LONDON — The designation forbids US citizens and entities from doing business with the group. US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent said, "Far-left extremists, their fronts, and their enablers should be on notice: we will bring the full weight of our economic tools to bear. Political terrorism has no place in our society and we will continue to cut the financial lifelines of these groups until they are eliminated."

The US Treasury stated that Palestine Action has supported numerous acts of terrorism since July 2020. Treasury officials stated that the group's acts have physically injured UK law enforcement personnel. The department further stated that Palestine Action's acts were intended to intimidate lawful commercial enterprises and coerce the UK government.

It stated that Palestine Action's actions include multiple high-profile instances of breaking into defense infrastructure and British military installations. Officials noted that the group caused millions of dollars’ worth of damage to military equipment. It stated that Palestine Action promoted its activities on social media, encouraging the use of similar tactics internationally, including within the United States and along the US-Mexican border.

Palestine Action is a British direct action network founded in 2020. The group has the stated goal of "ending global participation in Israel's genocidal and apartheid regime".

Huda Ammori, co-founder of Palestine Action, said her organization’s activities in the US and elsewhere have always been about saving lives by disrupting the Israeli war machine, which is committing a genocide in Gaza with the support of the US government. She said Trump has been at the centre of the mass murder of Palestinians, enabling the Zionist regime at every turn.

She added that the fact that Trump is now taking inspiration from Britain’s repression of the movement for Palestinian freedom exposes just how dangerous this ban is and should be a wake-up call to anyone who cares about free speech and civil liberties. She said banning a direct action protest group under terrorism legislation for the first time in British history means Keir Starmer’s government has created a blueprint for authoritarian governments around the world to suppress political dissent, and to criminalise British citizens who travel or live abroad. She said Trump’s decision to adopt Keir Starmer’s designation of Palestine Action as a ‘terrorist’ group should be the final nail in the coffin of this dangerous, draconian and disproportionate ban.

In the UK, Palestine Action has focused largely on factories run by the Israeli weapons firm Elbit Systems, as well as other companies that do business with it. Membership of, material support for, or displaying items in support of Palestine Action is a criminal offense in the UK.

Palestine Action became the first direct action group to be proscribed under the UK’s Terrorism Act in July last year. The then UK foreign secretary, Yvette Cooper, moved to ban Palestine Action last year after recommendations from officials. Officials conceded that proscribing Palestine Action would be relatively novel. They noted there was no known precedent of an organisation being proscribed on the basis that it was concerned in terrorism mainly due to its use or threat of action involving serious damage to property.

The UK ban on Palestine Action is the subject of a legal challenge that will be heard by the UK Supreme Court in November. The powers used to sanction Palestine Action in the US were introduced by President George W Bush shortly after the 9/11 attacks.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told officials from more than 60 countries last month that Washington would seek to refocus international counterterrorism efforts on what he called far-left terror. Trump vowed to take action against left-wing groups he accuses of fomenting violence after the killing of conservative activist and Trump ally Charlie Kirk last year. Trump singled out the anti-fascist antifa movement on the campaign trail in 2024.

The US Department of the Treasury also designated the transnational group Masar Badil as a specially designated global terrorist on Wednesday. It designated an Italy-based entity for supplying digital architecture, tools and services for antifa and other far-left groups on Wednesday. These additional designations accompanied the action against Palestine Action.

Why It Matters

The designation marks an expansion of US counterterrorism tools against groups characterized as far-left. By invoking authorities established after the 9/11 attacks, the Treasury applies financial restrictions typically reserved for violent extremist organizations to a group primarily engaged in property damage and protest disruption.

This move aligns with recent statements from senior US officials regarding a shift in counterterrorism focus. The coordination with UK proscription efforts shows a transatlantic approach to groups operating across borders, even as legal challenges to such bans proceed in British courts.

What's New

Palestine Action has the stated goal of ending global participation in Israel's genocidal and apartheid regime.