UK Pro-Palestine Activist Re-Arrested Weeks After Release on Bail, Sparking Free Speech Concerns

London, United Kingdom – A young British pro-Palestine activist who was released on bail just weeks ago has been arrested again, prompting allegations from supporters that the detention is politically motivated and linked to a social media post.

Qesser Zuhrah, 21, was taken from her home in Watford, near London, on Monday morning. In footage shared on social media, masked police officers are seen handcuffing her and placing her into a vehicle destined for a prison cell. The arrest comes less than two months after she was released from a 15-month remand period without conviction.

Hertfordshire Police confirmed to Al Jazeera that a 21-year-old woman had been arrested and remained in custody, though they did not name Zuhrah directly. They stated she was suspected of “intentionally encouraging a crime” and the “encouragement of terrorism.”

Arrest linked to Instagram post, supporters say

Lisa Minerva Luxx, a campaigner supporting Zuhrah, told Al Jazeera they believe the arrest was triggered by an Instagram story she posted, “which allegedly encouraged people to take ‘direct action’.” The specific content of the post has not been disclosed by authorities.

Campaigners have drawn comparisons to aggressive US law enforcement tactics. “The officers arresting Qesser at home covered their faces to avoid accountability in the same way ICE agents have been seen doing in violent raids in the US,” said a statement from supporters of the Filton 24, the collective of defendants with which Zuhrah is associated.

Background: The ‘Filton 24’ and Palestine Action

Zuhrah was first detained in late 2024 as part of a group known as the “Filton 24.” The group is alleged to have raided an Elbit Systems UK factory in Filton, near Bristol, on August 6, 2024 — an incident claimed by Palestine Action, a direct-action network.

Palestine Action’s stated objective is to disrupt what it describes as British complicity in Israeli war crimes by targeting weapons manufacturers. Its primary target is Elbit Systems, Israel’s largest weapons company, which operates multiple sites across the UK.

Last month, the charge of aggravated burglary was dropped against all members of the Filton 24, and 23 of them were released on bail. Days earlier, the High Court had ruled that the UK’s ban on Palestine Action as a “terror” group was unlawful. However, that ban remains in effect, as Home Secretary Yvette Cooper is set to challenge the High Court ruling in late April.

Hunger strike and allegations of prison mistreatment

Zuhrah was released in February after spending 15 months on remand without ever being convicted of a crime. While incarcerated, she joined a rolling hunger strike in mid-2025 to protest both the UK’s ban on Palestine Action — a measure she argued placed the group on par with ISIL (ISIS) and al-Qaeda — and what she described as inhumane prison conditions.

In an interview last week, Zuhrah alleged she was regularly subjected to solitary confinement, physical assault, and taunting by guards during her hunger strike. She refused food for nearly 50 days, pushing her body to the point of severe physical decline.

“On the 45th or 46th day, they left me paralysed with muscle wastage on my cell floor for 22 hours,” she alleged. “They left me to die on my cell floor, or at least let me believe that they would [leave me].”

A government spokesperson denied all allegations of mistreatment, stating: “All individuals were managed in line with longstanding policy while in prison. This includes regular checks by medical professionals, heart monitoring and blood tests, and support to help them eat and drink again. If deemed appropriate by healthcare teams, prisoners were taken to hospital.”

Last week, the Palestine Action-linked defendants announced their intention to sue the UK prison system over the conditions they endured.

Concerns over use of terrorism legislation

Naila Ahmed of the advocacy group Cage condemned Monday’s arrest, framing it as part of a wider pattern of repression.

“This is merely a continuation of the active repression targeting pro-Palestine activists in the UK,” Ahmed told Al Jazeera. “The use of terrorism legislation to police social media posts relating to activism represents an overreach of these powers, raising urgent concerns about freedom of expression and the criminalisation of political dissent.”

Legal observers note that the Terrorism Act 2000 can be invoked for encouraging terrorism even indirectly, but critics argue its application to protest movements risks chilling legitimate political speech. With the Home Office preparing to challenge the High Court’s ruling on Palestine Action’s ban, the legal landscape for direct-action activism in the UK remains highly contested.

Zuhrah remains in police custody. No court date has been announced at the time of publication.

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