US Treasury designates Palestine Action a terrorist group, imposing sanctions
The Trump administration has sanctioned UK-based direct action group Palestine Action, blocking all its US assets. Over 700 people have been charged under UK terror laws.
US sanctions Palestine Action after UK terrorism ban upheld
The Trump administration has designated Palestine Action a terrorist organisation and imposed targeted financial sanctions on the UK-based direct action group, The Independent reports.
The Department of the Treasury confirmed it had "taken action" against the network, accusing it of supporting "numerous acts of terrorism since July 2020". All property belonging to the organisation held in the United States, or under the control of American citizens, has been frozen.
Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent said: "Far-left extremists, their fronts, and their enablers should be on notice: We will bring the full weight of our economic tools to bear. Political terrorism has no place in our society, and we will continue to cut the financial lifelines of these groups until they are eliminated."
The US Treasury stated that Palestine Action had "promoted its violent, criminal, and terrorist acts on social media, encouraging the use of similar tactics internationally, including within the United States and along the US-Mexican border". The designation bars American citizens from conducting any business with the group or contributing funds to it.
Co-founder Huda Ammori responded on X: "Trump has just designated Palestine Action a terrorist group. As a Palestinian and Iraqi, the fact the country which destroyed both my homelands is calling me a terrorist is beyond hypocritical. Trump is the antithesis to everything Palestine Action stands for."
The US sanctions follow a Court of Appeal ruling in June that deemed the UK Government's earlier ban on the organisation a "justified and proportionate" restriction on freedom of expression. Palestine Action's co-founder may still challenge the proscription in the Supreme Court.
The UK ban, introduced on 5 July last year, makes membership or support of the group a criminal offence carrying up to 14 years in prison. Police have conducted mass arrests at demonstrations where protesters displayed badges or placards reading "I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action". More than 700 people have since been charged under terrorism laws for supporting a proscribed organisation.
Earlier this year, four Palestine Action activists were jailed following a raid on the UK factory of Israeli defence firm Elbit Systems. Charlotte Head, 30, Samuel Corner, 23, Leona Kamio, 30, and Fatema Rajwani, 21, destroyed drones and computer equipment using crowbars and sledgehammers before being detained. Corner, a former Oxford student, struck police officer Kate Evans twice on the back with a seven-pound sledgehammer, fracturing her spine.
Mr Justice Johnson sentenced the four defendants to between four years and eight months and seven years and eight months in prison, with an additional year on licence. The judge ruled that the break-in constituted an "act of terrorism" intended to influence the UK Government and intimidate members of the public.
Source: The Independent