Palestine Action challenges UK terror ban at Supreme Court

Legal challenge at Supreme Court

Barrister Raza Husain KC representing banned Palestine Action co-founder Huda Ammori told the UK Supreme Court on Wednesday that the direct-action group had never advocated violence against individuals or their homes. He argued that suffragettes, anti-war campaigners and environmental activists had employed comparable or more extreme tactics without facing terror classification. Ammori is challenging the UK government's decision to proscribe Palestine Action under terrorism legislation, a designation that places the group alongside al-Qaida and Boko Haram.

Husain said the ban was disproportionate and infringed on rights to freedom of expression and peaceful protest. He also warned that the proscription had created a chilling effect across the wider Palestinian solidarity movement, affecting journalists, academics and artists with no links to the organization.

Government defends proscription

Representing Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, James Eadie KC said the ban was lawful and proportionate. He noted the convictions of four activists, including one for grievous bodily harm, and pointed to a court finding of a "terrorist connection" in a case involving a raid on an Elbit Systems factory in Filton, near Bristol.

Background of legal battle

The Labour administration under Keir Starmer proscribed Palestine Action in July 2025 under terrorism legislation, marking the first such ban on a direct-action group in British history. The High Court ruled in February that the ban was "disproportionate," though the Court of Appeal overturned this in June, ruling that proscribing the organization was lawful. At least 25 protesters were arrested during demonstrations outside the Royal Courts of Justice, including former Friends of the Earth director Jonathan Porritt, as the hearing is due to conclude Thursday with a ruling expected at a later date.