Laughter about police incompetence, vandalism described as “responsible” and the promise of a lifetime of moral pride: when it infiltrated a Palestine Action recruitment session, Jewish News witnessed how the group grooms new activists for high-stakes criminal damage in the name of “justice”.
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Palestine Action’s damage to planes at RAF Brize Norton was the group’s most serious red-paint orgy in its five-year history. The group has tended to target premises of the Israeli defence company Elbit Systems, and its inaugural act was to spray-paint Elbit’s London HQ in July 2020.
The assault in Oxfordshire shocked the government into an announcement on Monday by the home secretary, Yvette Cooper, that Palestine Action will be proscribed.
Where has the group found people to carry out the more than 300 incidents for which it has claimed responsibility? The group’s co-founder, Richard Barnard, is awaiting trial over charges following speeches he made on 8 and 11 October 2023, one for allegedly inviting support for Hamas, two for allegedly encouraging criminal damage. It is not clear what ‘actions’ his co-founder Huda Ammori has taken part in.
In any case, the group needs a continual supply of recruits because most only do what it calls a high-level action once. “The law is not on our side,” as the host of a Zoom workshop told his recruits in early 2024.
Would-be criminals sign up through Palestine Action’s website for a one-and-a-half-hour meeting during which the host shows a short film that tells them the UK is complicit in war crimes by allowing Elbit to operate on UK soil. Damaging its offices and factories is presented as the responsible thing to do.
“We consider the Nakba to be ongoing,” the host told the gathering of 14 participants in one session last year. “It has continued since 1948 until the present day, especially the explicit campaign of ethnic cleansing there.”
Palestine Action supporter dresses in concentration camp uniform at Trafalgar Sq demo
Direct action is not only responsible but easy and eye-catching. He shows photos familiar from news websites and media feeds of people in red boiler suits, helmets and goggles wielding sledgehammers or fire extinguishers filled with red paint. “I really encourage everyone who’s watching to get involved.”
The host was based in New York and had Palestinian heritage, he said. His audience was for the most part white, educated and easily findable on LinkedIn. One was a postgraduate researcher at Nottingham University, another had a master’s degree from a European university and worked as a digital producer. They were a mix of male and female, most in their 30s or 40s but one or two in their 50s or 60s.
He showed them photos of people “locking” on at a protest. There were giggles among the Zoom participants as he said: “Police don’t know what to do – they stand around and stare at you.”
He then proceeded to the rules. “Number one is: never speak to the police. Except when they’re unlocking you and saying ‘Does this hurt?’ The police are “extremely incompetent”, he added. He suggested giving them a false address. “Don’t give your mum’s address though, as they might raid it.”
Police don’t know what to do – they stand around and stare at you.
Palestine Action has solicitors who work for it for free, he adds. But some time being deprived of your liberty is possible. “Bring any medication you need in case you need to go to the police cell. Don’t take your phone, fancy possessions, drugs, alcohol.”
Protestor holds giant watermelon symbol at Palestine Action demo
The police need to treat you with respect. They will give you vegan or vegetarian food, or if you’re Muslim they’ll give you a halal meal, he said. Kosher food is not mentioned. They need to give everyone water, food, a blanket and a shower. “You can get a really nice tracksuit for free,” he added with a smile. “I wear mine a lot.”
The likelihood of a criminal conviction is small, he reassured them. In any case, it could take years for a case to go to trial.
What was important was to remember how evil the enemy was. “Israel has a very good history of ignoring human rights law, war crimes law, even genocide law,” the host said.
As for the reward for going ahead with an action, this was beyond measure. “You can hold your head high for the rest of your life, knowing that when the Palestinian people needed you, you were there,” he said. “You were on the right side of history.
“I hope to see your smiling faces on the front page of a newspaper sometime soon being arrested.”
