UK Appeals Court Upholds 2025 Ban on Palestine Action as Terror Group
Updated
Updated · CNN · Jun 15
UK Appeals Court Upholds 2025 Ban on Palestine Action as Terror Group
3 articles · Updated · CNN · Jun 15
Summary
Five senior judges in London ruled Monday that the government lawfully proscribed Palestine Action, reversing a February High Court decision that had found the ban disproportionate.
Chief Justice Sue Carr said the group could not be portrayed as non-violent, citing covert cells that destroyed property at defense companies and on military bases.
The Court of Appeal said the proscription struck a fair balance despite the group's political aims, rejecting its argument that it was engaged in civil disobedience and protected protest activity.
The ban has been in force since July 2025 and makes membership in Palestine Action a criminal offense, reinforcing the government's wider use of terrorism powers against direct-action groups.
Is the UK government using terror laws to shield arms companies from public protest?
With property damage now legally linked to terrorism, is the right to protest in the UK finished?
A protest group is now a terror organization. What future do its thousands of supporters face?
Court of Appeal Confirms Palestine Action Terror Ban: Landmark Ruling Threatens UK Protest Rights
Overview
On June 15, 2026, the UK Court of Appeal overturned the High Court’s earlier decision and upheld the government’s ban on Palestine Action, marking a major legal win for the government. This ruling was strongly influenced by arguments from the interior minister’s lawyers, who claimed the High Court had exaggerated the ban’s impact on freedom of expression. The decision followed a judge’s declaration that a raid by Palestine Action activists on an Israeli defence firm’s UK factory was an act of terrorism, as it aimed to influence the UK government. The judgment has immediate and far-reaching consequences for the activist group.