AS pressure mounts on the British government to stop sending arms to Israel, Brighton residents set up a peace camp next to the L3 Harris arms factory, which is making parts for the F-35 fighter jets used by Israel. With regular demos and roadblocks outside the factory, the camp acts as a focus for Palestine solidarity in the city.

On the weekend of March 16-17, Brighton residents occupied a patch of land at the junction of Home Farm Road and Lewes Road. The weapons factory is a couple of hundred metres away up Home Farm Road. The colourful site, festooned with flags and visible from the main railway line, aims to raise awareness of the factory’s existence and — literally at times — drum up support for resistance to the weapons plant.

Winnie, a local student taking part in the Brighton peace camp, said: “We are peacefully holding this community space to raise awareness about L3 Harris’s role in Israel’s genocidal assault on Gaza. L3 Harris is the 12th-largest arms manufacturer in the world and makes bomb-release mechanisms for Israeli fighter jets. Over 31,000 people have been killed in Gaza since Oct 7 2023.