Activists step up actions against arms company in a third week of targeted disruption

Palestine Action says seven of its activists attached themselves this morning to vehicles and blocked the entrance to Elbit Systems’ UK headquarters. Two other groups targeted the offices of JP Morgan Chase and a Barclays Bank branch in Altrincham overnight.

Elbit’s Bristol HQ is used by the company to oversee its British operations, and has been targeted by Palestine action on many previous occasions. “Elbit Systems uses Gaza as a laboratory to develop their weaponry, a business model which has no place in any society”, said the group. “By arming Israel and allowing Elbit to operate in this country, our political establishment have failed to abide by their legal and moral obligations to end complicity in the Gaza genocide”.

Last week, activists invaded the Kent premises of Instro Precision, where thay began “dismantling technology, machinery and parts” involved in the “manufacture of scopes, sights, and targeting equipment for Israel’s exterminationist military”. Police put it to arrestees that had caused the factory £1million in damage. Factories in Staffordshire and Leicester were also recently blockaded by activists.

The banks, who continue to invest in the Israeli arms company, had their windows smashed and red paint thrown over their fronts. JP Morgan Chase reduced their stake in Elbit by 70% a month ago, but their remaining investment is currently valued at around $16million. Earlier this month, 20 branches of Barclays Bank in England and Scotland were targeted by Palestine Action and Shut It Down, a direct action group targeting companies who finance climate chaos.