Palestine action blocks Elbit headquarters in Bristol and targets banks in Manchester

Activists are stepping up action against the arms company in a third week of targeted disruption

Palestine Action says seven of its activists have this morning attached themselves to vehicles and blocked the entrance to Elbit Systems’ UK headquarters. Two other groups targeted the offices of JP Morgan Chase and a Barclays Bank branch in Altrincham overnight.

Elbit’s headquarters in Bristol are used by the company to oversee its UK operations and have been targeted by Palestine’s actions on many previous occasions. “Elbit Systems uses Gaza as a laboratory to develop its weapons, a business model that has no place in any society,” the group said. “By arming Israel and allowing Elbit to operate in this country, our political organization has failed in its legal and moral obligations to end complicity in the genocide in Gaza.”

Last week, activists invaded Instro Precision’s headquarters in Kent, where they began “dismantling the technology, machinery and parts” involved in “making scopes, sights and targeting equipment for Israel’s extermination army”. Police told the arrestees they caused £1 million worth of damage to the factory. Factories in Staffordshire and Leicester have also recently been blocked by activists.

The banks, which continue to invest in the Israeli arms company, had their windows smashed and red paint thrown on their fronts. JP Morgan Chase reduced its stake in Elbit by 70% a month ago, but the remaining investment is currently valued at about $16 million. Earlier this month, 20 branches of Barclays Bank in England and Scotland were targeted by Palestine Action and Shut It Down, a direct action group targeting companies financing climate chaos.