Dozens appear in UK court for Palestine Action support

About 30 people appeared in a London court Wednesday charged under anti-terrorism laws with supporting Palestine Action, the latest such cases after the UK government banned the group in July.

More than 2,000 people accused of showing support for the pro-Palestinian organisation have been arrested at demonstrations since the ban, according to protest organisers.

The corridors of Westminster Magistrates' Court were crowded Wednesday morning as some of the first defendants to be charged showed up for hearings, accompanied by supporters.

The latest prosecutions, which follow a first trio of defendants appearing in court last month, involve around 30 people and include a 59-year-old retired engineer and a 30-year-old baker.

They were among those arrested at the first July protests staged after the ban came into effect, and are all accused of holding signs or wearing T-shirts bearing the slogan "I support Palestine Action".

Their trials are expected to take place after March 2026, the judge revealed Wednesday.

Under UK anti-terror laws which prohibit support for banned groups which have been labelled terrorist, they could face a sentence of up to six months in prison.

"Protesting against the abetting of genocide is not terrorism, it's humanity," Anthony Harvey, the retired engineer, told the judge shortly after confirming his identity in the courtroom.

Palestine Action and its proponents, as well as others including a UN Commission, have accused Israel of waging genocide in its war on Gaza.

The UK government banned Palestine Action following several acts of vandalism, including against two planes at a Royal Air Force base which caused an estimated £7 million ($10 million) in damage.

Trudi Warner was among those who showed up Wednesday in support of those charged.

"All this is an appalling waste of public money," the retired social worker told AFP.

The 70-year-old, who was arrested at an August protest and is due to appear in court next month, branded the prosecutions "a gross overreaction" by the government and "a breach of our human rights".

The ban has prompted widespread criticism from rights advocates.

On Tuesday, the Council of Europe said it was alarmed by the "large numbers" of arrests.

In a letter to UK interior minister Shabana Mahmood, its human rights commissioner Michael O'Flaherty said London needed to conduct a "comprehensive review" of its policing of such protests.