Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has announced that she plans to proscribe Palestine Action following an incident at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire in which activists vandalised two aircraft.
In a statement to Parliament, the Home Secretary stated the group would be proscribed following the attack, with a draft measure to placed before MPs before the end of this month.
She said that the group has “long history of unacceptable damage”, and noted that their action had increased in frequency and severity since 2024.
Legislation and Proscription
Cooper intends to proscribe Palestine Action under the Terrorism Act 2000, which allows the Home Secretary to ban groups they reasonably believe to be “concerned in terrorism.” To do so, the Home Secretary must lay a statutory order before Parliament, which must be approved within 40 days to add the group to Schedule 2 of the Act.
Proscription would make it a criminal offence to be a member of, or to invite or express support for, the group, with breaches risking up to 14 years’ imprisonment or unlimited fines (Sections 11–12). It would also become illegal to display any symbols associated with the group in a way that creates suspicion of membership, with breaches risking up to six months in prison and a fine of up to £5,000 (Section 13).
Proscription offences have limited legal defences in case of breach, with recent amendments reducing the defence of ignorance by adding “reckless support” as a form of contravention.
In order to reverse proscription, the group would have to appeal to the Proscribed Organisation Appeal Committee. Advocating for de-proscription outside journalistic or official channels risks breaching Section 14 of the Act, which prohibits inciting support for banned groups. Only one successful appeal has been made against a proscription order – by the People’s Mojahedin of Iran in 2008.
The Act has been used to proscribe over 80 organisations since its passage. Initially targeting international Islamist groups including Al-Qaeda and its affiliates, the Act later covered a new wave of organisations, including ISIS and its offshoots, and has been used to combat a rise in domestic radicalisation. After their support for the murder of MP Jo Cox in June 2016, National Action became the first far-right political group to be proscribed under the Act. Since 2016, several other right-wing groups and their affiliates have been added to the schedule.
Typically, radical protest groups have been handled under public order laws rather than terrorism legislation. However, this approach has shifted in recent years.
In May 2024, Lord (John) Woodcock, then the Independent Advisor on Political Violence and Disruption, presented a commissioned report to the Commons encouraging the government to consider the proscription of groups he termed “extremists.” Appointed in 2020, Woodcock argued that the rise in extreme and aggressive political protests has inhibited the “rights and freedoms of the general public and their representatives.”
The report referred to specific groups, including Palestine Action and Just Stop Oil, as “extreme political activists.” It cited rising public frustration and the need to protect democracy and MPs from threats and intimidation.
Having scrapped Woodcock’s position, the government has since appointed Robin Simcox as Commissioner for Countering Extremism, who has echoed these recommendations. Simcox has warned that London had become a “no-go zone for Jews” due to pro-Palestinian protests and urged the government to “accept higher legal risk” in combating political extremism.
Simcox’s statements were supported by the Campaign Against Antisemitism and the Community Security Trust, which both cited increased safety concerns of British Jews in public areas.
What is Palestine Action?
Palestine Action was created in July 2020 following the storming of Elbit Systems HQ in London, Israel’s largest arms manufacturer, which has since become the group’s primary target.
The group pursued Elbit’s other UK premises in Bristol, Oldham, Tamworth, and Somerset between 2020 and 2025, repeatedly employing the same signature tactic, which left buildings sprayed with blood-coloured paint. The group has also targeted UK facilities linked to arms exports, including the Italian aerospace company Leonardo and the American firm Teledyne, terming them “corporate enablers.”
In May 2024, activists occupied an Elbit/Thales drone factory in Leicester for six days. Ten people were arrested; two faced criminal damage charges but were ultimately acquitted after a jury accepted that their actions were necessary to prevent greater harm.
Co-founder Huda Ammori has stated that the group will “continue until the rest of their sites are gone” and is pursuing an end to the British government’s “collusion” with alleged war crimes in Gaza. Their campaigns of disruptive action have led to the closure of Elbit’s London and Oldham sites.
Many of these actions were taken in conjunction with other protest groups, including Extinction Rebellion and Animal Rebellion. The group has also targeted companies they deem linked to Elbit, including its subsidiaries and suppliers, as well as other targets such as Trump Turnberry Golf Course and major insurer Allianz. Palestine Action has amassed over 600,000 combined followers on their platforms on X and Instagram.
Responses
The group’s solicitor described the proposed ban as “unlawful, dangerous and ill-thought-out,” while human rights groups Amnesty International and Liberty released a joint letter condemning the move. Amnesty stated they are “deeply concerned at the use of counter-terrorism powers to target protests” and believe that criminal law is sufficient to deal with such acts. Both the Shawcross Prevent Review (2023) and Lord Walney’s independent report (2024) have been criticised by human rights organisations and the United Nations for discriminatory and overly broad definitions of terrorism.
An emergency protest was held on Tuesday, 24 June, backed by 35 protest groups, including the Stop the War Coalition. The protest saw 13 arrests following clashes with police; 7 have since been charged. Initially planned for Parliament Square, the protest was restricted by Met Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley, who praised the proscription as a necessary step to counter an “organised extremist political group” whose actions “go beyond what most of us would consider legitimate protest.”
Government criticism of the group referred specifically to the recent action against a Jewish-owned business in North London, which the group has stated is registered as a landlord of Elbit’s Kent-based factory.
At the protest, a Palestine Action spokesperson accused Cooper of avoiding questions about the RAF’s ongoing role in Gaza, describing the ban as an “unhinged reaction.” They also criticised Keir Starmer’s stance, pointing out his past defence of the 2003 anti-Iraq War protests at RAF Fairford.
Former Scottish First Minister Humza Yousaf condemned the move as an abuse of anti-terror laws. Former Justice Secretary Lord Falconer questioned whether the group’s known actions—such as the Brize Norton incident—are enough to justify proscription, suggesting the government may be relying on undisclosed intelligence.
Lord Walney, by contrast, described the decision as “long overdue,” alluding to “very serious criminal trials which involve serious violence against individuals.
