Tears and joy as all but one Palestine Action accused granted bail
The 24 defendants had been in custody on charges of criminal damage and violent disorder over the raid on the Elbit Systems site near Bristol.
There were tears and cries of joy as all but one of the Palestine Action activists were granted bail ahead of trials over a break-in at a UK centre for an Israel-based defence firm.
On Friday, Mr Justice Johnson granted conditional bail to 18 defendants who, along with six others, are facing a series of linked trials.
The 24 defendants had been in custody on charges of criminal damage and violent disorder over the raid on the Elbit Systems site near Bristol on August 6 2024.
They included three women and one man who had previously staged hunger strikes in prison.
The defendants had appeared at the Old Bailey by video links from Peterborough, Belmarsh, Lewes, Newcastle, Eastwood Park and Chelmsford prisons.
As the senior judge gave his bail decisions one by one, there were tears from some defendants and expressions of glee by others, who have already spent many months on remand.
Outside the Old Bailey, protesters could be heard shouting as the bail hearings were going on inside.
The 18 defendants are: Kamran Ahmed, 28, from London; Sean Middlebrough, 33 from Liverpool; Qesser Zuhrah, 21, from London; Julia Brigadirova, 33, from Chorlton; Zahra Farooque, 25, from London; Aleksandra Herbich, 41, from London, Teuta Hoxha, 30, from London.
Heba Muraisi, 31, from London; Madeline Norman, 31, from Edinburgh; William Plastow, 35, from Manchester; Ian Sanders, 46, from Leamington Spa; Hannah Davidson, 53, from Edinburgh; Liam Mullany, 23 from Dorset; Harland Archer, 21, from Whitstable; Finn Collins, 19, from Whitstable; Salaam Mahmood, 19, from London; Louis Adams, 25, from London; and Moiz Ibrahim, 27, from London.
Previously, five out of six other defendants facing a retrial on criminal damage and violence charges have been granted bail.
Charlotte Head, 29, Samuel Corner, 23, Leona Kamio, 30, Fatema Rajwani, 21, Zoe Rogers, 22, and Jordan Devlin, 31, were cleared of aggravated burglary on February 4 following a trial at Woolwich Crown Court.
Rajwani, Rogers, and Devlin were also acquitted of violent disorder.
All but Corner have now been granted conditional bail.
Following the first trial, the prosecution dropped aggravated burglary charges against all the remaining defendants.
The next trial is due to start at Woolwich Crown Court from April 9.
