UK loses bid to block challenge to Palestine Action ban in 'landmark victory' for campaigners

The British government on Friday lost its bid to block the co-founder of pro-Palestinian campaign group Palestine Action from bringing a legal challenge over the banning of the group under anti-terrorism laws.

Huda Ammori, who helped found Palestine Action in 2020, was given permission to challenge the group's proscription, with her case due to be heard next month.

Britain's Home Office asked the Court of Appeal to overturn that decision and rule that any challenge to proscription should be heard by a specialist tribunal.

Judge Sue Carr rejected the Home Office's appeal, saying Ammori's case could proceed in the High Court.

In response to Friday's ruling, activist group Defend Our Juries- which has led protests against the controversial proscription of Palestine Action- told The New Arab that it was "a landmark victory in the battle to Lift The Ban on Palestine Action".

"Not only has the government’s attempt to block the Judicial Review been struck down, the claimant has won back two more grounds for appeal, meaning the Judicial Review is more likely to be successful," the group's spokesperson added.

"If the Judicial Review is successful, the proscription order would be unlawful since inception and the thousands of subsequent arrests would be deemed unlawful too."

Saeed Taji Farouky, Palestinian filmmaker and former Palestine Action member, also expressed his support for the ruling, underlining that it signified a victory for freedom of speech and dissent in the country.

"The movement has been saying for years that it's been targeted by the government, specifically, the government's attempts to crush pro-Palestinian solidarity, to crush any expression of dissent from the government's commitment to Israel.

He added: "So the fact that the court ruled against the government is a huge relief, not only for the movement, but also for anyone who believes in the principles of democracy, freedom of speech and freedom of expression, freedom to dissent.

Farouky argued it was a "humiliation for the government that's tried so desperately over these past two years to justify their participation in the genocide of Palestinians to hide from the public their arms sales to Israel or their participation in spy flights over, etc.

"It's a small reminder that sometimes justice prevails, which is very rare in the pro-Palestine movement," he added.

Palestine Action was proscribed as a terrorist organisation by the government in July, making it a crime to be a member, which carries a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison.

More than 1,000 people have since been arrested for holding signs in support of the group, with over 100 charged.

Before it was banned, Palestine Action had increasingly targeted Israel-linked companies in Britain, often spraying red paint, blocking entrances or damaging equipment. It accused Britain's government of complicity in what it said were Israeli war crimes in Gaza.

The group had particularly focused on Israeli defence firm Elbit Systems, and Britain's government cited a raid at an Elbit site last year when it decided to proscribe the group.

Palestine Action was banned a month after some of its members broke into the RAF Brize Norton air base and damaged two planes, for which four members have been charged.