Pro-Palestine activists who protested against Elbit were seized from their homes by police [GETTY]
UK counter-terrorism police raided the homes of ten Palestine Action activists last week, in what campaigners say in a further escalation against pro-Palestine groups.
Police arrested ten more people in relation to the ‘Filton 10’ case. Ten Palestine Action activists were originally detained after a protest at Elbit’s industrial site in Filton, which is said to have cost Israel’s largest arms company over £1m in damages. Â
The suspects were taken from their homes by counterterrorism police last Tuesday and their residences were sealed off for investigation, family members say.
A parent of one of the arrested activists told The New Arab of her profound “anger” after the police “bashed down [her] door”, and handcuffed her 17-year-old son, who was left in freezing weather in his underwear, she added. Â
Police said the family might not be able to return to their home for two weeks.
A grandmother of one of those arrested also described a police raid on the home at 7am involving three vans and around 20 officers, who confiscated electronic items and a notepad. “The house is now a crime scene,” she said.
Commenting on the development, Tom Southerden, Amnesty International UK’s law and human rights director, said: “This latest round of arrests appears to be another disturbing example of a growing trend of terrorism powers being misused against protesters standing in solidarity with Palestinians, both in the UK and in other countries across Europe.”
It has not yet been confirmed why the activists were arrested during Tuesday’s raid.
The Filton 10 activists were initially held under the Terrorism Act, but were subsequently charged with non-terror offences including aggravated burglary, criminal damage and violent disorder. The suspects are being held on remand ahead of a November 2025 trial, and are subject to arbitrary and severe restrictions.Â
“Counter-terrorism powers are particularly concerning when they are used to circumvent normal legal protections, such as justifying holding people in excessively-lengthy pre-charge detention,” said Southerden.
“Authorities across Europe must cease the misuse of terrorism legislation against people protesting war crimes and apartheid in Gaza and instead focus their efforts on protecting the rights of the Palestinian people and ending the atrocities against them.”
Police in the UK have increasingly brought highly controversial charges against journalists and activists under anti-terrorism powers.
