A pro-Palestine protest group has said two of its members broke into the RAF’s Brize Norton airbase and defaced two military aircraft with spray paint before escaping the site without being detained.
Palestine Action released a short video on Friday morning showing two people driving electric scooters unimpeded inside the airbase at night, in an embarrassing breach of Ministry of Defence (MoD) security at a site where transport planes used by the king and prime minister can be parked.
The group said it had targeted RAF Voyager aircraft used for transport and refuelling, and that “activists have interrupted Britain’s direct participation in the commission of genocide and war crimes across the Middle East”.
The MoD condemned the protest and described it as “vandalism of Royal Air Force assets”. It is working closely with police and counter terrorism officers investigating the incident, a spokesperson added.
Brize Norton in Oxfordshire is the largest airbase in the UK, employing more than 6,000 people, and is home to the UK’s refuelling fleet. One of the Voyager aircraft, now repainted with a British flag on its tailfin, is used to fly the king and the prime minister on official engagements.
At the beginning of the video, a plane with the union flag tailfin livery can be seen in the distance on the tarmac.
Downing Street said a full security review was under way and that it would encompass the entire defence estate. A spokesperson said the police would take “all necessary steps to investigate and prosecute”.
Palestine Action said the intruders used repurposed fire extinguishers to spray red paint into the turbines of the two planes and attacked them with crowbars. Paint, symbolising bloodshed, was also sprayed on the runway, and a Palestinian flag was left at the scene, as shown in the footage.
A defence source said the attack was based on a misconception. The UK does not provide refuelling to support Israeli military operations, the person said. Two aircraft were being checked for damage and no planned flights or operations were affected, they added.
RAF Voyagers were used in April to support Typhoon jets bombing Houthi rebels near Sana’a in Yemen during the recent US-led Operation Rough Rider campaign against the group. The Houthis support Iran and Hamas, though the attack was in response to the Yemeni group’s attacks on merchant shipping in the Red Sea.
Airbases and planes stationed on the ground are considered softer military targets, as demonstrated by Ukraine’s recent Operation Spider’s Web drone raid on grounded Russian aircraft. But it is a surprise that it was possible for two protesters to enter and exit a major RAF base at night without being arrested.
Palestine Action said planes from Brize Norton fly regularly to the RAF Akrotiri airbase in Cyprus, used for British operations in the Middle East. More than 500 surveillance flights by Shadow R1 aircraft over the Gaza area have been flown by the RAF from Akrotiri in secretive missions that the UK says are to aid hostage recovery.
The group accused the UK of being “an active participant in the Gaza genocide and war crimes across the Middle East. By decommissioning two military planes, Palestine Action have directly intervened to break the chains of oppression.”
The MoD said: “Our armed forces represent the very best of Britain. They put their lives on the line for us, and their display of duty, dedication and selfless personal sacrifice are an inspiration to us all. It is our responsibility to support those who defend us.”
