UK POLICE RAID HOME OF JOURNALIST EXPOSING ISRAELI CRIMES AND WEAPONISATION OF ANTI-SEMITISM

Sat 19 October 2024:

In a troubling development for press freedom, UK counter-terrorism police conducted an early morning raid yesterday on the home of Asa Winstanley, associate editor of The Electronic Intifada. Approximately 10 officers arrived before 6 am, armed with warrants to search Winstanley’s house and vehicle, seizing several electronic devices. Winstanley was not arrested and has not been charged with any offense.

Details of the raid, reported by The Electronic Intifada, indicate that it was part of what police documents refer to as “Operation Incessantness”. It is said to be linked to Winstanley’s social media posts. Authorities cited possible offences under sections 1 and 2 of the Terrorism Act (2006), which pertain to the “encouragement of terrorism”.

Winstanley, who has over 100,000 followers on Twitter/X, is known for his critical reporting on Israel’s actions in Palestine and British government support for these policies. His most recent investigative article, “How Israel killed hundreds of its own people on 7 October”, examines Israel’s controversial Hannibal Directive, authorising the killing of its own citizens to prevent them being taken as hostage.

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Winstanley is also the author of “Weaponising Anti-Semitism: How the Israel Lobby Brought Down Jeremy Corbyn”, a book that has drawn attention to his work on British politics for exposing the row that gripped Labour during the time of its former leader.

The raid occurs against a backdrop of a broader crackdown on critics of Israel in the UK. In recent months, several activists and journalists have had their freedom of expression curbed. Palestine solidarity activists, Mick Napier and Tony Greenstein, were arrested for expressing support for Palestine. Journalist Richard Medhurst was detained under the Terrorism Act upon arrival at Heathrow Airport, and Sarah Wilkinson, an activist with a large online following, had her home raided by counter-terrorism police.

Human rights organisations have expressed concern over the use of counter-terrorism legislation against journalists and activists. The National Union of Journalists and the International Federation of Journalists have previously stated that such actions “will likely have a chilling effect on journalists in the UK and worldwide”.

While Winstanley has not been arrested or charged, the seizure of his devices and the nature of the investigation raise serious questions about press freedom and the right to criticise Israel in the UK and oppose Zionism. The authoritarian stance of UK security officials comes as a British employment tribunal unanimously ruled that anti-Zionism qualifies as a protected philosophical belief under equality law.

The Electronic Intifada has pledged its full support to Winstanley and vowed to continue its reporting on British complicity with Israel’s human rights violations in Palestinian, stating that attempts to intimidate will only strengthen their resolve.

-MEMO

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