Five pro-Palestinian activists plead not guilty over UK air base break in

The activists ⁠pleaded not guilty to damaging property for a purpose prejudicial to the interests or safety of the UK.Published On 16 Jan 2026Five pro-Palestinian activists have pleaded not ‍guilty to breaking into a British military air base and damaging two planes in ⁠protest against the UK’s support for Israel’s war in Gaza.The five are accused of breaking into the Brize Norton Royal Air Force base in central England in ‍June and spraying red paint over two Voyager aircraft used for refuelling and transport.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Writers declare solidarity with prisoners on hunger strike for Palestinelist 2 of 3Pal Action prisoner on protest: ‘I no longer feel hunger, I feel pain’list 3 of 3Juliet Stevenson on Gaza: ‘I’m disappointed by the silence in my industry’end of listThe campaign group Palestine Action, which has since been banned by the government, said it was behind the incident.Lewie Chiaramello, Jon Cink, Amy Gardiner-Gibson, Daniel Jeronymides-Norie and Muhammad ‌Umer Khalid appeared on Friday at London’s Old Bailey ‌court by videolink from prison.They ⁠pleaded not guilty to damaging property for a purpose ‌prejudicial to the interests or safety of the UK. Their trial is due ‍to start in January 2027.No applications for bail were made, despite it having been one of five key demands put forward by the activists. The others included the right to a fair trial – which they say includes the release of documents related to “the ongoing witch-hunt of activists and campaigners” – ending censorship of their communications, “de-proscribing” Palestine Action and shutting down Elbit Systems, which operates several UK factories.Palestine Action launched in July 2020 and describes itself as a movement “committed to ending global participation in Israel’s genocidal and apartheid regime”. The UK parliament voted in favour of proscribing the group on July 2, 2025, classifying it as a “terrorist” organisation.