A group of protesters blockaded the gates of a factory in Moulsecoomb this morning (Friday 19 January).
Around 40 activists gathered outside the premises of defence business L3Harris – based on the Home Farm industrial estate off Lewes Road.
They were calling for Britain to stop arming Israel and for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza.
Brighton and Hove News understands that L3 Harris is not closed, with some staff working from home to avoid the protest while others arrived before the protesters.
Meanwhile, more than 600 people have so far objected to a planning application by L3Harris to keep a temporary extension to the factory building.
Dan Hadley, doctor and Medact Brighton co-ordinator, said: “Healthcare staff and infrastructure are protected under international law but we have seen Israeli air strikes target hospitals, clinics, ambulances and the homes of healthcare workers.
“By supplying weapon parts to the Israeli military, L3Harris is complicit in these war crimes.
“Local healthcare workers stand in solidarity with their 374 Gazan colleagues killed by calling for this factory to close.”
Members of three groups – Brighton and Hove Action for Palestine, Brighton Queers for Palestine and Stop The War Brighton – released a joint statement this morning.
It said that the company had been awarded contracts to make bomb racks and bomb release mechanisms for F-16 and F-35 planes, which are currently being used by Israel to bomb Palestinians in Gaza.
Someone who gave her name only as Hermione, who described herself as a local resident, said: “Palestinians live in our city and there is an arms factory that makes weapons used to bomb their loved ones. This is horrific.
“We stand in solidarity with the people of Palestine and anyone being bombarded with weapons made in our country.
“We don’t want a weapons factory on our doorstep and we don’t agree with workers having to be complicit in a genocide.
“Brighton and Hove City Council, kick L3Harris out of Brighton.”
The group said that it planned to blockade the entrance until around 11am today.
L3 Harris were contacted for comment.
I wish they would all just go and live in another state.
Your groups do not speak for the majority of Brighton!!!! Please go back to where you came from and let Britonians go about their business. I hate the universities but I don’t stop them from brainwashing our youth. Nor did I ask for the extremists to be housed here. We don’t want your hate in this City
Did the Brighton Queers for Palestine sister group, Brighton Turkeys for Christmas turn up too?
Could Brighton and Hove News remove the homophobic and beside-the-point remarks above? It is a disrespect to the Israelis and Palestinians who have this far died
Hamas carried out mass genocide on 7th October. Children were tortured & murdered in front of their parents. Parents were murdered & tortured in front of their children. Sex violence was used as a weapon of war – young girls were raped & their bodies mutilated. Babies were beheaded & burnt. 1,200 civilians were slaughtered.
Hamas terrorists started it, Israel will finish it. Hamas can stop the war they started at any time, by surrendering and releasing the hostages.
You are aware Israel has been treating Palestines like animals for the past 50 years right? Israel (Occupied Palestine) is the most secure open air prison on the planet and if anyone is within 300 metres of the border Israelis shoot to kill, yet on this one occasion on October 7th they relaxed security? Israel is getting what they deserved, if you keep poking a dog and then it bites you, then well you shouldnt of poked the dog.
Zionism will be the death of everyone on this planet and it’s quite ironic that a people who suffered genocide 100 years ago are commiting genocide on another group of people, narcissism at its finest.
Also the majority of news articles about tortured babies and children is Zionist propaganda, when asked for evidence they were unable to back up their claims. FYI Hamas was founded and funded by Israel.
70 years + actually
What goes around comes around.
You will get what you deserve.
Most of what you say has been debunked by Israel itself. You need to inform yourself. There’s no excuse for ignorance unless you want to support genocide. The information is freely available. There were no beheaded babies. Israel will not allow an independent investigation into its claims of rape – the family of the girl that was said to have been said there was no evidence of sexual assault. On the other hand the footage coming out of Gaza is horrific and there is no limit to the evidence of war crimes going on by the IDF – in fact they boast about it themselves on Tick Tok.
Sambazza is repeating false statements made by Israeli extremists on October 7, and used by Israel to justify their genocide. We still don’t exactly know what happened on 7 Oct, but by now we know that no babies were beheaded, and that photos of raped women were actually old photos of atrocities against Kurdish women. Of the 1200 people killed on 7 Oct, 400 were Israeli soldiers, and hundreds of Israeli civilians were killed by Israeli helicopters and tanks under “Hannibal” policy that permits the killing of hostages in order to kill enemies. It seems there is little evidence for the atrocity claims, apart from the statements of Israeli disaster charity Zaka, which has raised millions from making these horrifying false stories, which were immediately repeated by BBC and Blinken. Maybe some atrocities occurred, we don’t know, but it seems most civilians were killed by Israeli fire. But even if the atrocity stories were true, they could not justify genocide of the 2 million people in Gaza, or the killings of thousands of innocent children in the ongoing psychopathic rage. U.K. needs to end the supply of arms to Israel, and to call for immediate ceasefire or we will be complicit in genocide. The source for the research on the atrocity stories is Max Blumenthal, respected USA independent journalist publishing as Grey Zone.
If Brighton Queers For Palestine were to protest in an Arab state they would be heavily prosecuted, and in some countries and states, tortured and killed, even thrown from buildings. How ironic!
Raphael Rosso states that by now we know that no babies were beheaded, and that photos of raped women were actually old photos of atrocities against Kurdish women. From where did he get this information? From social media? Who does he mean by “we”?
Thanks for sincere engagement Hendrick. Firstly, I did state the source for the research about the fake atrocity stories. It is Max Blumenthal of The Gray Zone. I will try to put a link after this reply, but you can Google him as well. I was initially taken in by these horrendous stories but then they just got ridiculous, so I started checking them out, and discovered they are fake. Secondly, your concerns about LGBTQ are very relevant. I am LGBTQ myself. The West justifies its wars on other cultures in the name of liberalism and democracy, and the LGBTQ flag flies prominently in the advance guard. You may have seen photos of Israeli soldiers proudly flying the flag in areas of the Gaza battlefield/slaughter grounds. This is very unfortunate. The flag should not be associated with the slaughter of innocents, just because their culture might be a conservative one. The entire world is becoming divided by this: we, the west, say we are the tribe of democracy and individual Liberty. So, we the West have the right to nurture and support opposition, and ultimately invade other countries which have different values to our Western values. These other countries are different indigenous cultures often with conservative values. They feel threatened by western libertarianism, which also results in a culture of drugs and violence as well as sexual choice. They have experienced hundreds of years of colonial violence from the west, including the violence of the capitalist free market. I love our western free world, I love brighton beach in the summer, I live my sexual freedom, but I would never seek to impose this on another culture through violence. Much better to lead by example, so the other culture will evolve, maybe we will evolve together. In the meantime, let’s accept cultural differences. In actual practice, it’s possible to be gay in a culture which does not condone this. I know from having lived in one. Not all Arabic countries are as repressive of gay culture as you suggest. In fact, attempts to impose liberal values by force lead to more extremist reactions as we have seen in Afghanistan Iraq Libya Syria and more. There is a valid debate here. The UN has declared we all have human rights, and the only way we can do this on a consensual basis is through the UN or similar bodies such as the ICC, where Israel is currently being charged with genocide. Israel today is behaving like Apartheid South Africa in its final days – lashing out violently. We can’t support it just because they fly the LGBTQ flag on the battle front. (By the way, ask Yuval Harari about Homophobia in Israel). Thanks again for your sincere dialogue to learn about each other and find common ground. And finally when I say we, I’m talking about those who oppose the arms factory. I know we need armed forces, and support defence industries. But I oppose the global military industrial complex, and the UK’s role in wars of aggression around the world. We risk turning the whole world against us. If that happens we risk losing everything. Better to accept a “multi polar” Queen’ world than to try to impose western values through armed force. Happiness, peace and liberty to all.
If I was placed in a small field with a hungry lion, it might very well attack me, kill me and eat me but even so, I do not want to see harm done to lions and I would strongly protest against a group who were harming lions. Good on Brighton Queers for Palestine for sticking up for those who are currently being harmed !
That’s a good way of putting it
I do not support the UK governments stance on the unconditional support of Israel, you will not be able to convince me, that what is happening in Gaza and the West Bank is justified.