Four Activists Face Terrorist Sentencing After Elbit Systems Raid Convictions

Four Palestine Action activists convicted of criminal damage for a 2024 raid on an Elbit Systems factory in Bristol now face sentencing as terrorists on June 12, after the trial judge ruled their offenses carried a terrorist connection — a finding withheld from the jury during deliberations. Charlotte Head, Samuel Corner, Leona Kamio, and Fatema Rajwani were convicted at Woolwich Crown Court following the August 2024 incursion, in which activists used a prison van to breach the Filton site and destroyed drones and other military equipment with sledgehammers. Corner was additionally convicted of causing grievous bodily harm after fracturing a police officer's spine. Two co-defendants, Zoe Rogers and Jordan Devlin, were cleared of all charges.

Mr Justice Johnson determined that while influencing government was not the sole purpose of the action, damaging property intended for the Israeli government to influence Israeli policy constituted a terrorist connection under the Terrorism Act 2000. This finding means the convicted activists could be required to serve full prison terms and face lifelong police monitoring, despite not being charged under anti-terror laws. The ruling drew sharp criticism from the campaign group Defend Our Juries, which warned that protesters could now be convicted of ordinary offences but secretly sentenced as terrorists without juries knowing the implications of their verdicts.

The case has been marked by broader legal controversy. The Court of Appeal ruled that Johnson lacked jurisdiction to refer defence barrister Rajiv Menon KC to the High Court for contempt, after Menon informed jurors of their right to deliver verdicts according to their convictions. Meanwhile, the government's July 2025 proscription of Palestine Action as a terrorist organization was ruled unlawful by the High Court in February 2026, though that decision remains under appeal. Rogers, who was cleared, said she would never regret her actions, arguing that direct action was necessary after democratic processes failed to protect Palestinians.