UK-Court of appeal denies bail for Filton 18 activist
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At a hearing today, a judge at the Court of Appeal denied Kamran Ahmed, one of the Filton 18, bail.
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Kamran Ahmad, a pro-Palestinian activist (Social Media)
Kamran Ahmad, an activist and caregiver for his elderly parents, has been denied bail, reversing a decision made by a senior judge last Friday.
His parents have now been without his essential care for over three months as he faces up to two years in remand for reportedly dismantling weapons used in the Gaza genocide, alongside 17 others known as the Filton18.
🚨BREAKING: Court of Appeal Denies Bail for Filton 18 Activist!
— CAGE International (@CAGEintl) March 4, 2025
Kamran Ahmed, activist and carer for his elderly parents, has been denied bail, overturning a senior judge’s ruling last Friday.
His parents have now been left without his vital support for over three months, as… pic.twitter.com/0AK4O6ZPz8
While no terrorism charges have been brought against them, authorities aim to pursue harsher terror-related sentences for the Filton 18.
The Filton 18 case
Ahmad’s case involves a Palestine Action direct action targeting a facility of "Israel’s" largest weapons manufacturer, Elbit Systems, in Filton, Bristol, where six activists destroyed quadcopters and drones.
The Filton 18 case gained attention as it marked the first instance of Palestine Action activists being arrested under terrorism laws for disrupting the arms supply chain used in the Gaza genocide.
CAGE International condemned this as a severe attack on campaigners, signaling a significant escalation by the state in support of "Israel."
Although their actions do not meet the criteria for terrorism offenses, authorities plan to pursue harsher terror-related sentences for the Filton 18 through legal loopholes.
In November 2024, four UN Special Rapporteurs and experts sent a letter to the British government, warning that treating direct action as terrorism “risks chilling the exercise of freedom of expression and opinion and the right to participate in public life, as well as political and public discourse.”
They also criticized the UK’s broad definition of terrorism, suggesting that counter-terrorism laws might have been used to bypass procedural safeguards regarding the detention of the Filton 18.
