TWO of the Thales Five Palestine activists jailed in August have been freed under licence.

The five Palestine Action members had each been sentenced to 12 months in prison for their actions in June 2022, when they occupied the Govan plant of Thales, an arms giant linked Israel’s military and its biggest armourer Elbit Systems, taking to its roof and bringing operations to a halt at a reputed cost to the French weapons giant of £1 million.

The two released, Erica Hygate and Eva Simmons, will remain under licence and be tagged for the remainder of their sentence, but their comrades Stuart Bretherton, Calum Lacy and Sumaya Javaid remain in jail, three of the 14 Palestine Action prisoners held across Britain.

A Palestine Action spokesperson said: “We are pleased to see the release of these two brave women, who with our other comrades, opened the Scottish front against the weapons manufacturers who enable Israeli genocide.

“While the British government actively assists in the slaughter, and too many people turn a blind eye, they acted with courage and remained steadfast.

“We welcome them back as heroes.”