US government announces sanctions against Palestine Action

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The Department of the Treasury said it had “taken action” against the UK-based group, which it accused of supporting “numerous acts of terrorism since July 2020”.

All of the group’s property in the United States or in the possession or control of American citizens has been blocked, it said.

Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent said: “Far-left extremists, their fronts, and their enablers should be on notice: We will bring the full weight of our economic tools to bear.

“Political terrorism has no place in our society, and we will continue to cut the financial lifelines of these groups until they are eliminated.”

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In June, Court of Appeal judges ruled the UK Government’s ban on the organisation as a terror group was a “justified and proportionate” interference on freedom of expression rights.

But Palestine Action’s co-founder can still take her case to the Supreme Court.

Announcing the sanctions, the Trump administration said Palestine Action has “promoted its violent, criminal, and terrorist acts on social media, encouraging the use of similar tactics internationally, including within the United States and along the US-Mexican border”.

The group has been sanctioned for having “materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods and services to or in support of, an act of terrorism,” the US Treasury said.

It means US nationals will be prohibited from doing any business with the group or contributing any money.

Sanctions were also announced against two other groups, Italy-based Autistici Inventati and transnational group Masar Badil.

A Treasury statement said it was "targeting Autistici/Inventati, Palestine Action, and Masar Badil, including two of its senior leaders, as part of a U.S. government-wide effort to protect Americans from the risks posed by far-left terrorism".

Responding to the move on X, co-founder Huda Ammori said: “Trump has just designated Palestine Action a terrorist group.“

As a Palestinian and Iraqi, the fact the country which destroyed both my homelands is calling me a terrorist is beyond hypocritical.

“Trump is the antithesis to everything Palestine Action stands for.”

Palestine Action’s UK ban, which began on July 5 last year, made membership of, or support for, the direct action group a criminal offence punishable by up to 14 years in prison, and has remained in force as the Home Office attempted to challenge the ruling.

Police have made mass arrests at multiple demos since, where protesters have typically held up placards, worn T-shirts, and donned badges declaring “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action”, leading to their arrests under anti-terrorism legislation.

More than 700 people have already been charged with supporting a proscribed organisation.

Earlier this year, four Palestine Action activists who mounted a “terrorist” raid on Israel-based defence firm Elbit Systems’ UK factory were jailed.

Charlotte Head, 30, Samuel Corner, 23, Leona Kamio, 30, and Fatema Rajwani, 21, used sledgehammers and crowbars to destroy computers, drones and other equipment before police and security intervened.

Corner, a former student at Oxford, struck police officer Kate Evans twice on the back with a seven-pound sledgehammer, leaving her with a fractured spine.

Mr Justice Johnson gave the four prison sentences of between seven years and eight months and four years and eight months, with each defendant also spending an extra year on licence.

During the hearing, the judge ruled the raid amounted to an “act of terrorism”, having been carried out to try to influence the UK Government and intimidate a section of the public.