The British authorities have made a decisive move to ensure national security from disruptive elements by deciding to outlaw a certain pro-Palestinian body. This unexpected resolution came in the wake of unlawful intrusions and vandalism committed by the organization known as Palestine Action. Last week, this group brazenly stormed a British air base and only a few months ago, in March, created an alarming situation at President Trump’s prestigious Turnberry golf resort in Scotland.
The resolute declaration of this ban was made public by none other than the Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper. She disclosed the government’s intention on the heels of a blatant violation by the group at the UK’s most sizable air force base located at Brize Norton in Oxfordshire. The offenders tarnished military aircrafts with splashes of red paint, utter disregard for both private and national assets.
Cooper elaborated on this decision in her statement early this week, saying that a formal legal injunction to proscribe the group will be brought to the Parliament floor on June 30th. This group, she asserted, has been responsible for leading a ‘national campaign of direct criminal action’, thereby jeopardizing the safety of British citizens and the country’s stability at large. She didn’t mince words and called out Palestine Action for engaging in acts that border on terrorism.
According to Cooper’s viewpoints, the group’s activities sufficiently fulfill the legal delineation of terrorism given they include severe property damage. A criterion that has rarely been highlighted, but is nonetheless a pivotal factor in the fight against terror. Sovereign properties, both public and private, were grossly damaged causing not just financial loss, but emotional duress in the public.
The UK Government, thus, is directing its resources towards tackling such disruptive entities. With this latest addition, Palestine Action now finds itself among the more than 80 organizations that have been banned by the British government for participating in terror activities. A noteworthy list which includes groups like Islamic State, Hamas, Al Qaeda, Hezbollah, and the infamous white supremacist body, Atomwaffen Division.
Jonathan Hall, who holds the critical responsibility as the British government’s chief adviser on terrorism laws, made some pertinent comments on this unprecedented situation. He acknowledged that, to his understanding, the prohibition of Palestine Action would mark the ‘first time that a group has been proscribed on the basis of serious damage to property’ in the history of the UK. This is a shift from the usually violent prerequisites for such stringent actions.
Hall reinforced the gravity of such actions, emphasizing that the core target of these unlawful operations was the nation’s air force base – a facility integral to the country’s defense systems. The audacious move by Palestine Action to threaten such a significant establishment represented a concrete national security hazard. This was a decisive factor in the government’s decision to establish strict punitive measures.
In the assessment of this seasoned legal adviser, such a significant attack on national security infrastructure acted as ‘a tipping point’ for the government. Quite understandably, the compromise of the security of a defense base is an alarming violation, one that demands an immediate and stern response from the government to deter any future attempts of a similar nature.