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Palestine Action shut down Elbit insurer Allianz in Bristol – for the second time this year

Palestine Action has blockaded the Bristol head office of Alliance Insurance, to call out the company’s continued complicity in Israel’s genocide in Gaza.

Palestine Action blockade Alliance Insurance head office

From 6.15am on Monday 9 June, activists began the successful blockade to demand the firm stop investing in, and providing insurance for Israel’s biggest weapons producer, Elbit Systems:

Th activists blocked each entrance to the premises at 10 Victoria Street, Bristol. Each attached themselves to a lock-on contraption within suitcases, in order to maximise disruption of the office building:

Palestine Action activist in a red boilersuit lies on the pavement lock-on to a red suitcase, with a fire extinguisher, Palestinian flag, and red paint splatters across the flagstones in front of her. She raises her fist in the air.

Palestine Action activist lies on the pavement attacked to a black and white striped suitcase, with a solidarity fist in the air, a keffiyeh round her neck, and red paint splatters across the pavement and wall surrounding her.

Using repurposed fire extinguishers, they doused the building in red paint to symbolise the bloodshed of the Palestinian people:

Silver suitcase with Palestine Action spraypainted on it in white and red. Red paint splatters cover the pavement and walls, next to a fire extinguisher.

In tandem with this, in London, activists put up posters with the image of Allianz Insurance’s CEO Colm Holmes. They read:

WANTED: For complicity in war crimes and genocide… If seen please report to the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

Poster of Allianz CEO Colm Holmes, which reads: "WANTED: For complicity in war crimes and genocide... If seen please report to the International Court of Justice (ICJ)".

Sustained action will continue until Allianz cuts all ties with Elbit

The action comes as part of a sustained direct action campaign against Allianz. Palestine Action says it will only cease targeting Allianz, when the company end all ties with Elbit Systems.

Palestine Action also shut down the same office in April. Two protestors also blockaded the entrance and sprayed the building in paint. This followed a series of hits since October 2024 when activists launched actions against 10 Allianz sites. This included a canopy occupation of the Guildford headquarters. Following this, activists mounted a co-ordinated wave of actions in January 2025 at 15 sites across Europe where they smashed windows at multiple branches causing them to close for subsequent weeks.

Additional actions have taken place in Rotterdam and Berlin, as well as the London branch in March. Activists in Twickenham also flew a drone carrying a Palestine flag to disrupt a Six Nations game in the Allianz-sponsored stadium.

In addition to targeting of Allianz, Palestine Action has made repeated interventions in Bristol to their primary target, Elbit. After sustained actions forced Elbit to close its London offices, the company relocated its headquarters to Bristol. They also host the Elbit’s new research and development facility in Filton, which activists have targeted for repeated actions. Most notably, in August 2024, six activists broke into the factory and dismantled quadcopter drones. The action cost Elbit £2m in damages and has seen 18 people subsequently remanded to prison.

Allianz ‘business as usual’: profiting from genocide

In January this year it was confirmed that Elbit had been continuing to ship weapons to Israel during the 15 months of genocide, including from the Filton facility. Today’s action in Bristol comes as Israeli airstrikes have killed at least 44 people in Gaza. Moreover, it follows the Israeli military intercepting the Madleen Freedom Flotilla overnight, which was carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza.

A spokesperson from Palestine Action said:

By insuring Elbit, Allianz enable the production of Israeli weapons on British soil. We will not allow Allianz to continue with ‘business as usual’, which involves profiting from the most depraved and severe crimes being enacted against the Palestinian people.

Palestine Action will continue to take direct action against the insurance firm, until they cease all ties with Israel’s biggest weapons producer.

Featured image and additional images supplied

By The Canary

This post was originally published on Canary.