Palestinian Saboteurs Attack UK-Based Israeli Elbit Systems Defence Establishment

Pro-Palestinian saboteurs armed with sledgehammers broke into a defence company facility where they assaulted police officers and employees while also destroying weapons and machinery, according to the police, and as reported by The Times.

The saboteurs reportedly used a repurposed prison van to smash through the gates of the highly secure Bristol-based research, development and manufacturing hub for a British subsidiary of the Israel-based defence giant Elbit Systems.

Video posted online by the protest network Palestine Action showed the activists driving into the facility in the early hours of Tuesday morning and then breaking into the building, where they smashed up military equipment, including Israeli quadcopter drones, with homemade weapons.

Avon and Somerset police said the vehicle drove through the fencing of the facility, called Horizon, and then rammed the entrance to the building. More than a dozen people exited the van and began attacking the building in what the police described as a “disturbing” incident. Some Elbit Systems employees tried to intervene but were assaulted with weapons with one suffering a head injury, according to police.

Two officers were attacked with a sledgehammer during the incident. One had to be taken to hospital with back injuries and the other officer was treated at the scene by paramedics after being hit on the back of his legs. Police seized sledgehammers, axes, whips and other homemade weapons that were left at the scene.

In a video released by the activist group Palestine Action, protesters are seen infiltrating a facility in the early hours of Tuesday. The footage depicts activists driving into the premises and forcibly entering the building, where they proceeded to vandalize military equipment, including Israeli quadcopter drones, using makeshift weapons.

According to Avon and Somerset police, the protesters drove their vehicle through the facility’s perimeter fencing, identified as Horizon, and rammed it into the building’s entrance. Over a dozen individuals emerged from the van and began their assault on the building in what the police labeled a “disturbing” event. Some employees of Elbit Systems attempted to intervene but were met with violence. One employee suffered a head injury during the confrontation.

During the chaos, two police officers were attacked with a sledgehammer. One officer sustained back injuries and required hospitalization, while the other was treated at the scene by paramedics after being struck on the legs. Following the incident, police confiscated various homemade weapons, including sledgehammers, axes, and whips, which were abandoned at the scene.