Around 150 protesters from Workers for a Free Palestine are demonstrating at the entrances to the Instro Precision site at Discovery Park, Sandwich, this morning (October 25).
Protesters, made up of trade unionists including from Unite, UNISON, the NEU, UCU, the BMA and BFAWU, say the company supplies Israel with weapons to kill Palestinian people in Gaza.
Instro Precision, which is owned by Israeli military company Elbit Systems, says it is a supplier and system integrator of support equipment for military and commercial electro-optical sensors in the world. It says it supplies ‘high precision military equipment’ and specialises in support equipment like tripods and manual pan and tilt heads for military observation equipment. Instro produces observation, surveillance and targeting systems.
In 2019 the firm moved to Discovery Park from Broadstairs, where it had been the target of numerous protests. There have also been several protests at its site in Discovery Park.
The demonstration today comes amid escalated conflict in the Gaza Strip which broke out between the Palestinian Militant Group Hamas and Israel earlier this month.
Amnesty International says that since 7 October “Israeli forces have launched thousands of air bombardments in the Gaza Strip, killing at least 3,793 people, mostly civilians, including more than 1,500 children, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza. Approximately 12,500 have been injured and more than 1,000 bodies are still trapped beneath the rubble.
“In Israel, more than 1,400 people, most of them civilians, have been killed and some 3,300 others were injured, according to the Israeli Ministry of Health after armed groups from the Gaza Strip launched an unprecedented attack against Israel on 7 October.”
A Kent Police spokesperson said: “Kent Police officers are currently at the scene of a protest outside Discovery Park near Sandwich.”
