By A Planeta based on information by Palestine Action, The Canary and CrimethInc.
(Euskaraz) (Catellano)
Following our information on actions against the genocide in Palestine, we have many more to report. Because the report was incomplete. And I’m sure there are many more. We only report here those that have happened since February 20, and as a complement to those that we already included in the previous article.
We also want to include a subsequent article published by CrimethInc. about Aaron Bushnell, the anarchist who set himself on fire to denounce Western collaboration with the genocide of the Palestinian people at the hands of the state of Israel. This has been written by his friends in an attempt to present to us who Aaron was and the reason for his decision (translated by A Planeta).
Actions against do not stop: Elbit on target
Numerous actions have been carried out against the arms companies that supply Israel from here to continue the genocide, as well as the local institutions that protect and promote them. In addition to fueling the machinery, this means the legitimization of this genocide and the policies of the state of Israel by our institutions, something that cannot be allowed.
The latest actions took place in Belgium, this March 4. The targets have been the company Smiths Metal, suppliers of components for Israel’s F-35 fighter aircraft, Elbit Systems and Thales. Red paint was thrown on the facade of Smiths Metal, while at Elbit, activists occupied the roof and Thales was blocked.
On February 27, they closed the factory responsible for manufacturing UAV Engines Shenstone drone engines, in Staffordshire (United Kingdom). The activists chained themselves to the doors of the factory, preventing all entry and exit, and therefore, all activity. Four activists were arrested and released the next day.
UAV Engines Shenstone is owned and operated by Israel’s largest weapons company, Elbit Systems. At this site, Elbit manufactures the Wankel or AR-80-1010 type rotary engines used in its fleet of Hermes drones, which currently fly over the skies of Gaza and are linked to war crimes documented by the Israeli army. Elbit Systems supplies 85% of the Israeli military fleet of drones and ground equipment, as well as bombs, missiles and other weaponry. Additionally, Elbit markets its weapons as “combat-proven” having been developed during bombing raids in occupied Palestine.
Elbit CEO Bezalel Machlis explained in a video how crucial Elbit is being to the ongoing genocide and how the company has received thanks from the Israeli military for its lethal services.
The company has long maintained that it does not export from Shenstone to Israel, but export information obtained through a freedom of information request shows a number of export licenses granted to Israel under the ML10 category for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), or components thereof.
The facility has been targeted on multiple occasions over the past three and a half years by Palestine Action, which has blocked, occupied and dismantled it on numerous occasions. Meanwhile, politicians continue to fail to act and the British government continues to refuse to stop arms transfers to Israel.
A spokesperson for Palestine Action stated: «For the last 140 days, Elbit’s drones, munitions, arms and military technologies have been used to slaughter Palestinians in their thousands – but the company has a far longer history of facilitating atrocities. It is abhorrent that they are still allowed to operate in Britain. Activists have taken the matter into their own hands to halt the corrupt, bloodthirsty industry fuelling death from Britain’s towns»
On February 29, Palestine Action activists occupied the Manchester offices of Bank of New York (BNY) Mellon, which is investing more than £10 million in Elbit Systems. That day, they were scheduled to receive senior New York executives. The facade of the offices were covered with red paint. While two activists scaled the main doors and two others chained themselves to block the entrance to the parking lot. Nine Palestine Action activists were arrested. They were released on March 1.
Repeated protests and actions have taken place at the bank’s facilities in both New York and Manchester, in a sustained attempt to pressure the bank to stop financing the genocide. Due to continued pressure from Manchester activists, BNY Mellon canceled a recruiting event.
On February 28, the Elbit factory in Leicester was blocked.
On February 27, activists from Brazil joined groups from Canada, the United Kingdom and other countries to celebrate the second World Day against Elbit Systems. They blocked the factory of AEL Sistemas, a partner of Elbit, carrying photos of Palestinian boys and girls murdered by the Israeli occupation.
On February 25, Palestine Action threw red paint on Leonardo’s London office, symbolizing his complicity in Palestinian bloodshed. Leonardo supplies weaponry for Israeli fighter jets and radar systems used throughout Gaza. On the 23rd it was also learned that three activists who occupied and destroyed a factory of that company in Edinburgh will be tried in April 2024.
On February 23, they also gathered outside the Thales company in Belfast, which participates with Elbit in supplies to the Israeli army.
On February 22, activists from Leicester blocked the Elbit drone factory in Meridian East. This action was a reaction to the British government’s decision not to demand a ceasefire from Israel the previous day. They managed to push back 2 trucks and some workers.
On February 20, the message «Financing the deaths of 13,000 children» was painted on the facade of the Barclays Bank in Moorgate (London). Barclays Bank invests in Elbit Systems.
That same day, in two separate actions, Palestine Action closed the office of Israeli arms manufacturer CDW in London. This company provides IT and supply chain management services to Israel’s largest arms company, Elbit Systems.
At the institutional level, on February 29, activists interrupted the plenary session of Somerset City Council to denounce its complicity in the Gaza genocide. Somerset City Council leases property in Bristol to Elbit Systems, Israel’s largest arms company. Activists demanded that Elbit be evicted from Bristol.
The occupation of the Stuart Hall building by Goldsmiths Students has also been aligned with the campaign of solidarity with free Palestine and against the complicity of institutions, such as in this case the university, in the genocide. This occupation, which began as a way to demand students’ rights and for the democratization of the educational and university system, has thus taken on a more extensive and political aspect. The occupation in solidarity with Palestine has now been going on for more than 2 weeks.
Charges against activists gradually dropped
On February 24, former political prisoner Ishaq was arrested in Newcastle after being released last month for action against an Israeli arms factory. Police reportedly used excessive violence. He is detained at Forth Banks Police Station, Newcastle upon Tyne.
Charges against activists over the blockade of Elbit’s Bristol headquarters were dropped by Bristol Magistrates’ Court. On the 20th for seven of them and on February 23rd for another four.
The Thales 3, activists from Palestine Action, were also released on February 20 after causing millions in losses to the Thales arms factory by occupying and dismantling the facilities in Glasgow in July 2022. In the Sheriff Court of Glasgow, they were each ordered to perform between 200 and 300 hours of community service, “despite having already performed an enormous service to humanity.”
And on February 20 they dropped charges against two activists who closed an Elbit factory in Leicester in May 2023.
Memories of Aaron Bushnell
As told by his friends (CrimethInc.)
On February 25, Aaron Bushnell set himself on fire at the gate of the Israeli embassy in Washington, DC as an act of protest against the ongoing genocide of Palestinians in Gaza. Hostile critics have attempted to shrug off Aaron’s action as the consequence of mental illness. On the contrary, Aaron’s choice was a political action arising from his deeply held anarchist convictions. In the following collection, we share Aaron’s own summary of his politics, followed by testimony from three of Aaron’s close friends.
As Aaron recounted to his comrades in a mutual aid group in San Antonio, he grew up in a very Christian conservative white enclave in Cape Cod. He was 18 years old when Donald Trump was elected; he joined the Air Force in 2019. While in the Air Force, he arrived at anarchist politics through a process of self-education.
In February 2023, Aaron prepared a document aimed at helping this group to become more cohesive. As another participant in the group told us, “Aaron sought to formalize and mature some of our organizing methods, and he felt that having deep and open discussion was a crucial first step for building long-term trust. He created a list of questions as a way for our ragtag group of lefties doing mutual aid to start a conversation with each other.”
In his own answers to these questions, Aaron states: «I am an anarchist, which means I believe in the abolition of all hierarchical power structures, especially capitalism and the state… I view the work we do as fighting back in the class war which the capitalist class wages on the rest of humanity. This also informs the way in which I want to organize, as I believe that any hierarchical power structure is bound to reproduce class dynamics and oppression. Thus, I want to engage in egalitarian forms of organizing that produce horizontal power structures based on mutual aid and solidarity, which are capable of liberating humans…
I favor consensus-based decision-making over “democratic” or voting-based governance.»
In the same document, Aaron explained why he was committed to doing mutual aid work in solidarity with the unhoused: «I’ve always been bothered by the reality of homelessness, even back when I was growing up in a conservative community. I have come to believe in the importance of solidarity politics and I view the enforcement of homelessness as a major front in the class war which must be challenged for all our sakes. I view helping my houseless neighbors as a moral obligation, a matter of social justice, and a matter of good politics. If I don’t stand with those more marginalized than me today then who will be left to stand with me tomorrow.»
In the following three accounts, Aaron’s friends share their memories of who he was and how his life touched their lives.
