The British government has fiercely defended its decision to ban a pro-Palestinian group under a decades-old terrorism statute, a designation reserved mainly for Islamic militants and neo-Nazis.
The rationale to outlaw the group, Palestine Action, was based on “clear advice and intelligence” after an “escalating campaign involving intimidation and sustained criminal damage,” Dan Jarvis, the security minister, said on Monday. Activists from the group have vandalized weapon factories and military equipment.
Mr. Jarvis said the group showed a willingness “to use violence in pursuit of its cause” and suggested supporters “may not know the extent of its activities.” Hundreds protesting the ban were arrested last weekend under the law, which also criminalizes public displays of support for groups categorized as terrorist organizations. Typically, such forms of expression are protected in Britain.
But an intelligence assessment that helped shape the government’s decision to ban Palestine Action undercuts some officials’ broad claims about why it named the group a terrorist organization. A declassified version of the report obtained by The New York Times said a “majority of the group’s activity would not be classified as terrorism” under Britain’s legal definition.
It also casts doubt on the government’s suggestion that Palestine Action sought to promote violence against people, a tactic typical of other groups banned under the terrorism law, which include Al Qaeda and the Islamic State.
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