THE RETRIAL of six of the Filton 24 opened at Woolwich Crown Court in south-east London yesterday, with scores of demonstrators outside supporting the accused.
On 4th February 2026, Lottie Head, Ellie Kamio, Fatema-Zainab Rajwani, Zoe Rogers and Jordan Devlin were released after 18 months in prison after a jury found them not guilty of Aggravated Burglary.
Along with Sam Corner, they were accused of taking action at Israeli-owned arms manufacturer Elbit’s research and development hub in Filton, Bristol to stop the flow of arms from the UK to the Israeli Defence Force (IDF).
The jury refused to convinct them on charges of criminal damage, and now the state is bringing them back to Woolwich for a retrial on these charges. Sam Corner, who had remained in prison for over 600 days, will face a further charge of GBH.
After the victory of the first Filton trial, the Crown Prosecution Service were quick to announce a re-trial. They even took the unusual step of announcing it first on social media.
Their trial, which is a test case for the state’s crackdown on support for Palestine, is expected to last anywhere between two and eight weeks.
Supporters outside the court chanted: ‘Free, Free Palestine! and ‘From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be Free!’
A number of protesters spoke to News Line.
Dr Clive Dolphin said: ‘I’m speaking on behalf of Defend Our Juries. We are outside Woolwich Crown Court because this is a case of a matter of conscience. It is vital that the jury and others involved know that a jury has the right in law to acquit according to their conscience.
‘In order for people to get a fair trial it is vital that the jury know their rights and for the defendants to be allowed to explain their motivations.’
William Blair, a supporter who travelled from Edinburgh to protest yesterday, said: ‘The Filton 24 should be lauded and praised, not vilified.
‘It is horrendous that the British government supplies Israel with weapons to kill innocent Palestinians. Have they not learned their lessons since colonial times?
‘Britain is allowing the US to use their military bases to bomb Iran. Keir Starmer used to be a human rights lawyer but does not follow human rights today.
‘Britain should follow the examples of Spain, France, Germany and Denmark who’ve not let the US use their military bases to attack Iran.
‘Donald Trump thinks that he’s dealing with a country like Venezuela when he kidnapped their leader, but Iran is not Venezuela.’
Kim Taylor, who came from Birmingham to the demonstration, said: ‘I’ve come to support the Filton 24. What they did was to prevent further murders in Gaza. They should not be in court whatsoever. I’m inspired by the Filton 24 who take on these companies like Elbit.
‘I am in court for criminal damage in December at Birmingham Magistrates Court. I protested outside the mail box in Birmingham, writing “Free Mo Chara” and “Free Palestine”.’
Yael Kahn, an anti-Zionism activist, said: ‘As we can see, Israeli arms are used for genocide. It is the British regime’s duty to stop sending arms to terrorist Israel.
‘Instead of putting sanctions on Israel the British regime is using its power to silence the best people who refuse to be complicit in genocide in Gaza, Lebanon and Iran.
‘I will support anyone who is against arming the Zionist entity.’