
Four remanded in custody after aircraft damaged at RAF Brize Norton
Amy Gardiner-Gibson, 29, Jony Cink, 24, Daniel Jeronymides-Norie, 36, and Lewis Chiaramello, 22, appeared at Westminster magistrates court in custody on Thursday.
The defendants spoke only to confirm their names.
The incident in Oxfordshire caused about £7m worth of damage to the aircraft on 20 June, police said previously.
Counter-terrorism policing south-east on Wednesday charged the defendants with conspiracy to enter a prohibited place knowingly for a purpose prejudicial to the safety or interests of the United Kingdom, and conspiracy to commit criminal damage, under the Criminal Law Act 1977.
There was applause and chants of 'free Palestine' from the packed public gallery as the defendants were led away.
They will next appear at the Old Bailey on 18 July.
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The Guardian
43 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Met police arrest activists holding signs referring to Palestine Action
Twenty-nine people have been arrested after protesters gathered in central London holding signs referencing Palestine Action a day after the group was banned as a terrorist organisation. The direct action protest group was banned on Friday after a last-minute legal attempt to suspend the group's proscription under anti-terrorism laws failed. It means that, from Saturday, being a member of, or expressing support for, the organisation became a criminal offence, punishable by up to 14 years in prison. The campaign group Defend Our Juries, which organised the demonstration, said 'a priest, an emeritus professor and a number of health professionals' were among those arrested. More than two dozen people gathered close to the statue of Mahatma Gandhi in Parliament Square, holding signs that appeared to express support for the group. At about 1.40pm, Metropolitan police officers began arresting people who were holding the signs. In a statement on X, the Met said: 'Officers have arrested more than 20 people on suspicion of offences under the Terrorism Act 2000. They have been taken into custody. Palestine Action is a proscribed group and officers will act where criminal offences are committed.' The force posted another update on X on Saturday evening to say 29 arrests had been made and added that those arrested remain in custody. A spokesperson for Defend Our Juries said: 'We commend the counter-terrorism police for their decisive action in protecting the people of London from some cardboard signs opposing the genocide in Gaza and expressing support for those taking action to prevent it. It's a relief to know that counter-terrorism police have nothing better to do.' On Friday, the group wrote to the Met commissioner, Mark Rowley, to give him advance warning of the demonstration. Before officers made arrests, the Guardian spoke to some of the demonstrators. Tim Crosland, of Defend Our Juries, said: 'What we're doing here as a group of priests, teachers, health workers, human rights lawyers [is] we're refusing to be silenced. Because it goes to the core of what we believe in: that we oppose genocide – I didn't think that was that controversial – and we support the people who resist genocide. 'In theory we are now terrorist supporters and can go to prison for 14 years, which is kind of crazy. I think what we are here to do is just expose the craziness of that.' An environmental campaigner, Donnachadh McCarthy, said: 'To proscribe an organisation of peaceful direct action as terrorists is a huge red line for our democracy. It means that all the rest of us, whether we're climate activists, Greenpeace, women's suffragettes, disabled activists, it means that the government can now declare any act of property damage to be terrorism, which gives you a sentence of 14 years. 'This is worse than Putin's Russia. I don't say that lightly. It's 10 years for doing what we're doing today in Russia; it's 14 years in the UK, because of Yvette Cooper's outrageous betrayal of democracy, liberalism, and what is in my view a step towards fascism.' A retired priest, Sue Parfitt, 83, said the group's ban was 'a very dangerous move that has to be challenged'. 'We are losing our civil liberties, we must stop that for everybody's sake. Whatever you want to protest about,' she said. Cooper, the home secretary, announced plans to ban Palestine Action late last month, days after activists from the group broke into RAF Brize Norton and defaced two military aircraft with spray paint. MPs voted in favour of proscribing the group on Wednesday. The House of Lords backed the move without a vote on Thursday. UN experts, civil liberties groups, cultural figures and hundreds of lawyers have condemned the ban as draconian and said it sets a dangerous precedent by conflating protest with terrorism. The ban means Palestine Action has become the first direct action protest group to be banned under the Terrorism Act, placing it in the same category as Islamic State, al-Qaida and the far-right group National Action.


Sky News
44 minutes ago
- Sky News
How Prevent is tackling young extremism 20 years after the 7/7 bombings
Radicalised nine-year-olds, teenagers mixing incel culture with extreme right ideologies and a Muslim who idolises Hitler - this is just some of the casework of those tasked with deradicalising young extremists in the UK. Monday will mark 20 years since the 7/7 attacks on the London transport network when four suicide bombers killed 52 people and injured 770 others. A year later the government set up its deradicalisation programme Prevent as part of its counter-terrorism strategy. Sky News has spoken to two leading intervention providers (IPs) at Prevent who both say their work is getting ever more complex and the referrals younger. The Metropolitan Police's Prevent co-ordinator, Detective Superintendent Jane Corrigan, has also told Sky News it is "tragic" that when it comes to terrorism, "one in five of all our arrests is a child under 17". She believes parents should talk to their children about what they are reading and seeing online. "Parents instinctively know when something doesn't feel right when their child is becoming withdrawn or isolated - not wanting to engage," she says. People worried that someone they know has thoughts that could lead to terrorism can refer them to Prevent. 'A pic-n-mix of ideologies' Home Office figures show 11-year-olds are the largest age group to get referred. Concerning cases are passed on to IPs such as Nigel Bromage who told Sky News: "Often there will be a pic-n-mix of ideologies. "From my own examples and experience, we are aware of people looking at the incel culture and mixing that with some far-right elements." Incels, meaning "involuntary celibates" are men who have been unable to have a relationship with women despite wanting one and become misogynistic and hateful as a result. Like many IPs, Mr Bromage from Birmingham comes from an extremist background himself, having once been a regional organiser for the proscribed Neo-Nazi group Combat 18. For him too, it began as a child. "It all started with someone giving me a leaflet outside my school gates," Mr Bromage says. "It told me a horrific story about a mum getting killed by an IRA bomb explosion - and at the end of the leaflet there was a call to action which said: 'If you think it's wrong then do something about it'." He developed a hatred for Irish republican terrorism which morphed into general racism and national socialism. "At the very end I thought I was going to go to prison, or I would end up being hurt or even killed because of my political beliefs," he says. Boy, 9, groomed by his brother Mr Bromage reveals his youngest case was a nine-year-old who had been groomed by his brother. "He was being shown pro-Nazi video games, and his older brother was saying 'when I go to prison or I get in trouble - they you're the next generation - you're the one who needs to continue the fight'," he says. "Really, he had no interest in the racist games - he just wanted to impress his brother and be loved by his brother." Every year, nearly 300 children who are 10 or younger are referred to Prevent. Home Office figures show that over the last six years 50% of referrals were children under the age of 18. Eleven-year-olds alone make up a third of total referrals, averaging just over 2,000 a year, with the figure rising even higher in the most recent stats. Another IP, Abdul Ahad, specialises in Islamic extremism. He says the catalyst for radicalisation often comes from events aboard. Ten years ago, it was Syria, more recently Gaza. "It is often a misplaced desire to do something effective - to matter, to make a difference. It gives them purpose, camaraderie and belonging as well - you feel part of something bigger than you," he says. Clients want someone to 'hear them' Some of his clients "don't fit into any particular box". "I'm working with a guy at the minute, he's a young Muslim but he idolises Hitler and he's written a manifesto," he says. "When you break it down, some people don't know where they fit in, but they want to fit in somewhere." Mr Ahad says the young individual mostly admires Hitler's "strength" rather than his ideologies and that he was drawn to darker characters in history. Often his clients are very isolated and just want someone to "hear them", he adds. Mr Ahad is also an imam who preaches at the Al-Azar Mosque in South Shields, a well-regarded centre for community cohesion and outreach. He uses his understanding of the Islamic faith in his Prevent sessions to help guide his referrals away from extreme interpretations of the Koran by offering "understanding and context". He says: "We quote the correct religious texts - we explain their responsibility as a Muslim living in the UK and we re-direct their energies into something more constructive." Common theme of mental health issues Mental health problems are a common theme among those referred to Prevent including depression and autism. A recent inquest into the death of autistic teenager Rhianan Rudd found she took her own life after being radicalised by two white supremacists. Her mother was critical of Prevent, as well as the police and MI5 after she had referred her daughter to the deradicalisation programme and Rhianan was subsequently charged with terrorism offences. Last month a coroner found some failings in the processes around protecting Rhianan, but none of them attributable to Rhianan taking her own life. Det Supt Corrigan says a referral doesn't mean individuals end up being arrested or on an MI5 watchlist. She says: "You're not reporting a crime, but you are seeking support. I would say the earlier you can come in and talk to us about the concerns you have the better. Prevent is just that - it is a pre-criminal space. "It's tragic when you see the number of young people being arrested for very serious charges. Just look at terrorism - one in five of all our arrests is a child under the age of 17. We need to think about how we respond to that." Prevent has been criticised for failures such as when Southport killer Axel Rudakabana failed to be recognised as needing intervention despite three referrals, or when MP David Amiss' killer Ali Harbi Ali went through the programme and killed anyway. It's harder to quantify its successes. Mr Ahad says he understands why the failures hit the headlines, but he believes the programme is saving lives. He says: "I think the vast majority of people get radicalised online because they are sitting in their room reading all this content without any context or scholarly input. They see one version of events and they get so far down the rabbit hole they can't pull themselves out. "I really wish Prevent was around when I was a young, lost 15-year-old because there was nothing around then. It's about listening to people engaging with them and offering them a way of getting out of that extremism." 'Radicalisation can happen in days to weeks' Det Supt Corrigan says: "I've sat with parents whose children have gone on to commit the most horrendous crimes and they all spotted something. "Now, with hindsight, they wished they had done something or acted early. That's why we created this programme, because radicalisation can happen in days to weeks." Twenty years on from 7/7 the shape of the terrorist threat has shifted, the thoughts behind it harder to categorise, but it is no less dangerous.

Rhyl Journal
2 hours ago
- Rhyl Journal
Arrests made at protest in support of banned Palestine Action
The Metropolitan Police posted on X on Saturday afternoon saying officers are responding to the protest in Parliament Square and making arrests. Palestine Action lost a late-night Court of Appeal challenge on Friday which sought to stop the protest group being banned, less than two hours before the new legislation came into force at midnight. Officers are responding to a protest in support of Palestine Action in Parliament Square. The group is now proscribed and expressing support for them is a criminal offence. Arrests are being made. Further updates will be shared here. — Metropolitan Police (@metpoliceuk) July 5, 2025 The designation as a terror group means that membership of, or support for, Palestine Action is a criminal offence punishable by up to 14 years in prison. The move to ban the organisation was announced after two Voyager aircraft were damaged at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire on June 20, an incident claimed by Palestine Action, which police said caused around £7 million of damage. The force posted on X saying: 'Officers are responding to a protest in support of Palestine Action in Parliament Square. 'The group is now proscribed and expressing support for them is a criminal offence. 'Arrests are being made. 'Further updates will be shared here.' A group had earlier said it was set to gather in Parliament Square on Saturday holding signs supporting Palestine Action, according to campaign group Defend Our Juries. In a letter to the Home Secretary, protesters said: 'We do not wish to go to prison or to be branded with a terrorism conviction. But we refuse to be cowed into silence by your order.' Leslie Tate, 76, a Green councillor from Hertfordshire, said: 'Palestine Action are not a violent organisation, and the proscription is wrong. 'You do know, of course, that they were proscribed by Parliament with two other groups involved – all three at once – so that was a trick to make sure the Bill went through. 'The evidence from their actions that they've taken from the start of Palestine Action is that they all have been non-violent. 'This protest is necessary to defend our democracy, and this is the creeping edge of totalitarianism, frankly. 'We thought they (the police) would probably take pictures of people. 'It's the obvious thing to do, to photograph them, then they have their identity, rather than make arrests.' Metropolitan Police circled around dozens of protesters standing quietly beneath the statue of Mahatma Gandhi, with placards that said: 'I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action'. Occasional chants of 'free Palestine' broke out from the surrounding onlookers, and some criticised the police attending. The protest started at about 1.10pm and officers were seen taking people away shortly after 1.30pm. An elderly woman in a clerical collar, who was sat in a camp chair with one of the placards at her feet, appeared to be taken away by officers. Another person was seen lying on the floor in handcuffs as police gathered over her. A woman seen lying on the floor in handcuffs was carried away in the air by officers and put in a police van. While suspended and flanked by a large group of police, she said calmly: 'Free Palestine, stop the genocide, I oppose genocide, I support the rights of the Palestinian people, I support freedom of speech, I support freedom of assembly.' A mass of people crowded around to film the scene. Officers placed her in the vehicle parked on the road behind the square before returning to the Mahatma Gandhi statue, where almost no protesters remained. Chants of 'shame' broke out, directed at the police, and officers moved behind the Gandhi statue. Most of the police dispersed at around 2.10pm. 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'. MPs in the Commons voted 385 to 26, majority 359, in favour of proscribing the group on Wednesday, before the House of Lords backed the move without a vote on Thursday. Four people – Amy Gardiner-Gibson, 29, Jony Cink, 24, Daniel Jeronymides-Norie, 36, and Lewis Chiaramello, 22 – have all been charged in connection with the incident at Brize Norton. They appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Thursday after being charged with conspiracy to enter a prohibited place knowingly for a purpose prejudicial to the safety or interests of the United Kingdom, and conspiracy to commit criminal damage, under the Criminal Law Act 1977.