
most for “expressing support for a proscribed organization.”
More than 3,000 people have been arrested for actions as simple
as holding signs declaring “I support Palestine Action” since
the group was outlawed. More than 1,200 have been charged under
the Terrorism Act, although no one has yet been convicted.
The government outlawed Palestine Action after activists broke
into a Royal Air Force base in June 2025 to protest British
military support for Israel’s military offensive in Gaza.
The group challenged the ban, and it was quashed by the High
Court in February. But in June the Court of Appeal ruled that
the ban was a “justified and proportionate” interference with
freedom of expression. It said the group had gone beyond
direct-action civil disobedience and used violence “to destroy
property and cause injury.”
On Thursday the Supreme Court said Palestine Action founder Huda
Ammori can take the case to the country’s top judges. The case
is due to be heard sometime between October and December.
All cases of people charged with breaching the ban have been put
on hold until the Supreme Court rules, court officials said.
Civil liberties groups say the ban and subsequent arrests are
unjustified restrictions on the rights to protest and free
speech.
“Using counterterror powers to suppress dissent goes against
democratic values and harms freedom of expression and assembly
in this country,” said Thomas Bell, acting U.K. director at
Human Rights Watch. “Andy Burnham, the new prime minister, needs
to call for a reset.”
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