Name: Palestine Action’s legal challenge against UK government ban begins
Uploaded: 2025-11-26T16:24:13.910Z
Duration: 2 min 43 s
Description: Cofounder Huda Ammori says the ban is ‘one of the most extreme attacks on civil liberties in recent British history’.

Cofounder Huda Ammori says the ban is ‘one of the most extreme attacks on civil liberties in recent British history’.

London

The British High Court is currently reviewing the government's decision to ban Palestine Action, a group founded in 2020 that has organised direct action protests at defence manufacturer sites. The ban, implemented under terrorism laws in July, is being challenged on grounds that it restricts protest and freedom of conscience, while the government maintains it was necessary for security reasons.

The case has drawn attention from human rights organisations and legal experts, who caution against the overreach of counter-terrorism powers and their impact on peaceful dissent. The judgement, expected at a later date, could further clarify the limits of UK counter-terrorism law in relation to civil disobedience and political expression.

Palestine Action’s legal challenge against UK government ban begins

It's become a major test of the British government's power to ban certain groups, with judges poised to scrutinise the decision to outlaw Palestine Action. A move the applicants say goes too far, restricting protest and freedom of conscience, but one ministers insist was necessary under the UK's terrorism laws and guided by security assessments. Founded in 2020, Palestine Action organised direct action protests at sites linked to defence manufacturers. A series of arrests followed, after incidents involving trespass and significant property damage. In July, the group was added to the list of banned organisations, a decision now before the court. The UN Human Rights Office has cautioned that counter-terrorism powers must not unduly restrict peaceful dissent. Since the ban, police have also arrested individuals for displaying slogans in support of the group, adding to wider concerns about how bans like these affect the right to protest, and adding to pressures already felt across policing and the courts. The High Court will assess whether the ban was lawful and proportionate under the Terrorism Act. Among those watching the case closely is Palestine Action's co-founder Hoda Amori, who now speaks from outside the UK. I think it's quite extraordinary what we've seen unfold in the past few months. It's clear from their own documentation that the state did not expect this level of outrage. They massively underestimated the support Palestine Action had before prescription and how that would translate after prescription. The question for the judges will be whether the Home Secretary met the legal threshold to ban Palestine Action. While an independent commission into UK counter-terrorism law has said the current classification is too broad and too complex, under a streamlined system it might still reach the same conclusion for groups involved in direct action. What's happened over the years is that counter-terrorism law has been added to incrementally and we think this is a really good opportunity to do a step back and say can it be simplified and in simplifying it can we reinforce I think a sound principle in our law that most criminality can be adequately dealt with under our ordinary criminal law. The judgement won't be issued until a later date and could further define the boundary between UK counter-terrorism powers and the right to protest, civil disobedience and political expression. Sonia Gallego, Al Jazeera, London.

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