Palestine Action ban is lawful, Court of Appeal rules

The BBC reports that the UK Court of Appeal has upheld the government's proscription of Palestine Action as a terror organization, reversing a February High Court ruling that found the ban unlawful. Five senior judges, led by Lady Chief Justice Baroness Carr, concluded the ban was "justified and proportionate," rejecting arguments that it violated rights to protest and free expression; Baroness Carr stated the group operates as a covert organization promoting unlawful violence rather than transparent civil disobedience. The reporting is sourced directly from judicial statements, Home Secretary comments, and Palestine Action's co-founder Huda Ammori, with substantive legal analysis from barrister Jonathan Metzer explaining the judgment's reasoning on government discretion in national security matters. Cross-referenced coverage from The Guardian, New York Times, Al Jazeera, Time, and Sky News corroborates the core ruling and adds consistent detail about arrests (119 total), the group's stated intent to appeal to the Supreme Court, and the controversial nature of the decision within civil liberties circles. Watch for whether the Supreme Court grants Palestine Action permission to appeal—the judges' failure to certify the case as legally unclear suggests permission may be difficult to obtain, but the complexity of the issues could prompt final review.