Pro-Palestinian Activists Charged with Damaging Planes at UK Air Base are Held in Custody
The charges come after the group Palestine Action said two of its members entered RAF Brize Norton on June 20 and used electric scooters to approach two Voyager jets used for air-to-air refueling. The protesters used repurposed fire extinguishers to spray paint into the planes' jet engines and caused further damage with crowbars, according to the group, which released video footage of the incident, The AP news reported.
The four, all between the ages of 22 and 35, are charged with conspiracy to commit criminal damage and conspiracy to enter a prohibited place for purposes prejudicial to the interests of the UK, counterterror police said in a statement. The Crown Prosecution Service will argue that the offenses have a 'terrorist connection,' police said.
The group did not enter pleas in Westminster Magistrates' Court. They were scheduled to appear July 18 at the Central Criminal Court.
Palestine Action has claimed responsibility for a series of incidents targeting Israeli defense contractors in the UK and other sites linked to the war in Gaza.
Following the incident at RAF Brize Norton, the government introduced legislation to ban Palestine Action as a terrorist organization. The measure, being debated in Parliament, would make it a criminal offense to belong to or support the group, with a maximum of 14 years in prison.
Palestine Action said its protests are designed to end international support for Israel's war in Gaza.
Planes from Brize Norton, 70 miles (112 kilometers) northwest of London, regularly fly to RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, Britain's main air base for operations in the Middle East.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab News
37 minutes ago
- Arab News
Member of rap trio Kneecap out on bail on terror charge, calls lawsuit ‘distraction'
LONDON: Hundreds of fans turned out to support a member of Irish rap group Kneecap on Wednesday at a London court as he sought to throw out a terrorism charge for allegedly displaying a flag in support of Iran-backed Lebanese militia Hezbollah. For the latest updates, follow us on Instagram @ Liam Og O hAnnaidh, who was initially charged under the Anglicised name Liam O'Hanna and whose stage name is Mo Chara, is alleged to have waved the yellow flag of Hezbollah during a Kneecap gig in London on Nov. 21, 2024. A post shared by KNEECAP (@kneecap32) O hAnnaidh is accused of holding up the flag on stage while saying 'Up Hamas, up Hezbollah.' Kneecap have said the flag was thrown on stage during their performance. The 27-year-old was charged in May under the Terrorism Act, which makes it a criminal offence to display an article in a way which arouses reasonable suspicion that someone is a supporter of a proscribed organisation. O hAnnaidh appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Wednesday wearing the keffiyeh scarf associated with the Palestinian cause and had to fight his way through a scrum of photographers to get inside the building. He sat alongside an Irish language interpreter during the hearing and his bandmates Naoise O Caireallain, stage name Moglai Bap, and J.J. O Dochartaigh, who goes by DJ Provao, were also in court, with supporters filling the public gallery. RULING NEXT MONTH Irish music was played outside the court throughout the hearing, with many supporters waving Irish and Palestinian flags while others held placards reading 'Free Mo Chara.' O hAnnaidh's lawyers say the charge was brought too late and the prosecution case should be thrown out, as O hAnnaidh was formally charged on May 22 this year, one day after the six-month limit for such charges. Prosecutor Michael Bisgrove, however, argued that O hAnnaidh was charged on May 21, within the time limit. Judge Paul Goldspring said he would give a decision on Sept. 26. O hAnnaidh left the court to cheers from supporters, telling the crowd the charge against him was 'a distraction from the real story' of Israel's actions in the Palestinian territories. Belfast-based Kneecap, who rap in Irish and English and regularly display pro-Palestinian messages during their gigs, previously said the charge was an attempt to silence them. The group — who rap about Irish identity and support the republican cause of uniting Northern Ireland with the Republic of Ireland — have been increasingly vocal about the war in Gaza since O hAnnaidh was charged.
Arab News
2 hours ago
- Arab News
UK set for more legal challenges over migrant hotels
EPPING: Britain's government was considering Wednesday whether to appeal a court ruling blocking the housing of asylum seekers in a flashpoint hotel, as it scrambled to come up with contingency plans for the migrants. Prime Minister Keir Starmer's Labour administration braced itself for further legal challenges from local authorities following Tuesday's judge-issued junction that has dealt it a major political and logistical headache. Anti-immigrant firebrand Nigel Farage indicated that councils run by his hard-right Reform UK party, leading in national polls, would pursue similar claims as he called for protests outside migrant hotels. Security minister Dan Jarvis said the government was weighing challenging high court judge Stephen Eyre's granting of a temporary injunction to stop migrants from staying at the Bell Hotel in Epping, northeast of London. The local authority sought the ruling following several weeks of protests outside the hotel, some of which have turned violent. The demonstrations erupted after a resident was charged with sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl. 'We're looking very closely at it,' Jarvis told Sky News of a possible appeal. The interior ministry had tried to have the case dismissed, warning it would 'substantially impact' its ability to provide accommodation for tens of thousands of asylum seekers across Britain. 'We're looking at a range of different contingency options,' Jarvis told Times Radio, adding: 'We'll look closely at what we're able to do.' Several Reform-led councils, including in Staffordshire and Northamptonshire in the Midlands area of England, announced on Wednesday that they were exploring their options following the court ruling. Protests, some of them violent, broke out in Epping in mid-July after Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu, 41, was charged. He denies the allegation and is due to stand trial later this year. Hundreds of people have since taken part in demonstrations and counter-demonstrations outside the Bell Hotel. Further anti-immigration demonstrations also spread to London and around England. Several men appeared in court on Monday charged with violent disorder over the Bell Hotel protests. Epping Forest District Council argued the hotel had become a risk to public safety and that it had breached planning laws as it was no longer operating as a hotel in the traditional sense. The judge gave authorities until September 12 to remove the migrants. Writing in the right-wing Daily Telegraph newspaper, Farage said the 'good people of Epping must inspire similar protests around Britain.' He said peaceful demonstrations can 'put pressure on local councils to go to court to try and get the illegal immigrants out.' In Epping, an attractive market town connected to London by the underground, residents appeared to broadly welcome the imminent removal of the asylum seekers. 'It has made people feel unsettled, especially with schools being down there,' 52-year-old Mark Humphries, who works in retail, told AFP on the high street. Carol Jones, 64, said she was relieved at the decision but wondered whether it would ever be implemented. 'They shouldn't have been there in the first place, but where are they going to go?' the retiree told AFP. Labour has pledged to end the use of hotels for asylum seekers before the next election, likely in 2029, in a bid to save billions of pounds. The latest government data showed there were 32,345 asylum seekers being housed temporarily in UK hotels at the end of March, down 15 percent from the end of December. Numbers hit a peak at the end of September 2023 when there were 56,042 asylum seekers in hotels, and the center-right Conservatives were in power. Starmer is facing huge political pressure domestically for failing to stop irregular migrants crossing the Channel to England on small boats. More than 50,000 people have made the dangerous crossing from northern France since Starmer became UK leader last July. Under a 1999 law, the interior ministry 'is required to provide accommodation and subsistence support to all destitute asylum seekers whilst their asylum claims are being decided.' Enver Solomon, chief executive of Refugee Council, urged the government to 'partner with local councils to provide safe, cost-effective accommodation within communities' rather than use hotels. 'Ultimately, the only way to end hotel use for good is to resolve asylum applications quickly and accurately so people can either rebuild their lives here or return home with dignity,' he said Tuesday.
Asharq Al-Awsat
2 hours ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
NATO Defense Chiefs Hold Virtual Meeting on Ukraine Security Guarantees
NATO defense chiefs were due to hold a virtual meeting Wednesday, a senior alliance official said, as countries pushing for an end to Russia's war on Ukraine devise possible future security guarantees for Kyiv that could help forge a peace agreement. Italian Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, chair of NATO's Military Committee, said that 32 defense chiefs from across the alliance would hold a video conference as a US-led diplomatic push seeks to end the fighting, The AP news reported. US Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, NATO's supreme allied commander Europe, will take part in the talks, Dragone said on social platform X. US President Donald Trump met last Friday with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska and on Monday hosted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and prominent European leaders at the White House. Neither meeting delivered concrete progress. Trump is trying to steer Putin and Zelenskyy toward a settlement more than three years after Russia invaded its neighbor, but there are major obstacles. They include Ukraine's demands for Western-backed military assurances to ensure Russia won't mount another invasion in coming years. 'We need strong security guarantees to ensure a truly secure and lasting peace,' Zelenskyy said in a Telegram post Wednesday after Russian missile and drone strikes hit six regions of Ukraine overnight. Kyiv's European allies are looking to set up a force that could backstop any peace agreement, and a coalition of 30 countries, including European nations, Japan and Australia, have signed up to support the initiative. Military chiefs are figuring out how that security force might work. The role that the US might play in is unclear. Trump on Tuesday ruled out sending US troops to help defend Ukraine against Russia. Russia has repeatedly said that it would not accept NATO troops in Ukraine. Attacks on civilian areas in Sumy and Odesa overnight into Wednesday injured 15 people, including a family with three small children, Ukrainian authorities said. Zelenskyy said the strikes 'only confirm the need for pressure on Moscow, the need to introduce new sanctions and tariffs until diplomacy works to its full potential.'
