Formation | 2023 |
---|---|
Type | Activist group |
Purpose | Targeting Elbit Systems Palestinian liberation |
Region | United States |
Parent organization | Palestine Action |
Palestine Action US is the United States branch of Palestine Action, a pro-Palestinian protest network targeting Israeli weapons manufacturers. Its earliest known activities began in February 2023, and it began protests in October following the outbreak of the 2023 Israel–Hamas war. The group, along with its United Kingdom counterpart, has primarily led a global campaign against Israel-based defense electronics company Elbit Systems.[1][2]
Palestine Action is a United Kingdom-based protest movement funded in 2020 when members targeted the UK headquarters of Elbit.[3] The group mobilized during the 2021 Israel–Palestine crisis and carried out protests since.[4]
The network's earliest known activities began in May 2023, when the group supported an event in the US House about the Nakba.[5]
On October 12, activists from the group attempted to shut down an Elbit office in Cambridge, Massachusetts, according to Mondoweiss.[6]
On October 20, activists in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, protested General Dynamics. General Dynamics did not respond to questions about its involvement in the war, but said it supported activists' rights to protest.[7]
On October 25, activists protested Elbit at the Wentworth Institute of Technology.[2]
On October 30, activists vandalized and protested the Boston office of Elbit, claiming they shut it down. The group claimed 9 arrests were made by the Cambridge police.[1][2]
On November 6, activists vandalized the Virginia office of Elbit.[8]
On November 17, activists blocked entrances to BNY Mellon, targeted for its investments in Elbit. The NYPD broke up the protests and took 20 people into custody.[9]
On November 20, activists vandalized and blocked an Elbit office in Merrimack, New Hampshire. They occupied the roof of the building and were arrested.[10][11][12] They were arraigned the following day and condemned by both parties.[13][14] The network claimed on X, formerly Twitter, that one was released and the other two had bail set at $20,000.[15]
In April 2024, Palestine Action posted an image of a crowbar to its Instagram account and stated “We are sharing educational-only materials on tactical skills like holding down occupations *inside* of university buildings” that included detailed instructions for its supporters on how to use a crowbar or prybar to break open a locked door to illegally enter a building, remove the lock cylinder, damage the door to make it difficult to reopen. [16]