Counter-terrorism police have arrested four people in connection to the protest by Palestine Action at RAF Brize Norton, in which two activists on scooters spray painted two British military planes with red paint and evaded security and police.
Three have been arrested on suspicion of the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism. Another was arrested of assisting an offender.
The embarrassment caused to the government by the recent Palestine Action incursion at Brize Norton, has led rapidly to the announced proscription of Palestine Action. Keir Starmer explicitly referred to the spray-painting of the planes as “vandalism”, not ‘terrorism’ and many Parliamentarians including former Justice Secretary Lord Falconer, have stated that the protest may be criminal damage, but not terrorism.
Former First Minister of Scotland Humza Yousaf MSP writes in an opinion piece that “proscribing Palestine Action as a terrorist organisation is a shameful and dangerous misuse of anti-terror legislation by the UK Government”. Leading legal and human rights organisations Amnesty UK and Liberty have described the threat to proscribe Palestine Action as “a shocking escalation of the Government’s crackdown on protest” and have urged the Home Secretary to abandon the proposal.
Keir Starmer was directly involved in defending one of the Fairford Five, who attempted to put military aircraft at RAF Fairford out of action, at the start of the Iraq War in 2003. Starmer’s client, who had planned to set fire to the planes, was acquitted after he argued that he was attempting to prevent an illegal war.
From 1981 to 2000, protestors disrupted RAF Greenham Common, frequently breaking into the grounds, by cutting or ripping down fences, and climbing on top of missile silos. In 2016 and 2017, activists from the Ploughshares movement disarmed war planes bound for Indonesia and Saudi Arabia, being acquitted in both cases. When protestors broke into RAF Mildenhall in 2017, and RAF Yeovilton in 2020, they were charged with trespass.
Today’s arrest is the first time that counter-terror powers have been used in relation to a protest at a British military base. The use of counter-terrorism laws mean that anyone arrested will be kept incommunicado, potentially held in solitary confinement, and questioned, for several days, without being charged.
A spokesperson for Palestine Action said:
The fact this arrest has taken place before the proposed proscription has been voted on, further demonstrates that proscription is not about enabling prosecutions under terrorism laws – it’s about cracking down on non-violent protests which disrupt the flow of arms to Israel during its genocide in Palestine. Proscribing Palestine Action is a political gesture to satisfy pro-Israel groups and arms companies who have been lobbying for us to be banned because we’re hitting their profits and having an real impact on Israel’s war machine.
“In response to widespread condemnation of the Government’s proposed proscription of Palestine Action from the leading human rights organisations among others, the Home Secretary claimed it was an accumulation of actions which led to her assessment rather than a knee-jerk reaction by a humiliated Government.
“However, this arrest confirms they are treating red paint on military planes as an act of terrorism, despite the fact that the same action by protesters for decades – including the protester Keir Starmer defended – has never been treated as terrorism. The only difference is that this time it was done for Palestine and this Government is in the pocket of the weapons companies arming Israel’s war crimes.”
At the time of the action, Palestine Action said:
“Despite publicly condemning the Israeli government, Britain continues to send military cargo, fly spy planes over Gaza and refuel US/Israeli fighter jets. Britain isn’t just complicit, it’s an active participant in the Gaza genocide and war crimes across the Middle East.
By decommissioning two military planes, Palestine Action have directly intervened in the genocide and prevented crimes against the Palestinian people.”
Background:
Former Labour Justice Secretary Lord Falconer has stated that the action at RAF Brize Norton would not justify proscription, and a number of MPs have already stated their opposition to the move. https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025/jun/22/palestine-action-raf-base-vandalism-not-enough-legal-justification-ban-lord-falconer
Former First Minister of Scotland Hamza Yousaf MSP has written “proscribing Palestine Action as a terrorist organisation is a shameful and dangerous misuse of anti-terror legislation by the UK Government”.
https://www.lbc.co.uk/opinion/views/palestine-action-not-a-terrorist-organisation/
Award winning author Sally Rooney has written an opinion piece in the Guardian saying “it’s vital we fight this alarming attack on free speech”, adding “I admire and support Palestine Action wholeheartedly – and I will continue to, whether that becomes a terrorist offence or not.” https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/22/israel-palestine-action-uk-government-terrorism-sally-rooney
As legal and human rights experts have made clear, this would be an entirely unprecedented and extremely dangerous kneejerk reaction to rank protest groups who engage in non-violent direct action as “terrorists” and treat them the same as ISIS, National Action, or Boko Haram.
The non-violent action on Friday 20th June saw activists spray paint two RAF aircraft, which was the first time the group had taken any action regarding RAF or on British military land or infrastructure. There is a decades-long history of protest activity, including acts of trespass, criminal damage, sabotage, and more, by activists at British military sites – none of whom have been branded as “terrorists”.
In 2004, Keir Starmer defended a man who broke into an RAF base and attempted to set fire to military aircraft, arguing in Court that the activists’ actions were justified because they were to stop an ‘illegal war.’ Palestine Action now faces proscription for the same protest action which Starmer had defended as legal – this time using only paint, not fire. This would mean those who “join” or express support for Palestine Action could face sentences of up to 14 years in prison. In 2023, then Policing Minister Chris Philp stated that “Palestine Action does not meet the threshold for proscription as they do not commit, participate in, prepare for promote, encourage, or otherwise be
concerned with acts of terrorism.”
Examples of comments from MPs:
Many MPs have expressed their opposition, including Labour MPs. Some key examples:
Former Shadow Home Secretary Diane Abbott MP has tweeted today saying “the government seems confused between protest and terrorism. To clarify, what Israel is doing is terrorism. What Palestine Action is doing is protesting it.”
Labour MP Jon Trickett tweeted saying Liberty is correct and that we must oppose this drive towards authoritarianism.
Labour MP Nadia Whittome has tweeted saying “targeting non-violent protesters in this way is a misuse of terrorism-related powers. It sets a dangerous precedent, which governments in future could further use against their critics.”
Labour MP Richard Burgon has called this a “dangerous step” saying there is a “long tradition in our country of people using non-violent direct action to oppose war – like the women at the Greenham Common base.”
There’s a long tradition in our country of people using non-violent direct action to oppose war – like the women at the Greenham Common base.
But even those opposed to such tactics should see that proscribing Palestine Action – treating them as terrorists – is a dangerous step.
— Richard Burgon MP (@RichardBurgon) June 23, 2025
Zarah Sultana, elected as a Labour MP, tweeted “In 2003, anti-war activists broke into RAF Fairford to stop US bombers heading to Iraq. Keir Starmer defended their actions and said it was justified to prevent war crimes. Now his government is banning Palestine Action for doing the same. The Prime Minister is a hypocrite.”
Former Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell MP has tweeted saying “prosecuting Palestine Action protestors for criminal damage for paint spraying at the airbase would be expected but putting them on a par with mass killers like Jihadis & Boko Haram & proscribing doesn’t seem appropriate & not what the counter terrorism laws were introduced for.”
If you would like any further information on Palestine action, please contact media@palestineaction.org
Palestine Action is a direct-action network of groups and individuals formed with the mandate of taking action against the sites of Elbit Systems and other companies complicit in Israeli apartheid, calling for all such sites to be shut down.
