On Wednesday 27 August, activists from Shut Elbit Down Bristol took direct action against the headquarters of Elbit Systems UK, Israel’s number one weapons manufacturer.

Elbit Systems: bike blockade to genocide HQ

Two people cycled up to the entrance of the building and used lock-on devices built into the bikes, to blockade access to the site:

They did so to draw attention to Elbit’s direct involvement in the genocide in Gaza, and to disrupt Elbit’s British operations, which the company controls from the Aztec West HQ.

MOD £2bn contract award to Elbit imminent

Elbit is Israel’s biggest manufacturer of military hardware. It produces 85% of the attack drones, which Israel have used to decimate the civilian population of Gaza. These include the quadcopter drones, which mimic the sounds of crying children, drawing others in to be killed. The company advertises its weapons as “battle tested”, but it is no secret that they have actually tested them on Palestinian civilians.

Activists took action just as the Ministry of Defence (MOD) may imminently grant Elbit Systems a £2bn contract to train 60,000 British soldiers. If this happens, it will make Israel’s biggest weapons firm a strategic partner of the MOD – at a time when the company is actively arming and fueling the genocide in Gaza.

Elbit’s premises throughout Britain, including the Aztec West site, have been the scenes of many previous protests.

Active participants in Israel’s genocide

Before cycling to Elbit, one action taker said:

Today we are blocking the entrance of the Elbit factory in Bristol. Elbit are an active participant in the ongoing genocide in Gaza. They supply drones and F-35 fighter jet parts for the Israeli occupying forces.

Our own Ministry of Defence (MOD) may imminently sign a £2bn contract with Elbit to train 60,000 British soldiers. This is a company that is actively enabling the killing of journalists and civilians, and they’re about to become a strategic partner of the MOD. We can’t allow this to happen, so today we’re shutting Elbit down.

Another action taker added:

Today we’re at Aztec West, the Elbit UK headquarters because the UK should not house factories that are actively involved in murdering thousands of Palestinians.

A few days ago it was reported that Elbit are trying to win a contract with the Ministry of Defence to train British soldiers. Elbit is deeply complicit in the genocide of the Palestinian people. To them this genocide is just a way to make money. They say that their weapons are ‘battle-tested’ – this testing is done on Palestinians, real people who are getting killed. A famine has been declared, Palestinians are being starved by Israel, yet the UK continues to remain complicit.

Images via Shut Elbit Down Bristol