“If they brand Palestine Action a terrorist group then – oh my goodness – I’m one of them too,” said Eleanor, a mother from Rotherhithe, south London.
“Whether I do something or not – I’m a terrorist,” she said.
Eleanor had come to support the group at a demonstration in Trafalgar Square.
She had just heard a statement from Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, who said Palestine Action will be banned following “a nationwide campaign of direct criminal action”.
It means not just the core members, but anyone coming out to support them in protests such as this one would be committing an offence punishable of up to 14 years in prison.
Eleanor said she started supporting the group after the previous home secretary Suella Braverman dubbed the pro-Palestinian protests hate marches.
Eleanor added that this latest move by the government won’t stop her supporting Palestine Action, but she worries what would happen to her children if she was prosecuted.
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There are other, legal, pro-Palestinian groups that people can support, but those at Monday’s rally believe their group was the one having the biggest impact.
“They are scared of us,” said another protester, Frieda. “Now they will make our lives hell and I don’t know how anyone in this country can stand for that.”
Air of defiance palpable
She was carrying a banner that read “Free Political Prisoners” and said several of her friends had been arrested for activities related to Palestine Action (PA).
She added: “We won’t be intimidated by this, and we will come out in bigger numbers now.”
This air of defiance was palpable as protesters sat in the road blocking traffic around a section of Trafalgar Square chanting: “We are all Palestine Action!”
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Many interpreted the home secretary’s statement as a blatant move to shut them up, by a government embarrassed by last week’s security breach at RAF Brize Norton where PA activists sprayed paint on two RAF planes.
A placard at the demonstration read: “Oh I spilled some paint – does that make me a terrorist?”
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Ms Cooper made it clear that her actions were not the result of an isolated incident. In her statement, she referred to repeated criminal action “against businesses and institutions, including key national infrastructure and defence firms”.
She added that Palestine Action’s activity had “increased in frequency and severity” since 2024 and “become more aggressive, with its members demonstrating a willingness to use violence”.
She made reference to an attack against the Thales defence factory in Glasgow in 2022, where she said “the group caused over a million pounds of damage, including to parts essential to submarines”.
In this case, several members were prosecuted. But protesters claim this makes their point.
Wearing a Free Palestine T-shirt, protester Robert said: “If you don’t agree with those things, there are laws that can be used – but acts of terrorism have not been committed.”
Another protester, Mia, said: “It would feel farcical if it wasn’t so scary.” Her banner read: “Yvette Cooper – if you are anti anti-genocide you are pro-genocide.”
‘Sinister development’
No doubt there were many at the protest who simply want an end to the violence in Gaza and feel the government is complicit in its support for Israel.
In that sense, it feels like a sinister development for their right to protest to be curtailed.
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Palestine Action has stated that its mission is to “break the tools used to commit” genocide – an allegation Israel denies.
The problem is that PA appears to have identified UK defence firms and military hardware, as part of those tools – things that are actually used to defend this country.
In the view of the home secretary, this has crossed the line from simply criminal to extremist – and a threat to national security.
