FAMILIES of six Palestine Action activists have said the jury’s verdict marked a ‘monumental victory’, after their relatives were cleared at Woolwich Crown Court of aggravated burglary over a protest targeting a UK subsidiary of an Israeli arms firm.
Charlotte Head, Samuel Corner, Leona Kamio, Fatema Rajwani, Zoe Rogers and Jordan Devlin were acquitted of aggravated burglary following a break-in at an Elbit Systems site near Bristol in August 2024. Rajwani, Rogers and Devlin were also cleared of violent disorder, while the jury failed to reach verdicts on several other charges.
Speaking outside court, Sukaina Rajwani said she was ‘so grateful that ordinary members of the public, the jury, delivered the verdict and monumental victory for my daughter’.
She said she was finally able to take her daughter home after ‘547 days’ in custody.
Emma Kamio, the mother of Leona Kamio, said she was ‘incredibly proud’ of the group, adding: ‘They inspired me and thousands of others to fight for Palestine too.’
She said: ‘The past 18 months have been harrowing, and I now need to take her home to heal and rebuild our lives. She has lost everything – her home in London and her livelihood – but not her dignity.’
Clare Rogers described her daughter Zoe and the others as ‘people of conscience’.
‘They were motivated by a desire to save lives,’ she said.
‘They tried every possible democratic route before they took this action.
‘They went on marches, wrote to MPs, joined encampments.’
Inside court, the defendants embraced as the verdicts were read out, while supporters in the public gallery cheered.
Around 100 people gathered outside to greet the families as they emerged.
The jury deliberated for more than 36 hours but did not reach verdicts on charges of criminal damage or further allegations of violent disorder.