If this isn’t extremism, what is? The High Court’s Palestine Action judgment defies common sense
In November 2024, our office was attacked and vandalised overnight by Palestine Action.
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The anti-Israel direct action group were swift to claim responsibility, confirming online that we were indeed their target.
The building hosts several other Jewish-owned and pro-Israel organisations, so the attack where its main entrance was daubed and graffitied in red paint was naturally deeply upsetting and alarming within the community.
Elsewhere, Palestine Action’s longstanding weaponisation of criminal damage and direct action culminating on a raid against RAF Brize Norton in June 2025 proved so egregious that it prompted the Home Secretary to proscribe them as a terrorist group the following month.
Alongside an ongoing legal appeal, Palestine Action’s supporters continued to openly demonstrate their support for the banned group in breach of counter-terror legislation, resulting in 2787 arrests.
This was a major blow to an already overstretched and underresourced criminal justice system, deliberately attriting the police, Crown Prosecution Service, and courts.
While the ban remains in place pending a further appeal, it is unclear whether individuals previously arrested or charged will face criminal consequences for actions which may have been illegal.
Today’s announcement that the High Court deemed Palestine Action’s proscription unlawful is deeply disappointing, and we welcome the Home Secretary’s announcement that she intends to appeal against it in the Supreme Court.
Beyond the courts, this judgment also underscores the urgent need for the government to implement Lord Walney, the former Independent Adviser on Political Violence and Disruption’s recommendation to establish a new legal mechanism to restrict organisations that systematically engage in criminal offences or deliberately cause serious disruption. It is essential that law enforcement continues to investigate and prosecute Palestine Action’s criminal activity to the fullest extent of the law. No organisation should be allowed to engage in vandalism, harassment, or intimidation with impunity.
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Richard Pater is the CEO of BICOM
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