In a grotesque escalation of political repression, on 12 June 2026 the judge at Woolwich Crown Court crossed a legal rubicon, sentencing four of the ‘Filton 25’pro-Palestine activists to lengthy prison terms using a state-engineered ‘terrorist connection’ label to impose ‘special custodial sentences’, a form of punishment which can only be meted out to those convicted of terrorism or sex offences. 23-year-old Samuel Corner was sentenced to eight years and eight months; 30-year-olds Charlotte Head and Leona Kamio were each handed six-year sentences; and 21-year-old Fatema Rajwani was condemned to five years and eight months.
The four were convicted at a retrial in May at which they were found guilty of criminal damage stemming from an August 2024 action that successfully disrupted Israeli weapons company Elbit Systems’ drone factory in Filton, near Bristol – destroying 40 drones in 20 minutes and, according to prosecutors, costing Elbit around a million pounds. They were neither charged nor convicted of terrorism. Yet, in an abuse of judicial power, Mr Justice Jeremy Johnson invoked Section 69 of the Sentencing Act 2020 to legally brand their actions as acts of terror, adding years to their sentences and setting a new precedent for punishing political dissidents in Britain.
The entire procedure was a thoroughly rigged show trial designed to protect corporate blood money. Justice Johnson had secretly ruled on the ‘terrorist connection’ enhancement during preliminary hearings back in March 2025, yet this decision was intentionally hidden from the jurors. The jury deliberated in total ignorance, unaware that their guilty verdict for property damage would be weaponised by the state to classify these activists as terrorists for the rest of their lives.
Because of this arbitrary ‘terrorist connection’ enhancement, the Filton 4 face aharsh prison regime. They must serve at least two-thirds of their sentences behind bars before even being considered for parole. Even after release, they will be subjected to notification requirements as ‘registered terrorists’, forced for over a decade to register every bank account, phone number, email address, personal relationship, vehicle, and travel plan with the police. Breaching the notification regime is in itself a criminal offence, punishable by a term of imprisonment. This is a calculated attempt to ruin the lives of those who dare disrupt the flow of weapons to the British-backed Zionist regime, as a warning to others who might try to do the same.
This ruling is a desperate counter-offensive by a morally bankrupt British ruling class that is terrified by the movement in solidarity with Palestine that emerged following October 2023. It follows the state’s repeated, clumsy attempts to maintain the proscription of Palestine Action as a ‘terrorist organisation’- a proscription that the High Court ruled unlawful in February 2026, but which the state is now doggedly appealing. For nearly two years, the police apparatus has tried to break these comrades, holding them on remand for up to 21 months under conditions that forced several political prisoners into a prolonged hunger strike, drawing the grave concern of UN special rapporteurs.
The ruling class is terrified because millions of working-class people in Britain have seen the horrors of Gaza and refuse to remain silent partners in British imperialism and Zionist genocide. We call on all revolutionary and anti-imperialist forces to redouble their efforts to build a mass movement, which can smash the counter-terror apparatus. The struggle is far from over. The Filton 4 have submitted an immediate appeal against their convictions and they will continue to fight behind bars. We must fight from the streets against all attempts to criminalise our solidarity, from the Brize Norton 6 to the SOAS 2.
Free the Filton 4 and all political prisoners!
Defeat British imperialism – Victory to the Palestinian resistance!
Jacob O’Neill
