Nurses, youth workers, food growers, teachers and parents made up a group of over 30 people who blocked operations at MOD Aberporth this week.

On Wednesday 10 June at 6.30am the activists blocked off two of the entrances to the site run by British defence technology company, Qinetiq.

They turned away vehicles and workers for nine hours whilst holding banners stating ‘Welsh gov and Qinetiq have blood on their hands’ and ‘UK weapons kill’.

The activists went home at 3.30pm after completing their aim of “preventing normal operations” due to the facility's connections to providing weapons and defence technology used by Israel in the ongoing war.

A spokesperson for the group described the atmosphere as “defiant”, protestors handing out magazines and leaflets to residents and workers detailing the site's connections to Israel’s war, along with speeches from Global Sumud Flotilla volunteers, paramedics and nurses who have worked in Gaza, and local researchers.

The spokesperson added that some residents came to thank them and provide food for “uplifting the desires of the local community to be rid of the corrupt and violent influence of a tiny elite, profiting from the labour of ordinary working people to promote genocidal violence”.

Dyfed-Powys Police officers and vans were in attendance but did not forcibly remove anyone.

A MOD spokesperson said: “We have suspended licences for exports of military equipment to the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) that might be used in military operations in Gaza, based on our assessment that these could be used to commit or facilitate serious violations of International Humanitarian Law.

“We respect people’s right to protest, where that takes place within the law.”

203 UK military licences to Israel remain in place.

QinetiQ did not respond, but a company spokesperson previously said to the Cambrian News that “we provide no weapons to Israel”.