13.03.2026

Thank you all for coming today. And for coming again and again, for as long as it takes to shut all outposts of Western imperialism for good. I wish I could be there with you. Last year in June, I was arrested by counter terrorism police and accused of a connection to an action, which saw 2 people enter RAF Brize Norton and spray Voyager aircrafts with red paint. I have been held on remand ever since, currently in HMP Foston Hall. 

Voyagers are mostly used for point-to-point in air fuelling and have been observed to regularly land in Cyprus on RAF Akrotiri during the Zionist genocidal campaign. RAF Akrotiri has been used as a base for British spy planes conducting surveillance flights over Gaza ever since 2023. Much of these flights have been done under the cover of complete secrecy, raising questions about the depth of British complicity in the genocide of Palestinians. The RAF have also used Voyagers to refuel planes conducting attacks on Yemen and have been seen flying over Syria. This is likely just the snippet of the true extent of British involvement in imperial violence. Violence that relies on the existence of RAF bases on Cyprus for easy access to the whole region. 

Recent escalations in such violence by the US and the Zionist regime, aiming and so far failing to completely destroy any opposition to their economic and political hegemony, brought forth a ludicrous debate about overt involvement of British forces in the attacks on Iran and Lebanon. Any distinction between the use of British military for offensive or for defensive purposes is a false one. A mere distraction from what ultimately is an involvement of British forces in a campaign of attacks on sovereign countries. 

These RAF bases in Cyprus exist for defensive purposes. It is only to defend the Zionist entities’ continued existence, and ability to their settler colonial ambitions, to defend the interests of Western oil companies, and keep many countries destabilised for access to their natural resources and economies.

RAF bases on Cyprus, our legacy of British colonialism, which has been repackaged into tales of protecting global security since the days of the empire. You must continue to act for nothing short of the complete withdrawal of British forces from Cyprus. This is not a small task, but it is a serious one. 

Palestinians teach us what kind of steadfastness and discipline is necessary to maintain a struggle against an enemy with a powerful military line. We have a duty to struggle against imperial violence alongside them. For imperialism is not some faraway issue. It is born on our doorsteps and must be fought there too. Solidarity to you all.