Activists Charged After Symbolic Airbase Action
Four Palestine Action members, Amy Gardiner-Gibson (29), Daniel Jeronymides-Norie (35), Jony Cink (24), and Lewie Chiaramello (22) were charged under counter-terrorism laws for entering RAF Brize Norton on June 20 and spraying red paint on two £7 million Voyager aircraft. The activists used repurposed fire extinguishers and crowbars to symbolically "decommission" planes they linked to UK support for Israel’s Gaza campaign. Footage showed them riding electric scooters unchallenged across the base, highlighting security lapses.
On July 2, the UK Parliament voted 385–26 to designate Palestine Action as a terrorist organization under the Terrorism Act 2000, a move UN human rights experts condemned as suppressing "legitimate dissent." If approved by the House of Lords, supporting the group could carry 14-year prison sentences. The group called the ban an "abuse of power" and is pursuing urgent legal challenges to block it.
Palestine Action explicitly connected the protest to halting Britain’s complicity in Gaza, stating: "By decommissioning two military planes, we directly intervened to break the chains of oppression." The RAF base regularly services flights to RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, a hub for over 500 UK surveillance missions over Gaza. While UK officials denied refuelling Israeli jets, Voyagers have supported US-led strikes in Yemen and anti-ISIS operations.
At their July 3 court hearing, supporters filled the public gallery, chanting "Free Palestine!" as the activists were remanded in custody. Their action resonated with broader public sentiment: 55% of Britons oppose Israel’s war, and 82% view it as genocide. Over 400 cultural figures, including Tilda Swinton, signed an open letter condemning the terrorism designation and demanding the UK "stop arming Israel".
The case echoes the 1981 Bradford 12 trial, where anti-fascist activists faced terrorism charges for community self-defense. One acquitted member, writing in Al Jazeera, praised Palestine Action’s nonviolent tactics as a "moral compass," contrasting them with his own armed resistance. Both movements reflect state efforts to frame resistance as terrorism when challenging power structures.
UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese emphasized that spraying paint constitutes protest, not terrorism. Critics argue the UK’s ban aims to shield its £15 billion arms trade with Israel, including Elbit Systems factories repeatedly targeted by Palestine Action. As Gaza’s death toll exceeds 57,000, the activists’ trial on July 18 at the Old Bailey will test the boundaries of "permissible" dissent in Western democracies.