[News] From actions to victory: 2022 saw Palestine Action's rise and Elbit's demise

[Anti-Imperialist News]

palestineaction.org <https://www.palestineaction.org/2022-actions-victory/>
>From actions to victory: 2022 saw Palestine Action's rise and Elbit's
demiseDecember
29, 2022
------------------------------
[image: image.png]

2022 started off with a bang, as January saw the publication of news of Elbit’s
permanent closure <https://www.palestineaction.org/victory-in-oldham/> of
their Oldham factory. The victory came after an 18 month direct action
battle waged against Elbit’s Ferranti factory in Oldham, which saw 36
arrests and millions of pounds of cumulative damage caused. Despite
round-the-clock police patrols and massively heightened security, the
efforts of Israel’s largest arms firm to protect their beloved weapons
factory failed. The win embodied the power of direct action and community
mobilisation – a major validation of Palestine Action’s strategy.

Next up, we took aim at their remaining sites. With momentum ripe following
our first long-term victory, people across the country geared up to tear
down Elbit factories and premises. Just moments after the Oldham site was
closed, UAV Engines, Elbit’s Shenstone factory, was hit once again. The
front of the site was spray-painted
<https://www.palestineaction.org/shenstone-next/>, before six activists
<https://www.palestineaction.org/raid-shenstone/> scaled the roof of the
factory and dismantled the site like no one had ever done before. Breaking
holes in the roof, with the view of drone engines below, it was clear that
no weapons were safe. Drone engines were smashed, bricks were ripped out
from the walls, and the factory was left crumbling.

Throughout the country, our modus operandi of sustained actions against
Israel’s war machine continued. As we gained strength in numbers, Elbit
panicked ever more, and responded how they usually do: increasing ties with
the police and hiring ruthless law breaking security guards. Between
increased funds on security, and a rising cost in damages, Elbit’s profit
margin became increasingly thin. Essentially, their business of bloodshed
was becoming less profitable by the day.

Efforts then turned to the Israeli arms firm’s London headquarters. We knew
it was beyond time to permanently shut down the offices at 77 Kingsway,
which had been the targets of Palestine Action’s very first hit back in
2020. For six weeks, activists repeatedly locked on to block their front
doors and cover the site in our notorious blood-red paint. These successive
waves of action had made it impossible for the company to continue
operations at the site, and increased the tension between Elbit and its
neighbouring companies. Some of them even appreciated our efforts,
including workers at the next door Cafe Nero who gave out free coffees to
those locked on.

Those activists drove the nail in the coffin for Elbit’s London HQ, and by
the end of June, journalists confirmed the news
<https://www.palestineaction.org/london-hq-shut/> and reported that Elbit
had indeed abandoned their London headquarters, retreating activities to
their Bristol offices.

Elbit were made to realise they weren’t safe hiding behind their state of
the art Bristol site either. On May 15th 2022, coinciding with the 74th
anniversary of the Nakba, actionists smashed
<https://www.palestineaction.org/bristol-nakba/>their way into the “highly
secure” site, barricaded themselves inside, and smashed the site from the
outside in.

The summer of 2022 saw the launch of Palestine Action Scotland
<https://www.palestineaction.org/palestine-action-scotland/>, with their
aim set on Thales weapons manufacturer, a key partner in crime of Elbit
Systems. Appropriately, the launch was done in the only suitable way for
Palestine Action, with an action which saw hundreds of arms workers forced
to down tools and evacuate the site. The first activists scaled the roof of
the site, broke inside to ensure evacuation was complete and allegedly
damaged an “indestructible” nuclear submarine periscope. Not long
after, a second
team <https://www.palestineaction.org/glasgow-thales/> followed suit by
evading increased security, climbing onto the roof and shattering the site
for a second time.

Throughout the year, a diversity of actions continue to happen on virtually
a weekly basis, hitting Elbit’s weapons sites by storm. Activists also took
on those responsible for British complicity in Israeli apartheid where they
least expected it. In November, activists defaced the Balfour statue
<https://www.palestineaction.org/balfour-statue/> in the private members
lobby of the House of Commons, before gluing themselves to the podium to
expose the hundred-year complicity of the British state in the ethnic
cleansing of Palestinians. This month, five activists stormed the ‘techUK
Defence Winter Dinner’, calling out Elbit and all other arms-trade
representatives there for the slaughter of Palestinians and Kashmiris
enabled by their weapons.

At the end of the year it was confirmed that the Ministry of Defence had
U-turned on their partnership with Elbit. After initially trying to protect
them at all costs, Elbit’s security breaches caused by Palestine Action
became too overwhelming for the British state’s defence procurement
interests. The MOD kicked Elbit
<https://www.palestineaction.org/contract-loss/> out of the largest
contract they’ve acquired in recent years, worth £160million, and they’re
in the process of booting them out of their second largest contract worth
£120million. Their third-largest contract is “under review”. The MoD stated
that Elbit now fall short of ‘operational sovereignty standards’, no longer
trusted by government military procurement chiefs. They have failed to
secure themselves from the Israeli war machine’s worst nightmare: dedicated
activists committed to Palestinian solidarity.

*Palestine Action never backs down to a crackdown*

In the face of this solidarity, the state has waged a predictable effort to
crack down on Palestine Action. With the inspiration from the resistance in
Palestine, we always refuse to backdown to a crackdown, as every obstacle
we overcome brings us closer to our end goal: the end of Israel’s arms
trade in Britain.

The summer saw activists set up camp outside Elbit’s Shenstone factory,
keeping constant watch of the war criminals and facilitating a non-stop
presence of resistance against them. Elbit and the police did not like that
one bit; Elbit’s security unleashed constant violence upon the activists
whilst the police watched and continue to patrol and protect the arms site.

On the day Lowkey was due to perform outside the factory, the Metropolitan
police mobilised to Staffordshire and unlawfully raided the camp
<https://www.palestineaction.org/raid-on-camp/>, arresting everyone present
at the site. In total, 14 were unjustly arrested, with planted evidence
used as a justification to arrest for ‘conspiracy to commit criminal
damage’.

Throughout this year, the police tactics of raid, harassment and
intimidation <https://www.palestineaction.org/police-intimidation/> have
continued, with numerous activists’ homes raided and possessions seized by
police — amongst the items seized include Palestine flags, arabic
literature, stickers and cash.

This year saw 13 activists remanded to prison, 9 were held after the
notorious break in to Israel’s weapons epicentre in Bristol in May. Since
then, all have been released on bail. Currently, there are four activists
being held in prison, in Wales and Cheshire, for allegedly causing
£1,000,000 in damages to the Welsh factory of Teledyne Technologies,
manufacturers of radar, surveillance and combat drone technologies for
Israel. The four will be held on remand until their trial, with an
opportunity to apply for bail again at their plea hearing on January 6th
2023 at Mold Crown Court. Mobilise in your masses on that date from 9.30AM
outside the court (County Civic Centre, Mold, CH7 1AE). Messages of support
can be sent to them via palactprisoners at protonmail.com

*Elbit is guilty*

In our first Crown Court case, five activists were found not guilty by
unanimous trial verdict, reached after an hour’s deliberation at Southwark
Crown Court. The activists were facing charges of ‘conspiracy to commit
criminal damage’, having used fire extinguishers and buckets to drown the
facade of Elbit’s Kingsway offices in blood-red paint. Once the jury
delivered the not guilty verdict, some blew kisses and thanked the
activists for what they did.

In trials across the country, activists have been acquitted, had their
cases thrown out by judges, or have seen their charges dropped. In the
courts this year, 18 activists have walked free, while 5 have seen minor
convictions in the magistrates courts, those being for ‘criminal damage’ or
‘obstruction of the highways’. Dozens of other activists have had their
cases dropped and trials postponed, until 2023 or 2024. Palestine Action
are set for a number of major jury trials in 2023, where once again
activists will deliver the message: Elbit is guilty, Palestine Action
is not

Mobilisations are called for outside every trial, the full list can be seen
on our website at https://www.palestineaction.org/elbit-on-trial/

Despite harassment by the state, resistance has never been higher against
complicity in Israel’s crimes. On top of this, we are gearing up for
another year of action, promising to continue the escalation as we move
against Elbit’s remaining sites. Now, we’ve begun the end of Elbit — 2023
is the year to finish them off for good.

Donate to fund the end of Elbit <https://palestineaction.org/donate>
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