UK to Ban Jet-Sabotaging ‘Palestine Action’ Group as a Proscribed Terrorist Organisation

Britain’s top militant anti-Israel activist collective, Palestine Action, is set to be banned as a proscribed terrorist group after breaking into an airbase and vandalising Royal Air Force jets last week.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper announced Monday plans to introduce legislation next week to proscribe Palestine Action in the wake of a sensational stunt in which two members of the radical group infiltrated the RAF Brize Norton station in Oxfordshire and sprayed two Voyager aircraft with red paint, all without being detected.

It is believed that the paint sprayed into one of the engines could cost up to £25 million to replace if the damage is severe enough to prevent it from being used again. Palestine Action was founded by an Extinction Rebellion activist and described by their own media as “a new grassroots network of anti-racist groups” and “a direct-action network of groups and individuals formed with the mandate of taking direct action against Elbit Systems’ UK locations at grassroots level”.

Demonstrators shout and gesture toward a police line during a protest by Palestine Action group in London, Monday, June 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein)

LONDON, ENGLAND – JUNE 23 (Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images)

Secretary Cooper described the incident as a “disgraceful attack” and vowed that the government will “not tolerate those that put that security at risk”. The impending legislation would add Palestine Action to a list of banned terror groups in Britain, which includes the likes of Hamas, ISIS, and Al-Qaeda, the Times of London reports.

The move would make it illegal for anyone to be a member or supporter of the group, with those violating the proscription facing up to 14 years in prison.

The move may also have consequences further afield, with Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds saying that the government has not ruled out that Palestine Action has been financially supported by foreign groups.

Under the Terrorism Act 2000, the Home Secretary can proscribe groups if there is reason to believe that the group is “concerned in terrorism”. However, the final decision to ban the group will need the approval of both the House of Commons and the House of Lords.

Cooper’s announcement comes after London’s Metropolitan Police shut down a planned protest by the group outside Parliament on Monday.

Met Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said per The Times of the decision to ban the planned protest outside Parliament: “The right to protest is essential and we will always defend it, but actions in support of such a group go beyond what most would see as legitimate protest,” adding that Palestine Action is an “organised extremist criminal group”.

However, organisers quickly relocated the protest down the road to Trafalgar Square. Supporters of the group were seen clashing with police after officers dragged away several demonstrators. They were also joined by members of the far-left eco-warrior Just Stop Oil group, which warned that the government may also ban other radical leftist protest groups.

In addition to the recent sabotage at the RAF station, Palestine Action has waged a years-long campaign targeting sites supposedly linked to Israel’s defence industry or against those who support the Jewish state, such as the vandalism of President Donald Trump’s Turnberry golf course in Scotland in March.

Defence contractors impacted by the anti-Israel group have claimed to have suffered at least £30 million in damages in a total of 356 attacks across the UK over the past five years, which have ramped up in the wake of the October 7th terror attacks on Israel.

Home Secretary Cooper said that the group had a “long history of unacceptable criminal damage”.

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