A UK appeals court ruled this Monday in favor of the Executive led by Prime Minister Keir Starmer, considering the ban on the organization Palestine Action to be a "justified" and "proportionate" measure.
The five judges of the court thus overturned the resolution of a lower court that had declared illegal the proscription order issued by the then Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper, against Palestine Action under the Terrorism Act of 2000.
More than 700 people have been prosecuted under article 13 of said regulation, which sets a maximum penalty of six months in prison. The proceedings remained paralyzed awaiting the pronouncement of the higher instance and, after this ruling, will continue their course. The majority of the accused are so for wearing t-shirts or banners with messages such as "I am against genocide. I support Palestine Action".
The head of the Judiciary in England and Wales, Sue Carr, stressed during the reading of the sentence that it is "a fundamental error" to ignore that Palestine Action "openly promotes illegal violence equivalent to terrorism," according to Sky News.
"It is not, as claimed, a civil disobedience direct action protest group like the suffragettes, operating transparently and openly. It is a covert organization operating with secret cells to avoid detection and prosecution of those who use violence to destroy property and cause injury," she stressed.
Along these lines, she explained that the group's objective was to shut down "businesses" considered legal in the UK, such as "major national infrastructure and defense companies, which provide services and supplies to support Ukraine, NATO, the so-called Five Eyes alliance" --Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States-- and the British defense sector.
Carr thus insisted that Palestine Action "is not a transparent and non-violent direct action protest group," given that it aims to "cause damage to the property" of the Israeli arms company Elbit and "other companies operating legally in the UK."
Among the reasons put forward to support the ban, the magistrate alluded to the "panic" generated among security firm personnel, whose employees stated they "feared for their safety" due to the possibility that activists would launch "fireworks and smoke bombs" against their workplaces.
The defense of the co-founder of Palestine Action, Huda Ammori, argued before the court that "many alternative measures" could have been applied to restrict the movement's activities before directly labeling it as "terrorist".
Ammori has stated on social media that they will appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court and, if necessary, will go to the European Court of Human Rights. "This is not a defeat. Palestine Action was so effective in disrupting the Israeli arms industry that the state threw its full force at us. In doing so, they have exposed how they prioritize the Zionist regime over their own citizens," she stated.
The reading of the resolution took place while dozens of people were demonstrating around the judicial headquarters. The current Home Secretary, Shabana Mahmood, celebrated in a statement that the court had concluded that Palestine Action "has perpetrated acts of terrorism, has glorified those who participated in such acts, and has promoted the use of violence."
"This decision does not affect legitimate protest in support of the Palestinian cause, which remains a fundamental democratic right. There is a difference between supporting Palestine and supporting an illegally banned terrorist group," she remarked.
In this way, she insisted that "it is not an ordinary protest or civil disobedience group and its actions are not compatible with democratic values or the rule of law." "We will always take the strongest possible measures to protect our national security and ensure public safety," she added.
The London Metropolitan Police has reported that at least 117 people have been arrested during the day for showing their support for a proscribed organization during the court hearing. In the context of these arrests, moments of tension have been recorded, with officers forcibly removing some protesters.
On the contrary, the Jewish group Community Security Trust has applauded the verdict. "The right thing to do is for the law to draw a clear line against those who threaten national security and community cohesion. We will continue to work with our partners to ensure the protection of Jewish communities and society in general," the entity stated.
Background of the banning of Palestine Action
Palestine Action was included in the list of prohibited organizations in July 2025 after several of its members stormed an Air Force base in Oxfordshire, England, and caused damage to two military aircraft in response to Starmer's support for the Israeli Government in the context of the "genocide" they denounce in the Gaza Strip.
Previously, four Palestine Action activists had been convicted of vandalism against property of the Israeli company Elbit and for confronting security guards and officers after assaulting an arms production plant in the city of Bristol in August 2024.
Amnesty warns of the risk of equating protest and terrorism
The organization Amnesty International has criticized that this case is "being used as an example" and that an attempt is being made to "set a precedent on how protesters who participate in direct action may be treated in the future."
"Damage to property has never before been treated as terrorism within the UK judicial system, and it is dangerous to equate the two. We should all be concerned about what this means for other people who take direct action to protest against a genocide or any other issue," it warned, emphasizing that the right to protest is "one of the most effective tools" for holding leaders accountable.
Amnesty denounces the "continued repression" of the right to protest in the UK and maintains that the sentence imposed is "completely disproportionate." "The use of anti-terrorism laws against those who participate in direct protest actions must end," it demanded.
Hamas denounces an attempt to silence criticism
The Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) has rejected the decision in a statement disseminated by the newspaper 'Filastin', in which it maintains that it responds to "political motivations" and "pressure from Zionist groups."
"Its objective is to pursue and intimidate any action that supports Palestinian rights and condemns the genocide perpetrated by the Zionist occupation army against our Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip," he denounced, before reiterating that the outlawing of Palestine Action has "political interests."
Along the same lines, Hamas has described the ruling as "a desperate attempt to silence voices defending Palestinian rights and rejecting the complicity of their governments with" Israel in its offensive on the Gaza Strip, which has already left more than 73,000 dead since October 2023.
"This is part of the official European trend of some countries persecuting those who support Palestinian rights," he added, calling on citizens in general and, in particular, Europeans "not to give in to attempts to silence their free voices and to continue to show solidarity" with the Palestinians and "the justice of their national cause."