Pro-Palestine campaigners blockade defence factories in the South

Protestors claim the companies are supplying Israel's military

Around 600 people gathered outside Eaton Mission Systems in Wimborne this morning
Author: Lucinda Cameron and Alan Jones, PAPublished 7th Dec 2023

Hundreds of campaigners have staged protests outside a defence factories in the South, in the latest demonstration against arms being sent to Israel.

The campaign group Workers for a Free Palestine said it had blockaded sites including Eaton Mission Systems in Wimborne and L3 Harris in Brighton, as well as in Glasgow and Lancashire.

The Dorset protest attracted around 600 people.

A large group turned up to blockade the Eaton Mission Systems site at Wimborne earlier, before leaving at around 1.00pm

The demonstrators are urging companies to end their ties with Israel and cease all weapons, defence and supplies trading with them.

They are also calling on the UK Government to back a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and are calling for an end to the occupation of the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

A further protest has been held outside the L3 Harris factory in Brighton

Jenny, a spokeswoman for the Workers for a Free Palestine group, who did not give her surname, said:

"The fighter jets these factories help to produce are being used to imprison the people of Gaza in a death trap. They are ordered to evacuate when they have nowhere safe to go, while our Government still refuses to back a ceasefire.

"Workers all over Britain are rising up for Palestine, saying we will not allow arms used in a genocide to be supplied in our name and funded by our taxes.

"Our movement is growing rapidly and gaining more momentum each day.

"We are escalating our tactics and today's blockades are seeing unprecedented numbers of people take part in the disruption of Israeli arms manufacturing in Britain, in concert with workers targeting Israeli arms suppliers around Europe.

"We won't stop shutting down these factories until they stop supporting Israel's murderous war machine."

Protestors have also gathered outside a factory in Brighton, where it's claimed items are being manufactured for the Israeli military

Some of the other protests took place at sites run by BAE Systems.

A spokesperson said:

"We're horrified by the situation in Israel and Gaza and the devastating impact it's having on civilians in the region and we hope it can be resolved as soon as possible.

"We respect everyone's right to protest peacefully. We operate under the tightest regulation and comply fully with all applicable defence export controls, which are subject to ongoing assessment."

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