CPS case against Palestine Action activists for blockade of arms factory thrown out

At Margate Magistrates Court yesterday, the court dismissed the case against against four Palestine Action activists who had shut down the Instro Precision weapons factory belonging to Israeli arms-maker Elbit Systems in Kent last year.

In March last year the activists blockaded the factory by securing themselves to ‘lock-on’ devices to prevent all entry and operations at Instro’s facility in Discovery Park, Sandwich. The case was thrown out after Instro failed to provide a statement – according to Palestine Action in order to avoid scrutiny in court. Another four members of the group who took part in the same action will appear in Margate Crown Court in September. 

After their arrest at the site, the activists were charged with “locking on” – then a new offence under the Public Order Act 2023. They entered a not guilty to the charges and took to court to argue that Elbit, the firm arming the genocide in Gaza, is the real guilty party. A similar prosecution was thrown out of Sevenoaks Magistrates’ Court in March, where five activists were acquitted on the second day of their trial.

According to recent FOI disclosures Instro Precision was granted over a dozen weapons export licenses last year for the permanent shipment of arms to Israel – part of the Starmer government’s huge acceleration in weapons deliveries to the colony. Most of Instro’s exports to Israel by Instro fall into the category ‘ML5b’ (target acquisition and related systems). Instro’s products include SpectroXR imaging systems for Israel’s Skylark drones, while Elbit has boasted that thousands of the ‘XACT’ weapons sights systems manufactured by Instro have been delivered to the Israeli military for use by “marksmen of both Infantry and Special Operation Forces”

Earlier this month, ten people were charged with aggravated burglary, criminal damage and violent disorder after seven people caused over £1,000,000 of damage inside the factory in June last year. The CPS is alleging a “terrorism connection” in this case, making it the second Palestine Action case where they have used anti-terror laws against people trying to stop genocide. The charges followed the Attorney General’s Office establishing contact between the Israeli embassy and the CPS and counter-terrorism police, suggesting political and foreign interference in Keir Starmer’s ‘lawfare’ war on activists and journalists who oppose Israel’s genocide in Gaza.

Last week Israel launched a new major offensive, killing hundreds of civilians in just a few days. A UN report has now estimated that one in five people face starvation, including over 300,000 children at imminent risk of death and the entire population of Palestine on the brink of famine.

A spokesperson for Palestine Action said:

Many of the weapons that are being used in Palestine are designed and made in the UK. Some of those inside this Kent factory. The case today was dismissed because Instro refused to give any evidence because they don’t want to be scrutinised in the courts, once against proving that it is Elbit and their subsidiaries who are the guilty party as they continue to arm a genocide. This is an encouraging day for everyone working to disrupt the arms supply to Israel.

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