FIVE activists occupying an Israeli-owned arms factory were arrested this morning, bringing the three-day protest to an end. 

The protesters, who are part of the Palestine Action group, scaled UAV Engines in Shenstone, Staffordshire on Monday morning, holding out on the roof until police moved in to arrest them at 2am today. 

Activists were demanding that the factory stop producing drone parts used by the Israeli army.

It is owned by Israel’s largest private arms firm Elbit Systems which also had nine other sites around the country. 

The firm produces more than 80 per cent of Israel’s military drones including the Hermes 900 and Hermes 450 which were used in the 2014 bombardment of Gaza in which 2,200 Palestinians were killed. 

Speaking from the rooftop ahead of the arrests, Huda Amori said: “We just want to say to everyone that this needs to continue to happen, we’re not stopping, nothing is going to stop us. 

“And it’s up to everyone to do the same. If we all do this we can shut Elbit down for good.”

During the three-day occupation, protesters poured red paint down the walls of UAV Engines and smashed windows. 

Staffordshire police said that eight arrests had been made in total, including three people on Monday who had locked on to the gates. 

The five remained in police custody this afternoon having been arrested on suspicion of criminal damage and trespassing offences, the police said in a statement. 

The protest was the latest in a series of actions against Elbit Systems’ sites across Britain including its London headquarters in the past two months.