Four Palestine Action activists convicted of criminal damage for a break-in at an Israeli arms manufacturer's UK site could be sentenced as terrorists, despite the jury not being informed of this possibility. The judge, Mr Justice Johnson, ruled before the first trial that there appeared to be a 'terrorist connection' to the offences, but this was not disclosed to jurors. Reporting restrictions were lifted on Tuesday, allowing the ruling to be revealed.
The defendants—Charlotte Head, 29, Samuel Corner, 23, Leona Kamio, 30, and Fatema Rajwani, 21—were convicted after a retrial at Woolwich Crown Court for smashing drones and other equipment at the Elbit Systems UK factory near Bristol in 2024. The protest occurred before Palestine Action was proscribed as a terrorist group.
If the court determines a terrorism connection at sentencing, the four would face stricter parole conditions, serving their whole sentence unless the parole board approves release after two-thirds. Non-terrorist prisoners typically serve 40% of their sentence. Upon release, they could be recorded as terrorists for life, requiring them to register new devices, bank accounts, email addresses, or relationships with police.
Judge Johnson ruled in March 2025 that influencing the Israeli government appeared to be a purpose of the action, rejecting defence arguments that the aim was solely to damage weapons and save lives. He also barred the defendants from presenting evidence of motivation, including their beliefs about Elbit's supply of weapons to Israel for use in Gaza.
A spokesperson for Defend Our Juries said: 'The public will be astonished to learn that in the British justice system a protester can now be convicted of criminal damage for disrupting an arms factory and then be sentenced as 'terrorists' without having been convicted of terror charges and with this having been kept secret from the jury.' They warned the ruling could set a dangerous precedent for future protest cases.
