High Court judge refuses to temporarily block Palestine Action terror ban

Palestine Action is set to be banned after a High Court judge refused a bid to temporarily block it from being designated as a terror group.

Huda Ammori, the co-founder of Palestine Action, asked the High Court to temporarily block the Government from banning the group as a terrorist organisation before a potential legal challenge against the decision to proscribe it under the Terrorism Act 2000.

The move is set to come into force at midnight after a High Court judge refused Ms Ammori’s bid for a temporary block.

Public interest 

Mr Justice Chamberlain said: “I have concluded that the harm which would ensue if interim relief is refused but the claim later succeeds is insufficient to outweigh the strong public interest in maintaining the order in force.”

Lawyers for Ms Ammori were also refused permission to appeal and were told to go to the Court of Appeal itself.

The proposal was approved by both the House of Commons and the House of Lords earlier this week and would make membership and support for the direct action group a criminal offence punishable by up to 14 years in prison.

Some 81 organisations are already proscribed under the 2000 Act, including Hamas, al Qaida and National Action.

At a hearing on Friday, Raza Husain KC, for Ms Ammori, asked the court to suspend the “ill-considered” and “authoritarian abuse of statutory power” until a hearing due around July 21.

Mr Husain told the London court: “This is the first time in our history that a direct action civil disobedience group, which does not advocate for violence, has been sought to be proscribed as terrorists.”

The barrister said that his client had been “inspired” by a long history of direct action in the UK, “from the suffragettes, to anti-apartheid activists, to Iraq war activists”.

High Court challenge

The hearing later in July is expected to deal with whether Ms Ammori can bring a High Court challenge over the planned proscription.

Blinne Ni Ghralaigh KC, also representing Ms Ammori, told the court that there was no “express provision” to protect lawyers representing her in the potential legal challenge from criminal consequences if the ban came into effect.

She also said that if the ban came into effect the harm would be “far-reaching”, could cause “irreparable harm to large numbers of members of the public”, including causing some to “self-censor”.

Ms Ni Ghralaigh later named Normal People author Sally Rooney, who lives abroad and “fears the ramifications for her, for her work, for her books, for her programmes” if she shows support for Palestine Action.

“Is the Prime Minister going to denounce her, an Irish artist, as a supporter of a proscribed organisation?”

“Will that have ramifications for her with the BBC, etc?” Ms Ni Ghralaigh asked.

Ben Watson KC, for the Home Office, told the High Court there was an “insuperable hurdle” in the bid to temporarily block the ban of Palestine Action.

The barrister also said that if a temporary block was granted, it would be a “serious disfigurement of the statutory regime”.

He said Palestine Action could challenge the Home Secretary’s decision at the Proscribed Organisations Appeal Commission, a specialist tribunal, rather than at the High Court.

RAF Brize Norton

Friday’s hearing comes after an estimated £7 million worth of damage was caused to two Voyager planes at RAF Brize Norton on June 20, in an action claimed by Palestine Action.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper announced plans to proscribe Palestine Action on June 23, stating that the vandalism of the two planes was “disgraceful” and that the group had a “long history of unacceptable criminal damage”.

Mr Justice Chamberlain said that an assessment on whether to ban the group had been made as early as March, and “preceded” the incident at RAF Brize Norton.

Four people were charged in connection with the incident.