Palestine Action UK activists steal statues of Israel's first president, vandalize Jewish charities on Balfour anniversary

British police are investigating the theft of two busts of the first president of Israel, Chaim Weizmann, from Manchester University, as part of country-wide vandalism last weekend by the group Palestine Action.

On the anniversary of the Nov. 2, 1917, Balfour Declaration, which paved the way for the re-establishment of the Jewish state, the group posted footage of masked members of the group using axes on glass cabinets, saying they were ‘abducting’ the statues. 

“Weizmann secured the Balfour Declaration, a British pledge written 107 years ago, which began the ethnic cleansing of Palestine by signing the land away,” the group claimed.

BREAKING: Palestine Action abduct sculptures of Israel’s first president, Chaim Weizmann, from the University of Manchester.

Weizmann secured the Balfour Declaration, a British pledge written 107 years ago, which began the ethnic cleansing of Palestine by signing the land away. pic.twitter.com/a8urQciod5

— Palestine Action (@Pal_action) November 2, 2024

Weizmann’s innovation as a chemist, particularly his acetone production method during the First World War, was a significant part of the British war industry. He became friends with then foreign secretary, Arthur James Balfour, at a time when the predominantly Christian UK War Cabinet was united in support of a Jewish homeland.

Weizmann taught Chemistry at Manchester University after moving to England from Belarus in 1904. In 1910 he became a British citizen when Winston Churchill, then Home Secretary, personally signed his papers. Weizmann became president of Israel in 1948, shortly after the state was re-established.

Contrary to the propaganda of the Palestine Action vandals, who claim that Britain had no right to preside over the Palestine Mandate - an international agreement tasking the UK with facilitating the reconstitution of a Jewish homeland - the San Remo treaty of 1920 gave the country the legal right over this process. The allied victory over the Ottoman Empire meant that Britain, France, Italy and Japan were obligated to divide the formerly Islamic territories.

In a statement posted on 𝕏, Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham said: “I will ask Greater Manchester Police to ensure that there is the fullest possible investigation into this appalling act of vandalism and that those responsible are held to account.

“I will also support the University of Manchester in reassuring all students and staff, particularly those from the Jewish community, of their safety on campus,” he added.

In other incidents around the UK, Palestine Action activists targeted the London offices of the Britain-Israel Communications and Research Centre and the Jewish National Fund, the BBC reported.

They also filmed themselves slashing and spraying red paint over a painting of Lord Balfour at the University of Cambridge. 

University campuses in Britain have become increasingly hostile places for Jewish students, as evidenced by a UK government announcement on Oct. 7 that funding had been released to tackle the issue, “after the number of incidents of antisemitic abuse nationwide more than doubled in the first five months of 2024, compared to the same period a year earlier.”

“On university campuses, the number of incidents grew by 465%,” the statement added.   

In a Jerusalem Post op-ed, Michael Starr wrote “it is time for the UK to designate Palestine Action as a terrorist group,” saying it “engages in almost daily acts of destruction and vandalism.”  

The group posted a video on their on 𝕏 account in June, showing the violent break-in to the UK premises of Elbit Systems, the largest Israeli military manufacturer.

In August 2024, activists from Palestine Action used a repurposed prison van to breach the perimeter of Elbit Systems' facility. They rammed through the outer fence and roller shutters, gaining access to the building where they caused significant damage to machinery and equipment. They wounded two police officers and at least one employee, with weapons that included sledgehammers, axes, and whips, the Jerusalem Post reported.