Pro-Palestinian protesters vandalise 10 Allianz offices across country
Dozens of pro-Palestinian activists occupied and vandalised offices of the insurer Allianz overnight, throwing red paint over walls and windows in protest at the firm’s links with Israel.
Surrey Police said three activists had been arrested at the Allianz Insurance building in Guildford.
A man and two women were detained on suspicion of aggravated trespass and criminal damage, and were being held in custody. The force said inquiries remained ongoing.
The action began on Monday evening as people around the world commemorated the first anniversary of the Oct 7 Hamas attacks on Israel.
Palestine Action said it targeted 10 offices owned by the German financial services firm in protest at the company’s investment in Elbit Systems, Israel’s biggest weapons firm. It has said Allianz is one of Elbit Systems’ “principal institutional shareholders”.
In a statement, the group called for Allianz to pull out of Israel, adding: “Without insurance, Elbit couldn’t operate in Britain. Palestine Action will cost more than you gain from enabling genocide.
“Allianz, it’s time to stop insuring and investing in Israeli weapons firm Elbit Systems.”
Nine of the occupations ended within hours, but the Guildford office remained occupied on Tuesday morning.
A number of Palestine Action supporters could be seen on the roof of the office’s entrance, spraying the walls with red paint and daubing slogans on the windows that read “drop Elbit” and “free Palestine”.
A police team trained in the removal of protesters at height arrived at Allianz Insurance building by mid-morning, and staff were asked to work from home. Surrey Police later said the three activists had been arrested, bringing an end to the occupation.
Supt Mark Offord said: “Officers were sent to the premises as soon as we became aware that the protesters had broken into the Allianz Insurance premises. While we recognise the right to protest, there is no excuse for anybody using it as an excuse to engage in criminal activity.”
Sites in Manchester, Lancaster, Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol and Milton Keynes were also targeted. The cost of repairing the damage is estimated to run into tens of thousands of pounds.
In September, the group vandalised 10 branches of Barclays Bank in protest against what it described as the bank’s ties to Israel.
The targeting of Allianz offices came as vigils were held to remember those killed and taken hostage by Hamas on Oct 7.
Palestine Action claims Israel’s response to Hamas, which has killed as many as 41,000 Palestinians in Gaza, has justified its tactics of direct action against businesses with links to the Jewish state.
Elbit System manufactures over 85 per cent of Israel’s drones, including quadcopters used by the nation’s military to perform targeted attacks.
The group added: “Elbit has publicly advertised its weaponry as being ‘battle-tested’ on Palestinians. Its business operations are central to Israeli war crimes in Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon, and its technologies uphold the brutal occupation regime.
“These nationwide actions serve as a reminder that, throughout the past 12 months, Western capital has continued to profit from the mass murder of Palestinians.
“If Allianz refuses to understand that dealing with Elbit is immoral, it must be made clear that maintaining its involvement will become increasingly unprofitable.”
A spokesman for Allianz said: “We have had disruption overnight at several of our offices. The safety and security of our colleagues is paramount, and we have closed these sites today. Our operations and service to customers and clients are unaffected. As this is an ongoing police matter we have no further comment at this stage.”
Police said officers were called at 4am to reports of red paint being sprayed onto two buildings in the City of London. They arrested a 19-year-old man on suspicion of criminal damage following a chase on foot. The offices were later sealed off by police.