Pro-Palestine activists launch hammer and paint attack on Doncaster offices of arms firm

Footage shows two demonstrators, dressed head to toe in black attacking the offices of Thales in Carolina Court.

The clip, was shared on X, formerly Twitter, by an account named Palestine Action, which describes itself as a “direct action network dismantling British complicity with Israeli apartheid.”

A caption accompanying the video reads: “Thales weapons factory in Doncaster gets smashed and sprayed, dismantling a vital link in Israel’s military supply chain.”

The clip begins with one of the activists smashing windows and doors with a hammer.

The protester is then joined by another who sprays the frontage of the building in Lakeside with red paint.

It is not clear when the footage was filmed, although the clip has begun circulating on social media in the last few days.

Thales offices and factories across the UK have been targeted by pro-Palestine activists in recent years, claiming the firm supplies Israel with drones used for surveillance of Palestinian people.

Previously, activists have protested over Thales’s arms productions, which include military drones and armoured vehicles, but in recent attacks have been focusing on the firm’s involvement in the Watchkeeper drone scheme.

The drone, which is reported to have been made in collaboration with Israel’s Elbit Systems, has been used in Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine, as well as over British waters, the group claims.

In 2021, Elbit Systems’ factory in Leicester was targeted, with protesters scaling the roof and displaying Palestine flags. Factories and offices in Glasgow have also been targeted.

A spokesperson for Palestine Action has previously said: “Those in Gaza will often speak of how the drone’s constant presence, including its persistent buzzing noise, induces anxiety and fear, and adds to the constant state of trauma Gaza lives in.

“Stories like these have prompted activists to ensure the root of the misery – Britain’s arms industry, is struck at through direct action.”

We have contacted Thales UK, Palestine Action and South Yorkshire Police for comment.