The British government acted lawfully when it banned a pro-Palestinian protest group as a terrorist organization, the Court of Appeal in London said on Monday, overturning a lower-court ruling that found the ban had breached free speech rights.
The decision is a victory for the government of Prime Minister Keir Starmer, but it is unlikely to be the final word on the case and supporters of the group said they would appeal to the Supreme Court.
The ban on Palestine Action, a direct action group that vandalized facilities linked to Israeli weapons manufacturers, took effect in July, and immediately proved contentious.
It was the first time the British government had used terrorism powers against a group for “serious damage to property,” rather than because of the use or threat of violence against people, prompting criticism from a broad range of human rights groups and international bodies.
Palestine Action, which no longer exists in its original form, did not promote violence against individuals. But its members damaged sites linked to Elbit Systems, an Israeli weapons manufacturer, and last June broke into R.A.F. Brize Norton, Britain’s largest air force base, in Oxfordshire, vandalizing two aircraft. The British government argued that those activities brought the group into the scope of an official terrorism definition covering “serious damage to property” for an ideological cause.
In a statement responding to Monday’s ruling Huda Ammori, co-founder of Palestine Action said she would appeal and “fight proscription all the way” to the Supreme Court.
The ban put Palestine Action on the same legal footing as terrorist organizations including Al Qaeda, the neo-Nazi group Atomwaffen Division and Hezbollah.
It automatically triggered laws that apply to all designated terrorist groups, criminalizing anyone who expressed support for Palestine Action. More than 2,000 people have subsequently been arrested just for holding signs reading: “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action.”
An assessment drawn up by a security body led by Britain’s MI5 domestic intelligence agency in March last year found that only three out of 385 actions then carried out by Palestine Action met the terrorism definition through “serious property damage with the aim of progressing its political cause.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Lizzie Dearden contributed reporting
