Reversing Palestine Action ban ‘would threaten British national security’

Hamas and other terrorist organisations could be emboldened if the Supreme Court overturns the ban on Palestine Action (PA), security experts speaking to the JC have warned. A legal challenge brought by PA co-founder Huda Ammori is due to be considered in the court next week. Critics say should the proscription brought in last year be overturned, there is the risk it will become a dangerous precedent that could allow other organisations banned under terrorism law to make a legal challenge on human rights grounds.

Security experts fear that a successful challenge could pave the way for similar legal action by banned groups, even including Hamas, Islamic State and al-Qaeda. They also warn it could embolden PA itself to launch further attacks on sensitive national security infrastructure and Jewish-owned businesses. In a rare joint leader, today the JC and the Jewish News have appealed to the court to maintain the ban given the group’s attacks against community-linked targets.

PA’s litany of direct action attacks are responsible for causing millions of pounds of damage to British defence facilities. It was proscribed in July 2025, weeks after activists broke into RAF Brize Norton and sprayed red paint over two RAF Voyager aircraft. A previous court hearing was told that repairs following that attack had cost £1.7 million, with the final bill potentially reaching £15 million. The group’s activities have also led to serious injuries.

In August 2024, a policewoman was struck with a sledgehammer after officers responded to an incident at an Elbit Systems factory near Bristol. Sergeant Kate Evans suffered a fractured spine and was unable to work for three months. The group has targeted pro-Israel and Jewish organisations. In November 2024, it claimed responsibility for spraying red paint on the London offices of the Britain Israel Communications and Research Centre (Bicom) and the Jewish National Fund (JNF).

Since its proscription by then Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, PA has attempted to legally challenge the ban as hundreds of demonstrators have been arrested for carrying placards expressing support for the group. In February, the High Court ruled that the proscription was unlawful and disproportionate. However, the Court of Appeal overturned that decision in June, leaving the ban in force ahead of the Supreme Court hearing scheduled for November 4 and 5.

The group has attracted support from prominent figures from across the cultural world. Novelist Sally Rooney’s publisher halted UK sales of her books after she pledged financial support for PA. Sally Rooney (Getty Images)[Missing Credit] Writers William Boyd, Jeanette Winterson, Zadie Smith, Deborah Levy and Annie Ernaux were among those who signed a letter condemning the decision as “censorship” arising from “ill-conceived and draconian anti-terror legislation” and “an affront to basic principles of free speech and expression so long taken for granted in this country”.

Rooney has refused to allow her work to be published in Israel. Counterterrorism figures have warned the JC that the implications of overturning the ban could extend far beyond PA. Roger Macmillan, a counterterrorism expert and former director of security at Iran International TV, said lifting the proscription would be “a real recipe for disaster for us in the West” and could “open the floodgates” to further violence. “If you deproscribe, then this will open the floodgates for more violence and more hostility.

The global intifada is getting closer to our streets… and this is an organisation that advocates for the attacking of businesses and people.” Macmillan warned that Britain’s security services were already struggling to contend with a growing range of threats, describing MI5 as “woefully underfunded at a time when the hybrid threats are on the rise”. Removing Palestine Action from the list of proscribed organisations, he argued, would place further pressure on an already stretched counterterrorism apparatus.

He also suggested that a successful legal challenge could provide a blueprint for other banned organisations seeking to overturn their proscription, describing such an outcome as “manna from heaven” for terrorist groups. He said: “It would certainly open the [routes] to de-proscribe Hamas, Hizb ut-Tahrir, al-Qaeda, al-Shabaab, ISIS. “This will give them the opportunity to say… where is our freedom of speech.” Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has defended the decision to proscribe PA, saying the group’s conduct continues to meet the legal threshold for a ban, “and in some instances the facts have got worse and more fitting” of a ban.

Mahmood has long been an advocate for the Palestinian cause. She acknowledged she felt “uncomfortable” watching protesters being arrested for expressing support for Palestine Action, including some that she knows personally. However, the Labour minister insisted that the law must be applied consistently. She said: “You have got to be able to apply your principles even when it is uncomfortable… the protesters are committing the support offence.”

Mahmood citing expressing support for far right groups as an example of when she would want to see arrests. Appealing directly to pro-Palestinian demonstrators, the Home Secretary added: “You don’t have to show your support for the Palestinian people by also supporting a proscribed organisation.”