Pro-Palestine protesters demand Israel arms embargo for Gaza outside Lockheed Martin facility in Havant

Passionate protestors took to the streets and called on a defence manufacturer to stop supplying aircraft components to Israel.

Pro-Palestine demonstrators gathered outside Lockheed Martin’s Havant premises this morning (June 17) to voice their opposition to the company. The business produces components for F-35 fighter jets, which have been sent to Israel.

The Palestine Solidarity Campaign organised the protest and director Ben Jamal said the conflict in Gaza is a “genocide” which has killed 55,000 Palestinians, with thousands more being buried under the rubble from bombings.

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The national Palestine Solidarity Campaign has called three mass mobilizations against the arms trade with Israel, specifically the F-35 fighter jet supply chain on Tuesday 17th June 2025.placeholder image
The national Palestine Solidarity Campaign has called three mass mobilizations against the arms trade with Israel, specifically the F-35 fighter jet supply chain on Tuesday 17th June 2025. | Habibur Rahman

He told The News: “We are protesting outside factories that are supplying the parts for the F-35 jets that Israel is using to reign devastation and havoc upon the people of Gaza. We know the Lockheed Martin factory has sent seven shipments of supplies of parts of the F-35s, which has enabled Israel to continue with its genocide since October 2023.

“This is part of the demand for an arms embargo. We’re bringing that demand right to the gates of the companies that are actually the merchants of death.”

Crowds of people waving flags and holding placards paraded through the town centre. Starting in Havant Park, the group moved on to Lockheed Martin’s premises in Langstone Road. This was closed ahead of the demonstration taking place.

Mr Jamal said there are moral and legal obligations for the UK not to do anything that can be seen as aiding and abetting a state which is committing genocide. “Since March, Israel has imposed a complete siege on Gaza, not allowing any food, water, or essential supplies to go in,” he added.

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The national Palestine Solidarity Campaign has called three mass mobilizations against the arms trade with Israel, specifically the F-35 fighter jet supply chain on Tuesday 17th June 2025.placeholder image
The national Palestine Solidarity Campaign has called three mass mobilizations against the arms trade with Israel, specifically the F-35 fighter jet supply chain on Tuesday 17th June 2025. | Habibur Rahman
The national Palestine Solidarity Campaign has called three mass mobilizations against the arms trade with Israel, specifically the F-35 fighter jet supply chain on Tuesday 17th June 2025.placeholder image
The national Palestine Solidarity Campaign has called three mass mobilizations against the arms trade with Israel, specifically the F-35 fighter jet supply chain on Tuesday 17th June 2025. | Habibur Rahman

“That has left the Palestinians on the brink of starvation. Right now in Gaza, 2,700 Palestinian infants are receiving treatment for acute malnutrition, with thousands more at risk of it. None of this has been a redline for our government to take action. The government has introduced a ban on the sale of some licences, but only a tiny proportion of what it’s selling to Israel. We are demanding a full arms embargo.”

The Palestine Solidarity Campaign, described as a “mass-movement” that supports the nation in the UK, has been operating for over 30 years. Prominent demonstrations have forced companies to take action in the past, such as John Lewis removing SodaStream products from its stores due to the company’s operations in Israel.

Chanting protestors spread their message as they marched towards Langstone Technology Park. Some residents voice their opposition, shouting at the campaigners as they passed The Parchment Makers pub in Park Road North. A woman confronted one of the protestors holding a banner, but was asked to move on by police.

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Pictured: People gathering at Havant Park calling for an Israel arms embargo.placeholder image
Pictured: People gathering at Havant Park calling for an Israel arms embargo. | Habibur Rahman
The national Palestine Solidarity Campaign has called three mass mobilizations against the arms trade with Israel, specifically the F-35 fighter jet supply chain on Tuesday 17th June 2025.placeholder image
The national Palestine Solidarity Campaign has called three mass mobilizations against the arms trade with Israel, specifically the F-35 fighter jet supply chain on Tuesday 17th June 2025. | Habibur Rahman

The government halted 30 out of 350 armed licences to Israel in September last year, with calls from some politicians to go further. A Foreign Office spokesperson said one of the first acts the government took was to suspend export licences that could be used by the Israeli Defence Forces.

They added: "We have successfully implemented the suspension decision and continue to refuse all relevant licence applications. We have suspended direct exports of F-35 parts for use by Israel, and we categorically do not export any bombs or ammunition which could be used in Gaza."

A Lockheed Martin spokesperson said: “We respect the right to peaceful protest, and we remain focused on supporting our customers to deliver strategic deterrence and security solutions."

As of June 11 2025, more than 57,000 people (55,720 Palestinians and 1,706 Israelis) have been reported killed in the Gaza war which escalated after the Hamas attack on partygoers at the Nova music festival in Israel on October 7 2023.

Around 1,200 people were killed and more than 200 others were taken hostage on October 7, when Hamas gunmen crossed the border from Gaza, attacking dozens of sites and killing indiscriminately.

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