Ten people have been charged in total following the incident at an Elbit Systems factory in South Gloucestershire

The original group charged in connection with the Elbit Systems incident include Zoe Rogers (back row, third from left) (credit Palestine Action)

A Southgate woman is among ten people charged with violent offences following an attack on a business premises near Bristol earlier this month.

Zoe Rogers, aged 20 and from Selborne Road, was part of a group of people who forced their way into the building of defence technology firm Elbit Systems UK, using a vehicle to smash through the doors in the early hours of Tuesday, 6th August.

Extensive damage was caused to the building and some employees were attacked and seriously assaulted. Police officers from Avon and Somerset Police attended and said that two of its officers were also seriously assaulted in the course of their duties.

Specialist counter terrorism police officers have been leading the investigation into the incident at Elbit Systems in Filton, South Gloucestershire.

The attack was led by Palestine Action, which targeted the company because of its key role in supplying military equipment to the Israel Defence Forces as the war in Gaza continues.

Ten people have been jointly charged with criminal damage and aggravated burglary, with some additional charges of violent disorder, including in the case of Rogers. One person, Samiel Corner, aged 21 and from Georgeham in Devon, was also charged with one count of assault causing grievous bodily harm and two counts of assault causing actual bodily harm.

Seven of the defendants, including Rogers, appeared at Westminster Magistrates Court last week (Tuesday 13th), before a further three were charged on Friday (16th). The original six people charged were dubbed the ‘Filton Six’ by Palestine Action.

Detective Chief Superintendent Olly Wright, head of Counter Terrorism Policing South East, said: “This is a complex investigation and, while we have now secured charges against a number of people, the investigation very much continues.”

Superintendent Dan Forster, from Avon and Somerset Police, said: “At this stage, it appears those involved have travelled into the area from other parts of the country to commit these serious offences.”

While the arrests of the Palestine Action group were made under the Terrorism Act, and the Crown Prosecution Service has said that the incident had a “terrorist connection”, none of the group have so far been charged with terrorism offences. Palestine Action has since criticised the use of the Terrorism Act in relation to the incident, which it called an “abuse of power”.

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