LONDON — A British judge was forced to concede ground on Thursday, ruling that five Palestine Action activists convicted of property damage at a Barclays bank will not be subjected to draconian “terrorism” sentencing. The decision marks a rare setback for the UK’s increasingly authoritarian legal system, which has been aggressively weaponised to shield the Zionist entity and its financiers from accountability.
The five activists, ranging in age from 28 to 70, were convicted in June for causing approximately $300,000 in damage to a Barclays branch in Burnley, Lancashire, in August 2024. Their direct action was a targeted, righteous protest against the British bank’s financial ties to Elbit Systems, the Zionist regime’s largest defence contractor and a primary supplier of the drones, munitions, and ground hardware being used to carry out the ongoing genocide in Gaza.
In a joint statement, the activists expressed relief at the court’s decision, exposing the absurdity of the state’s legal manoeuvres.
“We were on trial for charges of criminal damage, for damaging some windows and spraying red paint on a Barclays branch,” they stated. “At no point during the trial were we, or the jury, informed that, if convicted, we could face being sentenced as terrorists.” They rightfully declared that such a designation “should never have been an option.”
The attempt to classify property damage against an arms-trafficking bank as “terrorism” was spearheaded by trial judge Philip Parry. He had floated the possibility following a controversial June ruling in Bristol, where four other activists were sentenced under terrorism provisions for damaging property at an Elbit Systems site. However, defence lawyers noted that while the terror connection provision is not a new law, it is being applied in a highly unusual and targeted manner almost exclusively against Palestine Action members.
Notably, Palestine Action was not even proscribed as a “terrorist organisation” by the British government at the time the activists took action, nor when the jury delivered its verdict.
The British state’s crackdown on anti-Zionist dissent has reached staggering proportions. Since the UK government officially blacklisted Palestine Action in July 2025, the monitoring group Defend Our Juries reports that more than 3,500 individuals have been arrested simply for expressing support for the group. In a striking display of mass repression, a large portion of those detained are over the age of 60. Many were swept up during repeated demonstrations in London’s Parliament Square, where brave citizens held signs reading, “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action.”
The activists’ targeted bank, Barclays, holds significant stakes in Elbit Systems, a company that supplies roughly 85 percent of the Zionist military’s drones and ground-based hardware. As the death toll in Gaza continues to climb, Elbit has reaped the bloody rewards of the genocide, reporting quarterly revenues climbing to $1.92 billion in late 2025.
While the British judiciary and political elite continue to act as staunch defenders of Zionist war crimes, the relentless resistance of groups like Palestine Action—and the thousands of ordinary citizens taking to the streets in solidarity—proves that the global movement against imperialism and apartheid cannot be easily silenced. The attempt to brand heroes of the resistance as “terrorists” only further exposes the moral bankruptcy of a state that criminalises opposition to genocide while arming the perpetrators.
Reference: The Cradle