Ban on Palestine Action Upheld by Court of Appeal
The home secretary’s decision to ban Palestine Action was ruled lawful by the court of appeal. A panel of five judges, including the two most senior judges in England and Wales, overturned the high court’s February ruling that found the proscription of the direct action group under the Terrorism Act to be unlawful.
This ruling will provide relief to the government, whose ban on Palestine Action attracted widespread condemnation and sparked a civil disobedience campaign defying the proscription. Over 3,000 arrests have been made during this campaign. However, Huda Ammori, cofounder of Palestine Action and the challenger of the ban, stated she would “fight this all the way,” indicating the legal battle is ongoing.
Judges’ Reasoning on Proscription Powers
On Monday, Lady Chief Justice Sue Carr delivered the court’s decision. The judges included the Master of the Rolls, Geoffrey Vos. Carr stated that the high court had “materially understated” the discretion afforded to the home secretary in making proscription decisions.
“The future threats and risks posed to third-party individuals and property by Palestine Action are perhaps the most important factors to weigh in the balance. In that connection, it is important to understand that the home secretary is in the best position to assess those future threats and risks. She is advised by experts in anti-terrorism …
“When the severity of the effects of proscription on the article 10 [freedom of expression] and 11 [freedom of assembly] rights of individuals are balanced against the importance of the objectives of protecting national security and the rights and freedoms of others, affording an appropriate margin of appreciation to the home secretary’s decision, we find that the latter in this case outweighed the former.”
Legal Consequences of Proscription
Under the proscription, membership of or support for Palestine Action became an offence punishable by up to 14 years in prison. Most arrests since the proscription involved individuals holding placards stating: “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action,” as part of a campaign led by Defend Our Juries.
More than 700 people have been charged under section 13 of the Terrorism Act, which carries a maximum sentence of six months imprisonment. Their cases were paused pending the court of appeal’s decision.
Impact on Public Expression and Protests
Lady Chief Justice Carr acknowledged that law-abiding citizens—not those holding placards—might experience a “chilling effect” and be deterred from assembling lawfully or expressing strongly held anti-Israel and pro-Palestinian views due to fear that their actions could be interpreted as support for Palestine Action.
“However, under the law, proscription would not prevent public expressions of support for the Palestinian cause or opposition to Israel and to the Israel Defense Forces, or demonstrations targeted at Elbit.”
Four Palestine Action activists were convicted for breaking into a factory of the Israel-based defence firm Elbit Systems near Bristol.
Criticism from NGOs and Activists
Following the judgment, NGOs including Liberty, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International UK, and Greenpeace criticized the use of counter-terrorism powers, highlighting concerns about the impact on the right to protest.
Huda Ammori responded:
“We will fight this all the way. We will seek permission to appeal to the supreme court and, if need be, take this to the European court of human rights. We are confident we will ultimately succeed because criminalising peaceful political protest in this way is a flagrant violation of our fundamental rights and freedoms in Britain, protected in the Human Rights Act, which enshrines the European convention on human rights.
“We will not stop fighting to overturn one of the most extreme attacks on free speech and the right to protest in modern British history. This unprecedented abuse of power has devastated the lives of thousands of people while silencing dissent over Israel’s slaughter of the Palestinian people during the genocide, when that dissent could not be more urgent.”
Police Arrests at Protests
The Metropolitan Police reported arresting 117 people outside the court building on Monday on suspicion of showing support for a proscribed organisation, with two additional arrests at a separate protest outside the Old Bailey.
“Since the organisation was proscribed, the Met has arrested over 3,000 people on suspicion of expressing support for Palestine Action,” the force stated.
Judges’ Acknowledgement of Controversy
The judges recognized the controversy surrounding Palestine Action’s proscription:
“We recognise too that Palestine Action is supported by many otherwise law-abiding citizens, and that it is engaged in peaceful as well as non-peaceful protest. It is, nonetheless, a fundamental mistake to overlook the fact that Palestine Action overtly promotes unlawful violence amounting to terrorism.
“It is not, as it claims, a direct action civil disobedience protest group like the suffragettes operating transparently in the open. It is a covert organisation that operates using secret cells to avoid the detection and prosecution of those using violence to destroy the property of third parties. Palestine Action’s activities have caused injury as well as property damage.”
Government Response
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood stated:
“There is a difference between supporting Palestine and supporting a proscribed terrorist group.
“We will always take the strongest possible action to protect our national security and keep the public safe.”
