Story perspectives

UK Judge Labels Elbit Protest ‘Terrorist’, Activists Sentenced

5/12/2026

Left

**Judge Labels Protest**

A UK judge called the 2024 Elbit Systems protest a “terrorist connection,” a move prosecutors say could set a precedent.
Four Palestine Action activists were convicted of criminal damage at the Elbit Systems UK site and now face terrorist sentencing.
State Senator Sam Sutton described the Brooklyn protest as an intimidation attempt against Jewish New Yorkers.
Police used pepper spray, tackled demonstrators and arrested teens and three adults amid 300 protesters.

Right

Menin Proposes Fence

Council Speaker Julie Menin proposed a law requiring NYPD to install fencing around synagogues and houses of worship during protests.
Police detained three people when a mob at Israel Services in Brooklyn chanted “Israel is killing children” and threw items.
State Senator Sam Sutton called the Brooklyn synagogue protest an intimidation attempt against Jewish New Yorkers.
Pal-Awda NY/NJ organized the protest and previously rallied at Manhattan’s Park East Synagogue in May.

History

Historical Context

The April 19, 1995 Oklahoma City bombing by Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols killed 168 people and prompted Congress to pass the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996, funding the FBI with $1.5 billion and adding 500 agents. That post-1995 shift toward treating demonstrations as terrorism underlies New York prosecutors’ 2024 labeling of the Elbit Systems protest as a terrorist connection.

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**Judge Labels Protest**

A UK judge called the 2024 Elbit Systems protest a “terrorist connection,” a move prosecutors say could set a precedent.
Four Palestine Action activists were convicted of criminal damage at the Elbit Systems UK site and now face terrorist sentencing.
State Senator Sam Sutton described the Brooklyn protest as an intimidation attempt against Jewish New Yorkers.
Police used pepper spray, tackled demonstrators and arrested teens and three adults amid 300 protesters.

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