Thinking of showing support for Palestine Action? You could now face up to 14 years in prison – and the UK’s top judges just said that’s completely legal.

So, big news from the courts this week – and it’s a pretty major one for national security. The Court of Appeal has ruled that the government *was* within its rights to ban Palestine Action as a terror organisation.

If you’re catching up: back in February, the High Court had kicked up a fuss, saying the ban stepped on the right to protest and that ministers had overreached. But five of the country’s most senior judges have now flipped that decision on its head.

At a hearing on Monday, the Court of Appeal said the government “struck a fair balance” when it proscribed the group. Translation: the ban stands, and it’s lawful.

What does that actually mean? Well, since July last year, it’s been a criminal offence to belong to or support Palestine Action. The penalty? Up to 14 years behind bars. And since the ban kicked in, thousands of people have been nicked at demos across the UK.

Lady Chief Justice Baroness Carr didn’t mince her words. She said it’s just not “sustainable” to call Palestine Action a non-violent protest group. Her take: “Palestine Action overly promotes unlawful violence that amounts to terrorism… It is not like the Suffragettes.”

The court pointed to three incidents ministers had already classed as terrorism – and noted the group hasn’t condemned or distanced itself from them. Judges also flagged how Palestine Action organises in secret and targets legitimate businesses, including defence firms working on UK national defence and supporting Ukraine.

Bottom line: the home secretary was legally entitled to make the call, the court said. Palestine Action has stayed banned since February while all this played out, and now an appeal to the Supreme Court looks likely.

As reported by cbinews.tv.

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