The recruitment ringleader for Palestine Action has been revealed to be an anti-colonial artist who refers to herself as a ‘witch’.
Gamze Sanli was the speaker at a workshop for members joining the pro-Palestine, where recruits were told to attack military sites across the country, The Telegraph reports.
Sanli, who calls herself an ‘Anatolian-Mediterranean witch’ on social media also reportedly discussed tactics for breaking into factories, and told members to hit machinery with a sledgehammer.
She also identified which RAF bases were most suitable for attack and gave legal advice to recruits on what they should do if they are arrested, it is claimed.
Additionally, Palestine Action’s new joiners were told that if they were arrested, the organisation would not pay their legal costs, but would have access to an ‘arrest support group’.
Sanli also listed which potential sentences they would likely get for a range of offences, including criminal damage, trespass and burglary.
But the activist did not make mention of the fact that if Palestine Action is proscribed, members could face up to 14 years behind bars.
New members were also urged by Sanli not to take their phones on raids as the activist group is reportedly planning on carrying out complex operations and escaping undetected.
Gamze Sanli was the speaker at a Palestine Action workshop in which new members were instructed on how to attack military sites and factories
Sanli, a Turkish-Cypriot activist, is a graduate from Kings College London and has a master’s degree in human rights from UCL
This new move would be a stark contrast from Palestine Action’s previous tactics, through which activists aimed to get caught to raise awareness.
Sanli, a Turkish-Cypriot activist, is a graduate from Kings College London and has a master’s degree in human rights from UCL.
In a biography on her website, Sanli describes herself as an artist and performer and says that her work is inspired by ‘folklore and mythology, abolition and political resistance, death and witchcraft.’
Sanli was one of two protesters who squirted tomato ketchup onto a statue of Arthur Balfour in the members’ lobby of the House of Commons in 2022.
The protest was timed to coincide with the 105th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration – a controversial declaration by the British government in 1917 that supported the establishment of a ‘national home for the Jewish people’ in Palestine.
One protester said: ‘Palestinians have suffered for 105 years because of this man, Lord Balfour – he gave away their homeland and it wasn’t his to give’, before the two activists glued themselves to the statue and shouted ‘free Palestine’.
Ms Sanli was charged with criminal damage but was ultimately found not guilty in December 2023.
MailOnline has approached Palestine Action for comment.
The revelation about Sanli’s role in Palestine Action comes after it was revealed that the group was preparing to launch fresh attacks on military sites across Britain just days before it is expected to be officially labelled a terrorist organisation.
During secret recruitment calls, attended by around 50 new ‘comrades’, the extremist group identified RAF Cranwell and RAF Barkston Heath in Lincolnshire, and RAF Valley in Anglesey as top targets.
The group, which has already triggered a major security review of UK military bases, is understood to be targeting sites it claims are linked to Israeli arms manufacturer Elbit Systems.
It comes as the Government moves to proscribe Palestine Action as a terror organisation, a decision Home Secretary Yvette Cooper called ‘vital’ after the ‘disgraceful’ Brize Norton raid.