Six protesters accused of breaking into an Israeli-linked defence firm as part of a Palestine Action raid face an 18-month wait in prison before their trial.
The alleged attack was estimated to cause £1m worth of damage to property at Elbit Systems UK’s Bristol site in August 2024.
The defendants were allegedly armed with sledgehammers when they broke into the defence firm’s site in the early hours of 6 August. Elbit Systems UK is a subsidiary of the Israeli defence company Elbit Systems.
Finn Collins, 19, Harland Archer, 20, Salaam Mahmood, 19, Moiz Ibrahim, 27, Louie Adams, 33, and Liam Mullany, 33, appeared at the Old Bailey on Friday, charged with aggravated burglary, criminal damage and violent disorder. They were told they could have to wait until February 2027 for their case to be tried.
Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb told the court that Woolwich Crown Court, where the case will be heard, does not have the capacity for a trial of over six people at the same time, and so a date in 2027 has provisionally been fixed.
Some 24 people have now been charged in connection with the incident.
Elbit Systems UK could be close to winning a £2bn defence contract for the Army Collective Training Service, it has been reported. The UK defence programme would overhaul army training, and Elbit is one of a consortium of defence companies bidding for the 15-year contract, The Times reported.
Muhammad Umer Khalid, 22, also appeared in court on Friday in connection with a separate incident linked to Palestine Action. Khalid allegedly took part in an attack on two aircraft at RAF Brize Norton, resulting in an estimated £7m worth of damage to the Voyager planes.
On 20 June 2025, protesters on e-scooters allegedly broke into the military base and used fire extinguishers to spray red paint and threw metal crowbars into the engines.
Following the Brize Norton incident, Palestine Action was proscribed as a terrorist group, making it an offence to be part of or express support for the group.
Khalid is charged with conspiracy to commit criminal damage and conspiracy to enter a prohibited place knowingly for purposes prejudicial to the UK’s national security.
He was remanded into custody, with a provision trial date set for January 2027. Khalid, from Stockport, Greater Manchester, is the fifth person to be charged in connection with the incident.
