Category: The Frontlines

Mink and Otter hunting season has begun so hunt saboteurs across the country are keeping an eye on the activity at kennels. Only 26 registered packs exist in the UK and Ireland, making them vulnerable to the multiple sabotage groups that operate. These packs operate using a small number of hounds and are usually transported in commercial and domestic vehicles, thus making them more difficult to locate oppose to a mounted hunt who are more obvious in appearance and use larger vehicles such as horse boxes and trailers. Efforts to continue hunting under the radar however inevitably get ruined upon the arrival of multiple sabotage groups forcing them to pack up. This was seen recently when Three Counties Hunt Sabs, Severn Vale Hunt Sabs, Cirencester Illegal Hunt Watch and Herefordshire Hunt Sabs who recently stopped Three Counties Minkhounds from hunting. Members of the public can play an important role in sabotaging a hunt by notifying suspicious behaviour. This can be done by contacting the Hunt Saboteurs Association tip-off line at 07443148426. Making a call or sending a message can be enough to stop wildlife from being killed.

Whilst on the lookout for ‘any wildlife murders’, Jorvik and West Yorkshire hunt sabotage groups came across a lone shooter setting up a shooting hide and forced them to pack up and leave. Multiple sabotage groups elsewhere, including West Yorkshire, Hertfordshire and Staffordshire, were also successful throughout the month after finding and ‘decommissioning’ various spring traps and larsens. Underground Badger Syndicate, who also discovered an array of ‘animal persecuting contraptions’, concluded that there is more to be done; ‘It’s not the end though…[we] will be back’. The more you look, the more you find.

Demonstrations and outreach continued throughout the month, including against the West Norfolk Foxhounds and the North Cotswold Hunt. These are important as hunting relies heavily on securing revenue through fundraising events, which double up as recruiting drives for mounted riders and other followers who pay to spectate. Eliminate these lines of support and a hunt soon starts to crumble.

One protest that had a large presence of saboteurs in attendance was outside Dorchester Police station, following increasing violence and illegal hunting from hunts in Dorset. This reaffirms that even though legislation against hunting (with packs of hounds) exists, the police and crime prosecution service do not care about wildlife. As a matter of fact, the UK government took a last-minute U-turn on the Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill, which would have added extra complications for hunting and detrimental to other animal industries. True wildlife defence has, and always will, come from action on the ground, implemented through a range of tactics from a myriad of people from different communities. Not the state.

NO LIFE LIKE THE WILD

Last Sunday, Palestine Action reached 28 days of siege of Elbit’s factory in Leicester!

Some of the latest actions in support of the ongoing siege include a spraypaint of “We ride 4 Palestine” on Uber’s Lime bikes in London, Red Leicester Choir performing songs in support of PalAction, and smashing and spraying Precision FM, the facilities manager of Leicester’s Israeli weapons factory.

Meanwhile, there have been a lot of news regarding charges and trials against PalAction.

Two actionists of PalActions current siege of Elbit’s factory in Leicester got detained for a couple of days and then released on May 24.

Two actionists who were involved in the groups’ siege of Leicester’s Israeli weapons factory in May last year went to court for a pre-trial hearing. They will be on trial from 19th June at Leicester Crown Court.

Three actionists who shut down Israel’s weapon’s factory in Tamworth were meant to be on trial on May 23 but the charges were dropped a day before the trial.

Further three actionists who helped shut down the Elbit HQ in London are on trial on Tuesday, May 30. Their charges were also dropped on the day.

Photo shows PalAction’s siege on Elbit’s HQ in London.

This has been a big month for CAFT. After a period of preparation, they have spent the last month targeting LVMH (a French luxury goods conglomerate) during their Annual General Meeting to demand that they drop fur from all their brands. This campaign has been massive and has had actions all over the world. 

Over 11 days of the campaign, 137 actions took place in 22 cities across 8 countries. 

One hotspot of the campaign was Paris, where local anti-fur group Collectif Sipe joined with CAFT for a day of protest on April 20th. They played images of the disgusting fur trade on a billboard truck outside LVMH’s meeting and protested outside. Then, when board members went to their hotel for the night, protesters joined them to force their message home! 

Meanwhile, CAFT-USA was being very active across the Atlantic. In New York the NYC-Animal Defense League targeted LVMH brands. For some of these, such as Dior, every single location in the city was hit. Actions took place across the country – with NYC, LA, and Boston being the cities with the most activity. In total, the campaign targeted 11 corporate headquarters, 3 museums/exhibits, 1 hotel and 1 market. 28 LVMH brands were visited overall. 

CAFT said that their method is ‘to dismantle the retail market, forcing one company after another to abandon fur, until the industry collapses’.  

‘Success hinges on a comprehensive use of resources and a collective effort from every animal advocate. Failure is not an option.’  

CAFT lists a number of different ways to get involved on their website, for those who are interested. 

https://caftusa.org

It’s been over two weeks since Palestine Action began their siege against Israeli weapons factory ‘UAV Tactical Systems’ in Leicester. Here are some updates on the siege and the groups’ actions!

On Sunday, Leicester’s local community and supporters of PalAction held a mass rally on day 13 of the siege. The city of Leicester has been covered in spray paint showing support of the siege.

Despite large police presence on the ground, Elbit’s neighbouring weapon trafficker Kuehne + Nagel was dismantled by actionists – leaving doors and windows smashed and walls covered in paint, stating “For Shireen” (referring to the murder of Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh by the Israeli military), “Free Gaza” and “We will win”.

Recent Israeli air strikes murdered 13 Palestinians, including children, in Gaza. Elbit Systems supplies 85% of Israel’s drone fleet, being directly responsible for these air strikes. In light of these events, PalActions calls on everyone to join the siege and show support at UAV Tactical Systems, Unit F Meridian East Business Park, LE19 1WZ.

PalAction has also launched nation-wide actions to accompany the Leicester occupation.

In London, the group has sprayed Britain’s Foreign Office with blook-red paint, ‘symbolising the blood spilt by British complicity in the colonisation of Palestine’. Two actionists have been arrested.

In Newcastle, PalAction has also taken over a weapons factory owned by Israeli state weapons company Rafael. The factory Pearson Engineering Ltd has recently been purchased by Israel which initiates Israel’s plan for further expansion in Britain. PalAction declares that this retaliation is ‘an official warning that Israel’s war machine is not welcome here’. You can show your support at Armstrong Works, Scotswood Rd, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE15 6UX.

The photo shows Pal Action’s siege of the Newcastle weapons company Rafael.

[image credit: Staffordshire Hunt Sabs]

As we enter spring, the main fox and hare hunting season (using packs of hounds) comes to an end. The work of wildlife defenders and hunt saboteurs continues however as campaign strategies against these fox and hare hunts remain ongoing. Direct threats to wildlife continue elsewhere and so do the actions taken to protect it.

Though the main hunting season has finished, action against hunts continues. The East Essex Hunt, who have been abusing wildlife for over 200 years and have a historic reputation of violence against opponents of hunting, are now vurnerable. Huntsman Gary Thorpe, hunt secretary Roxy Dawson and chairperson Sally Greenlees have also vacated their positions, leaving the hunt with no senior staff with no replacements in sight. As part of a targeted campaign, North London Sabs exposed the hunt in national media, demonstrated all summer fundraising events and lobbied relevant landowners in addition to disrupting dozens of hunt meets. Neighbouring sabotage groups have also contributed to these efforts. In a recent Facebook post, the London-based saboteurs reaffirmed their stance to anyone who would consider taking up vacant positions in the hunt; ‘expect us, and our friends’.

Demonstrations by locals and sabotage groups have also been carried out against the Cottesmore Hunt and the West Norfolk Foxhounds at their ‘fun ride’ events which aim to raise money and recruit new supporters to the hunts. The tactic of discouraging support to a hunt is important as running a hunt isn’t cheap. Without a cash flow that comes from fundraising events and paid supporters, a hunt cannot afford to operate.

In a seperate attempt to not fully dispand, some hunts will amalgemate. In Somsert, the West Somerset Beagles and the Ilminster Beagles are to join together and become Ilminster and West Somerset Beagles, meaning one less pack of hounds hunting hares. The county once had five hare hunts but now only have one. As hare hunting becomes concentrated to one pack, they become more vulnerable to a targeted campaign. If successful, the county could be free of hare hunts.

The vast majority of hunting hounds in the UK and Ireland are used to hunt foxes, but some are used to hunt stags. Only three packs exist in the UK, plus one in Ireland, and continues throughout April. Much attention is given to fox hunting, due to its scale, but multiple sabotage groups, have also kept up the pressure on some these stag hunts and have successfully prevented their efforts. However, the Quantock Stag Hounds and Devon & Somerset Stag Hounds were able to kill stags on separate occasions. Saboteurs present published evidence of this and highlighted how stag hunts use of loopholes to evade an anti-hunting law. Preventing a hunt killing is the primary aim but when this cannot be achieved, raising awareness on public platforms, along with an education approach, can be enough for others to decide to contribute to the campaign and take action. As the situation escalated throughout the month, more sabotage groups travelled from afar to show solidarity and get involved, which is not only important for the primary objective of protecting wildlife but also for the moral to keep up the fight.

Earlier in the month, the UK Government released the figures for the 2022 badger cull. This cull has been going for 10 years and has, according to government documents, resulted in over 200,000 badgers killed to appease the dairy industry, with property developers, private estates, golf courses, wedding venues and others benefiting. The controversy of the badger cull has emboldened many people to get involved in however way they saw fit. Some took a direct approach to stopping the badger cull, including hunt saboteurs and others working autonomously, by destroying cages used to trap badgers and preventing marksmen from shooting, whilst others have taken up a traditional campaigning and outreach approach. To quote Underground Badger Syndicate; “Even though the numbers are horrific, those who fought to protect setts and their inhabitants should still take pride in their actions. There are badgers still alive because of what you did.”.

Spring time is a busy time for wildlife. While many embrace this, gamekeepers and others intend to dissimate anything that they see as a threat to their interests (sometimes as pathetic as having a neat and tidy lawn). However, simply walking around the countryside can make a difference when looking in the right places. As Hertfordshire Hunt Saboteurs have shown in recent social media posts showing multiple traps they had removed, ‘direct action saves lives’.

NO LIFE LIKE THE WILD

“May 6th, so-called Australia
 
Opening Hunt for Oaklands Hunt Club 2023 was very different than previous years.With some big losses for Oaklands and hunt exposure now in the public eye due to some amazing journalism and shift in community support for sabs, Oaklands are desperate and violent.

MHS successfully blocked the horse and hound truck from leaving – equipped for a hunt, for an hour. While the hunt called police and attempted to have members of the team arrested, the hunt failed. No saboteurs were arrested, and following police instructions, sabs moved their car and proceeded to drive to the known hunting grounds for the hunt. They have not changed their illegal hunting behaviour in decades.On arrival at a location in Pyalong the hunt announced that they felt followed – queue the possibility  of the hunt takings saboteurs to court for an intervention  order yet again – and they will fail – again.

The silent victims. The hounds.Oaklands previous hunt master disposed of his hounds by shooting them and throwing them in a pit located on property at Oaklands.We know where that pit is – Oaklands won’t engage in conversation about it.Going equipped to hunt with hounds and allowing the hounds to tear apart a fox is illegal. Just because it’s done on private property does not make it legal.

 
More diversion as the hunt scrambled their riders and supports to a location at Pyalong. We observed horse floats arriving, unimpressed with the delay to the opening hunt and having to make last minute changes. Sorry not sorry scumbags – you cannot vandalise our countryside.With the hunt hiding on private property. Saboteurs using maps and gps, located public roads and public land to get in front of the hunt and pre-spray areas. Australia, unlike the UK does not have/provide right of footpaths in the countryside. Enabling the hunt to simply take off and hide.The blatant hiding by the hunt is because they know they are hunting illegally.Saboteurs managed to correctly predict the direction of the hunt and turned the hunt back.The hunts support on quad bike and atv’s confronted our team, and with one member of their support arriving by 4X4.This person was angry and violent. Trying to gain access to one sab car and making threats to kill and harm.Thankfully our second car arrived and after a short attempt to deescalate the situation that mans invitation for confrontation was taken up.Hunt support pulled an illegal extendable baton from his car and proceeded with threats to kill. A stand off ensured and saboteurs managed to stay safe and walk away. We don’t engage with basic men with weapons.

The crew. This season see Melbourne Hunt Saboteurs at full strength. With a wide and confidently skilled crew. While there’s always room for more in the team – this season is shaping up to be intense.”

We’ve not found any links to send donations to MHS but we found an Amazon wishlist (grim really) if anyone wants to buy them some tools to fight the hunters. Many of the items are for the duck hunt, but some are obviously tools that can be used all year round!

https://www.amazon.com.au/hz/wishlist/ls/AI6B8ARWT8UM

It’s been over a week since Palestine Action started their siege against Leicester’s Israeli weapons factory ‘UAV Tactical Systems’. Here’s a run down of some of the goings-on.

A heavy police and private security presence in anticipation of the siege didn’t stop activists setting up camp in the trees near the factory. Going unnoticed by the police for an embarrassingly long time.

A camp was also set up in the road directly in front of the factory, with folks pitching tents on the tarmac. Despite police kettling protesters, making many arrests and confiscating a lot of supplies at the camp, it was rebuilt and remains with the strong support of the local community. The heavy handedness of the police saw 33 people arrested by Wednesday, just 3 days into the siege. 5 more were arrested yesterday for allegedly breaking police orders telling them where to stand. Police have broken into cars by smashing windows and even cut the traverse of a climbing activist, intentionally putting their life at risk. A continuous armed police presence aims to intimidate any dissent. The arrests have not been limited to onsite as two main pal-action organizers nowhere near the factory were followed by surveillance and arrested on the motorway before being transferred to Leicester. Currently, everyone arrested has been released but with restrictive bail conditions.

While some people have been locked on in the road or occupied trees, many others have been doing dabke workshops, listening to speeches and playing football. In spite of police violence, it appears spirits are high. If you’d like to support, PalAction have and continue to call for boots on the ground day or night, location postcode is LE19 1WZ. If coming by car, parking away for your safety and anonymity is advised.

On May 1st, Pal Action is starting their siege of the Elbit’s factory in Leicester.

The group states: “UAV TACTICAL SYSTEMS, owned by Elbit Systems, sends millions of pounds worth of military equipment to Israel each year, straight from the Leicester factory.”

You can join them on May 1st from 3pm at the gates of UAV Tactical Systems, Unit F Meridian East, Leicester, LE19 1TP, UK. Bring a sleeping bag and camping equipment – PalAction is planning to stay until Elbit leaves.

If you are looking for alternative accommodation in Leicester to support the siege, email [email protected] or visit palestineaction.org/siege.

For anyone planning to join and support on the ground, the group organised a shuttle bus for free leaving from Leicester train station public car part/taxi rank to the factory. The bus will be leaving at 12pm, 2pm and 3pm. A clear sign will help you find the right one.

In the runup to the siege, PalAction has set up a surprise camp next to the factory, hiding in trees and unnoticed by the police and Elbit’s security for 12 hours!

Photo: The photo shows PalAction activists setting up their surprise camp in the trees at Leicester’s Elbit factory.

The privatisation and the redevelopment of Exarchia’s Strefi Hill that started two years ago, is the second plan by the state and the municipality to sell out the area to private companies. In January ’21, the council conceded the hill to a real estate company, Prodea Investments.

Strefi hill is one of the last green free spaces in central Athens and also a place for assemblies, meetings and solidarity events. The open assembly for the defence of Strefi hill counts two years, with daily actions for the protection of the hill, the nature and the non-human animals who live in it.

The defenders of the hill succeeded to block many of the Prodea’s interferences, by pushing back the surveyors and the workers. Actions like marches, demonstrations outside Prodea’s offices and the city hall, tree spiking, daily patrols, airbnb building attacks or days of film screenings, activities for children, cleaning, gatherings with vegan collective kitchen, have been trying to keep the hill alive and free, even though it’s been flooded by multiple cops’ units.

Unfortunately, all of the above were not enough to prevent the destruction of the hill and to stop once and for all the redevelopment plan. Under the excuse of “flood protection” plans, Prodea along with the Unison Facilities Services, have already started destroying the hill by cutting the trees and the bushes, where the turtles and other animals find their shelter and their food. Also, the intense lighting that is included in the project will push away many bird species. Prodea’s plan is an anti- ecological plan and will totally affect the life of human and non-human animals and has to be stopped before it’s too late.

Exarchia and Strefi hill will not be given away without a fight and their history cannot be erased so easily. It’s our duty to defend the mountains, the forests, the hills, the parks, the seas and every form of life.

Capitalism will not win!

For earth liberation! For animal liberation! For human liberation!

Exarchia has been a target by the state for years through police control and brutality, gentrification, evictions, arrests. In 2019, the greek state began massive evictions of anarchist and refugee squats in Exarchia, trying to muzzle all the political voices. The government’s plan is to put the history of Exarchia in a “museum” that will be remembered only through tourist tours around the neighbourhood, while the place will be available only for the privileged ones, since the locals will move to other neighbourhoods.

The plan includes the construction of a metro station on the square, the conversion of the Polytechnic school into a museum and the privatisation of Strefi hill where cameras, gates and security posts will be placed. Last August, despite the continuous fights against it by groups and individuals, sheet metal was placed around the square of Exarchia for the construction of the metro station. The spot for the construction site wasn’t chosen randomly. Police forces are “protecting” the construction site 24/7, by bullying, offending, beating and arresting anyone who is trying to resist.