In April, I locked myself on to a vehicle outside the front gate of the UAV Tactical Systems (U-TacS) site in Leicester and refused to leave.
I did this to disrupt the regular operation of the site, as it produces military equipment being sent to Israel to commit genocide. It was a desperate course of action I resorted to because our leaders are unwilling to take action, in fact actively supporting the genocide. The justice system is targeting those that try to oppose this slaughter instead of those committing these war crimes.
Elbit Systems is the primary supplier of drones and ground based military equipment to the IDF. Elbit Systems is also the majority owner of U-TacS, which produces the Watchkeeper X series of drones. This drone is built upon the same platform as the Hermes 450 drone, which is produced by Elbit. This sickening company actually advertises their drones as "field tested" on palestinians, boosting their sales to other regimes. The Hermes 450 drone was described by Elbit themselves as the "primary driver" of the IDF. This drone was used to commit numerous war crimes, provably killing children and aid workers. As U-TacS produces sensor payloads for their drones, which are built on that same platform at the Hermes 450, it is likely that these sensor payloads are being sent to be used by the IDF in their current genocide. Export licenses listed on the Campaign Against Arms Trade website list over 3.3 million pounds worth of drone equipment to be sent to Israel in a single month.
Palestine Action is the only organisation that has successfully closed down a number of sites previously operated by Elbit systems, including their London headquarters, a factory in Oldham, and most recently a factory in Tamworth. U-TacS should be on that list.
Sources:
Elbits CEO "explained in a video how crucial Elbit was to the ongoing genocide and how the company has received gratitude from the Israeli military for their lethal services."
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1abB5Fv5dBcnG_eBMEMOth2lRqNsKAdqT/view
- Export licenses for a part of 2023, amount to a total of £3,664,277:
https://caat.org.uk/data/exports-uk/licence-list?region=Israel&company=Elbit+Systems
- Hermes 450 war crimes:
https://www.972mag.com/armed-drones-automated-killing-palestinians/
https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2024-04-02/ty-article/.premium/idf-bombed-wck-aid-convoy-3-times-targeting-armed-hamas-member-who-wasnt-there/0000018e-9e75-d764-adff-9eff29360000
-Sites shut down:
https://freedomnews.org.uk/2024/03/29/palestine-action-permanently-shut-down-tamworth-elbit/
UPDATE:
The MOD dropped their contract for the Watch keeper drone produced by this site:
https://www.thecanary.co/uk/analysis/2024/11/22/elbit-loses-mod-contract/
Direct action gets the goods