The activists were protesting the alleged use of the RAF base as a departure point for US aircraft involved in the US-Israel war on Iran.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n Published On 5 Apr 2026<\/span>5 Apr 2026<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n British police have arrested seven people on suspicion of supporting the banned group Palestine Action at a protest near a Royal Air Force (RAF) air base in eastern England used by United States forces.<\/p>\n The five men and two women arrested at a peace encampment just outside the Lakenheath airbase had gathered with other activists on Sunday to protest the alleged use of the base as a departure point for US aircraft involved in the US-Israeli war on Iran.<\/p>\n list of 3 items<\/span>end of list<\/span><\/section>\n The Lakenheath Alliance for Peace, which organised the protest, said the seven had been arrested wearing clothing with the message: \u201cWe oppose genocide, we support Palestine Action.\u201d<\/p>\n Police said the protesters had been arrested \u201con suspicion of supporting a proscribed organisation\u201d.<\/p>\n Prime Minister Keir Starmer\u2019s Labour government banned Palestine Action as a \u201cterrorist\u201d organisation last year, making it a criminal offence to belong to or support the group.<\/p>\n In February, a court<\/a> ruled the ban was \u201cdisproportionate\u201d and interfered with the right to free speech. But the government has appealed, and the ban remains in effect in the meantime.<\/p>\n More than 2,700 people have been arrested and hundreds charged over rallies in support of the group, according to protest organisers Defend Our Juries.<\/p>\n Police said in a statement on the latest arrests that they had a duty to enforce the law \u201cas it currently stands, not as it might be in the future\u201d.<\/p>\n Two protesters were also arrested on Saturday at Lakenheath and charged with obstructing public thoroughfares, police said.<\/p>\n US President Donald Trump has railed against Starmer for what he calls insufficient support in the US-Israel war on Iran<\/a>, straining the countries\u2019 longtime alliance.<\/p>\n The United Kingdom has authorised the US<\/a> to use British military bases to carry out \u201cdefensive\u201d operations against Iran and protect the vital Strait of Hormuz, through which about 20 percent of the world\u2019s oil passes in peacetime.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![](\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/2017-06-08T131939Z_1189275883_RC11B0FE7F20_RTRMADP_3_GULF-QATAR-JAZEERA-1714943623.jpg?resize=96%2C96&quality=80)
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