Elbit Systems factory apparently shuttered following Palestine Action campaign

One of defence company Elbit Systems' plants in the UK city of Bristol has reportedly been closed in the wake of a Palestine Action campaign, according to The Guardian.

The Elbit Systems UK site in Aztec West business park was repeatedly targeted by activists, including the day before the group was proscribed as a terrorist organisation by then Home Secretary Yvette Cooper. Actions included lock-ons, rooftop occupations, smashing windows and covering the building in red paint.

The Guardian visited the site earlier this week and said the property was deserted, with "no staff present aside from a security guard stationed in a vehicle parked outside the premises".

The Israeli company, which has drawn criticism for producing weaponry used in the ongoing genocide in Gaza, had held the lease since 2019, with a contract due to run until 2029.

Elbit Systems provides around 85 percent of Israel’s drones and land-based military equipment and has played a major role in supplying Israel with weaponry for its genocide in Gaza.

Private Eye reported last month that the company's British arm, Elbit Systems UK Limited, was close to winning a major contract that would make it a "strategic partner" of Britain's Ministry of Defence (MoD).

The Guardian's report comes as the UK has continued to crack down on supporters of Palestine Action, with police rounding up activists in dawn raids.

Earlier this week, six campaigners seeking to lift the UK government's ban on Palestine Action were charged with terrorism offences for allegedly expressing support for the group.

Defend Our Juries (DOJ) said on Tuesday that six of its key spokespeople had been rounded up in dawn raids, hours before a scheduled news conference announcing that a mass action to challenge the ban would be going ahead this Saturday.

Police said the charges were part of an investigation led by the Counter Terrorism Command, related to the alleged organisation of protests and 13 Zoom calls in support of Palestine Action.

The spokespeople, including former government lawyer Tim Crosland, were held over the custody time limit of 24 hours and had their homes raided, according to DOJ.

DOJ said that during a hearing at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Thursday, the judge granted the defendants bail, rejecting a request by the Crown Prosecution Service to hold them on remand.

The UK government proscribed Palestine Action under anti-terror laws on 4 July, following an incident in which members broke into RAF Brize Norton and attacked with paint and crowbars two planes they said were “used for military operations in Gaza and across the Middle East". 

The designation puts Palestine Action on a par with al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group, making it a criminal offence under British law to show support for or invite support for the group - punishable by up to 14 years in prison under the Terrorism Act 2000.