Arms companies around the world are profiting from Israel’s brutal occupation of Palestine. Along with the banks that invest in them, these companies are on our doorsteps. The Stop Arming Israel campaign has call a week of action from 1st to 7th July 2017, which is the third anniversary of Israel’s 2014 attacks on Gaza.

Manchester PSC will be participating in the national week of action. On Saturday 1st July we will be holding a protest outside the HSBC branch in St Anne’s Square. On Monday 3rd July there will be a protest outside the Elbit factory in Oldham (Ferranti Technologies Waterhead) and on Thursday 6th we are organising a coach to the protest at the Elbit/UAV  factory in Shenstone outside Birmingham.

Palestinian civil society has called for a comprehensive military embargo on Israel. Now is the time to heed the call for effective solidarity.The UK and Israel have a close and profitable military relationship. The UK government provides Israel with military and political support to continue with its repression of Palestinians and acts as a green light to further war crimes.

The UK is home to a number of arms factories that export weapons to Israel including four Elbit Systems factories: UAV systems in Shenstone; Instro Precison in Broadstairs, Ferranti in Oldham and Elite KL in Tamworth. Elbit Systems markets its weapons as ‘field-tested’ on Palestinian. UK based banks, like HSBC, hold shares and provide loans to military and technology companies that sell weapons and equipment to Israel. HSBC’s complicity includes Elbit shares worth £3.64m