Six British activists acquitted over raid on Israeli defence firm’s factory

In 2026, six British activists were acquitted of aggravated burglary charges stemming from a 2024 raid on a factory operated by Elbit, an Israeli defence firm. The activists, who were members of the now-banned organization Palestine Action, had targeted the factory. The incident and subsequent trial took place in Britain. The activists' motivations were linked to their opposition to Elbit's activities as a defence firm. The acquittal marks the conclusion of the legal proceedings related to the factory raid.

Six Palestine Action activists were acquitted of aggravated burglary charges at Woolwich Crown Court in London, following a break-in at Elbit Systems' factory in Filton, near Bristol, on August 6, 2024. The activists, Charlotte Head, Samuel Corner, Leona Kamio, Fatema Rajwani, Zoe Rogers, and Jordan Devlin, were accused of using sledgehammers and threatening unlawful violence during the incident. While Rajwani, Rogers, and Devlin were also found not guilty of violent disorder, the jury could not reach verdicts on criminal damage charges for any of the defendants. Furthermore, no verdict was reached regarding allegations against Corner for inflicting grievous bodily harm on a police officer, or against Head, Corner, and Kamio for violent disorder. The charges stemmed from a protest against the Israeli defence firm.

In February 2026, six pro-Palestinian activists in the UK were acquitted of aggravated burglary charges stemming from an August 2024 raid on an Elbit Systems UK factory in Bristol. The activists, members of the now-banned group Palestine Action, were accused of using a vehicle to break into the facility and deploying smoke grenades. The jury at Woolwich Crown Court found three of the defendants not guilty of violent disorder, but could not reach verdicts on the same charge for the other three. The jury also failed to reach verdicts on charges of criminal damage against all six, and on a charge of causing grievous bodily harm with intent against one defendant. Prosecutors are considering a retrial on the counts where verdicts were not reached.