Palestine Action's co-founder asks UK court to overturn terror group ban
A person holds a Palestinian flag outside the High Court on the day of a hearing about the banned pro-Palestinian campaign organisation Palestine Action, in London, Britain, July 21, 2025. REUTERS/Isabel Infantes
LONDON - The co-founder of a pro-Palestinian campaign group sought on Monday to challenge the British government's decision to ban the group under anti-terrorism laws, a move her lawyers said had "the hallmarks of an authoritarian and blatant abuse of power".
Huda Ammori, who helped found Palestine Action in 2020, is asking London's High Court to give the go-ahead for a full challenge to the group's proscription, which was made on the grounds it committed or participated in acts of terrorism.
Earlier this month, the High Court refused Ammori's application to pause the ban and, following an unsuccessful last-ditch appeal, Palestine Action's proscription came into effect just after midnight on July 5.
Proscription makes it a crime to be a member of the group, carrying a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison.
Ammori's lawyer Raza Husain said Palestine Action is the first direct action group to be banned as a terror group, a move he argued was inconsistent with "the honourable history of civil disobedience on conscientious grounds in our country".
Dozens have been arrested for holding placards purportedly supporting the group since the ban and Ammori's lawyers say protesters expressing support for the Palestinian cause have also been subject to increased scrutiny from police officers.
Britain's interior minister Yvette Cooper, however, has said violence and criminal damage have no place in legitimate protest and that Palestine Action's activities – including breaking into a military base and damaging two planes – justify proscription.
Top stories
Swipe. Select. Stay informed.
Asia At least 19 killed as Bangladesh air force plane crashes into college campus
Singapore Subsidies and grants for some 20,000 people miscalculated due to processing issue: MOH
Singapore 2 workers stranded on gondola dangling outside Raffles City Tower rescued by SCDF
Business Why Singapore and its businesses stand to lose with US tariffs on the region
Singapore NTU introduces compulsory cadaver dissection classes for medical students from 2026
Business $1.1 billion allocated to three fund managers to boost Singapore stock market: MAS
Singapore AI-powered app accurately identifies pre-dementia seniors, to be available in 2026
Singapore Jail for man who conspired with another to bribe MOH agency employee with $18k Paris trip
Palestine Action has increasingly targeted Israel-linked companies in Britain, often spraying red paint, blocking entrances or damaging equipment.
The group accuses the British government of complicity in what it says are Israeli war crimes in its ongoing bombardment of Gaza.
Israel has repeatedly denied committing abuses in its war in Gaza, which began after Palestinian militant group Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023. REUTERS
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
22 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Brunei Sultan and consort to attend NDP 2025 in Singapore
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox The visit by Brunei's Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah and his consort reflects the close, warm, and long-standing friendship between the Sultanate and Singapore. BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN - Brunei's Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah and his consort , Raja Isteri Pengiran Anak Hajah Saleha, are to attend the 60th National Day Parade of Singapore on Aug 9, at the invitation of Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. Their visit to attend the National Day Parade of Singapore reflects the close, warm, and long-standing friendship between the Sultanate and Singapore. Both countries enjoy excellent bilateral cooperation, especially in the areas of trade and investment, currency interchangeability, defence, as well as people-to-people relations, and also work closely together at the regional and international level, including in Asean, the United Nations, and the Commonwealth. They last attended the National Day Parade in 2019 in commemoration of the Singapore Bicentennial. BORNEO BULLETIN/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Cambodia and Thailand to hammer out permanent ceasefire in Malaysia meeting
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox (From left) Cambodian Defence Minister Tea Seiha, Malaysian Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail and Thai acting defence minister Nattaphon Narkphanit in Kuala Lumpur on Aug 7. KUALA LUMPUR - Cambodia and Thailand's top defence officials began a meeting in Malaysia on Aug 7 to finalise a permanent end to hostilities following a violent five-day border conflict that ended in an unconditional ceasefire late in July. The South-east Asian neighbours saw the worst fighting in over a decade in July, including exchanges of artillery fire and jet fighter bombing runs that claimed at least 43 lives and left over 300,000 people displaced on both sides of the border. Fighting continued despite diplomatic interventions from China and Malaysia, chair of the regional bloc Asean, calling for restraint. The leaders of Cambodia and Thailand only came to the negotiation table when US President Donald Trump told them that tariff negotiations would not continue unless there was peace, Reuters exclusively reported. Cambodian Defence Minister Tea Seiha and Thailand's acting defence minister Nattaphon Narkphanit are due to meet at Malaysia's Armed Forces headquarters in Kuala Lumpur. The two countries will establish guidelines to resolve border disputes, restore trust between their military forces and agree to a ceasefire with measures to minimise tensions and protect civilians, Mr Nattaphon said in a statement before the talks. The conditions were formulated during three days of talks between senior officials in Kuala Lumpur and are to be finalised on the fourth day in the presence of observers from China and the United States. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Some ageing condos in Singapore struggle with failing infrastructure, inadequate sinking funds Singapore Wastewater overflow in Bedok and Chai Chee due to choked sewer at BTO worksite: PUB Singapore Water gel guns among newer tools NParks uses to manage monkeys in estates Singapore Teen's love of dance powers her through cancer to perform at NDP2025 Life Feeling extra patriotic? Here are 7 other SG60 songs beyond official NDP theme Here We Are Singapore Man handed three vaping-related charges including importing 3,080 pods Business DBS shares hit record-high after Q2 profit beats forecast on strong wealth fees, trading income World Trump's 100% semiconductor tariffs may hit chipmakers in Singapore, other SEA nations Thailand and Cambodia have quarrelled for decades over undemarcated parts of their 817km land border, which was first mapped by France in 1907 when the latter was its colony. REUTERS
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Kpods, zombie oil or etomidate? A new name may help Hong Kong curb its youth drug crisis
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox A banner warning against the dangers of etomidate, a new recreational drug, near a drug rehabilitation and counselling centre in Sham Shui Po. HONG KONG – A name can shape perceptions and Hong Kong is finding that a drug with an innocuous name is causing ripples of harm across society. It is for this reason that the government officially changed the name of the city's latest-trending recreational drug for the second time in 2025. In Singapore, these drugs are known as Kpods – fruity flavoured vape capsules laced with addictive sedatives like etomidate, a controlled anaesthetic. In Hong Kong, it was first marketed by drug peddlers as 'space oil', a substance that emerged in the city some time in late 2023, promising its users a euphoric high that would 'take them to space'. The government banned it and started referring to it as 'space oil drug' in February, after the authorities recognised the severity of the problem when several addicts died from abusing the drug and children as young as nine years old were found taking the substance. On July 31, the government renamed it yet again – to plain old 'etomidate' – evidently deciding to call a spade a spade this time. 'Previously when we called it 'space oil drug', some drug traffickers made use of the name to promote a sort of fantasy and some of the positive feelings after taking the drug,' Secretary for Security Chris Tang told the media as he announced the name change. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Some ageing condos in Singapore struggle with failing infrastructure, inadequate sinking funds Singapore Wastewater overflow in Bedok and Chai Chee due to choked sewer at BTO worksite: PUB Singapore Water gel guns among newer tools NParks uses to manage monkeys in estates Singapore Teen's love of dance powers her through cancer to perform at NDP2025 Life Feeling extra patriotic? Here are 7 other SG60 songs beyond official NDP theme Here We Are Singapore Man handed three vaping-related charges including importing 3,080 pods Business DBS shares hit record-high after Q2 profit beats forecast on strong wealth fees, trading income World Trump's 100% semiconductor tariffs may hit chipmakers in Singapore, other SEA nations 'We have to properly name it as 'etomidate' so as to eradicate the positive sides of the old name of the drug. This drug will cause only harm.' The security chief's words marked Hong Kong's hardening of its narrative against the banned substance, as the government doubles down on efforts to convey the dangers of the drug to the public – in particular, the youth. Mr Tang implored the media to use the new name in reports on the drug. The name change was aimed at 'directly addressing etomidate's nature as a drug, just like marijuana and cocaine', he said. It was also to prevent the name 'space oil' from being used to 'deliberately glorify drugs containing etomidate, deceiving young people into taking them and causing them to ignore the serious harm they cause to their bodies', he added. The move to reframe characteristics associated with the drug came weeks after Mr Tang initially suggested renaming it 'zombie oil' to better reflect its effect on users. But that was vetoed after lawmakers raised concerns that the city's impressionable youth might find the term appealing as well and continue to be lured to abuse it. Hong Kong's abusers of the drug have been overwhelmingly young, with more than two-thirds of them aged under 21. Among young drug abusers, it is now the third most popular narcotic after cannabis and cocaine. The number of etomidate abusers recorded in the first half of 2025, at 327, has already exceeded the total of 300 for the whole of 2024. The actual number is likely much higher. Side effects of abusing the substance include a loss of control over one's body that results in a zombie-like gait, tremors, convulsions, memory loss, blackouts and even death. The security chief attempted to tap young people's social fears and body image concerns by stressing that additional side effects include drooling, hair loss, facial hair growth in young women, or skin and genital ulcers and deformities. Etomidate abusers, when high, often also engage in undignified and indecent self-harming behaviour in public that can be easily recorded and posted online, he warned. 'Taking etomidate is definitely not cool; knowing how to resist drugs is the way to be cool,' Mr Tang said. Those found consuming or in possession of etomidate face up to seven years' jail and a HK$1 million (S$164,000) fine. Traffickers and manufacturers face life in jail and a HK$5 million fine. The government has even roped in Cantopop star Aaron Kwok as its honorary narcotics commissioner to urge young people in Hong Kong to reject drugs. Kwok appeared at a publicity campaign on Aug 3, introducing new dance moves and chanting anti-drug slogans with dozens of youth ambassadors, who will help spread awareness of the dangers of etomidate at their schools. Lawmaker Dennis Lam welcomed the scrapping of the term 'space oil', which he described as 'inappropriately romantic'. Dropping the suggestion to rename it 'zombie oil' was also a wise choice, Dr Lam told local media, adding that the term might have sparked further curiosity among rebellious teens to try the substance. 'Simply calling the drug by its main chemical component will help clear misconceptions of the substance, increase awareness of its dangers, and avoid further romanticising it,' the ophthalmologist said. Quoting a common Cantonese proverbial phrase, he said: 'I'm more afraid of being given a poor name than being born into misfortune. A name can hold great power and influence.'
