Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg has been arrested by UK police on Tuesday during a protest in central London in support of imprisoned members of Palestine Action, prompting warnings from campaigners that counterterrorism laws are being used to suppress pro-Palestinian activism.
Thunberg was detained outside the offices of Aspen Insurance, after holding a placard reading: "I support the Palestine Action prisoners. I oppose genocide", according to organisers and video footage from the scene.
City of London Police said a 22-year-old woman had been arrested under Section 13 of the Terrorism Act 2000 for displaying a placard in support of a proscribed organisation.
Palestine Action, a group known for its direct action mainly targeting arms factories, was proscribed by the UK government in July, making expressions of support a criminal offence.
The protest was organised by the Prisoners for Palestine campaign and began earlier in the day, when two activists sprayed the front of the Aspen Insurance building with red paint using repurposed fire extinguishers and then locked themselves to the entrance, temporarily disrupting operations.
Campaigners said Aspen Insurance was targeted because it provides insurance services to Elbit Systems' UK subsidiary, which they say enables the arms company to operate in Britain.
Elbit Systems is Israel's largest weapons manufacturer, producing drones and land-based military equipment used by the Israeli army. Elbit sites and associated firms in Britain have been repeatedly targeted by campaigners calling for the company to be shut down.
The action took place in the eighth week of a hunger strike launched on 2 November by Palestine Action prisoners protesting their detention and the group's proscription.
Lawyers for the group say two of the prisoners have now been without food for more than 50 days and are at a critical stage.
Three prisoners had ended their hunger strikes, including Qesser Zuhrah, who was one of the first to initiate the hunger strike, which lasted 49 days.
Campaigners said between four and six prisoners remain on full hunger strike, while others have moved to partial refusal due to serious health conditions, including diabetes.
At least five prisoners have been hospitalised, including Kamran Ahmed on multiple occasions and Amu Gib.
Doctors have warned of critical risks, including organ failure, while MPs, Amnesty International and more than 800 medical professionals have called on Justice Secretary David Lammy to intervene.
A spokesperson for Prisoners for Palestine said the hunger strikers, many of whom face lengthy periods on remand before trial, had "no other means to resist their conditions but through their own bodies". Among their demands is the closure of Elbit Systems’ UK operations.
In a separate statement, the campaign group Defend Our Juries said Thunberg's arrest could signal "a new level of repression", questioning whether police had misapplied the ban on Palestine Action or whether expressions of support for detained activists were now being treated as terrorism offences.
"In calling people terrorists who are not terrorists, they are not acting to protect the public; they are acting to protect the companies profiting from genocide and the genocidal state of Israel itself," the statement added.
The arrest follows a similar case in Scotland earlier this month, where a protester was detained under the Terrorism Act for holding a sign supporting Palestine Action hunger strikers.
In a statement posted on Instagram days before her arrest, Thunberg said governments had failed to act to stop genocide in Gaza and urged supporters to continue mobilising against companies linked to Israel's arms industry.