Seven people were arrested during a blockade that closed the main gate of RAF Lakenheath on Saturday 26 April, during peaceful protests in opposition to any return of US nuclear weapons to the Suffolk air base:
RAF Lakenheath: final day of shut down
250 people from across the country – as well as international delegates – participated in the demonstration and blockade, which marked the final day of the Lakenheath Alliance for Peace peace camp:
There has been a continuous presence of campaigners outside the main gate of the base since 14 April, as well as events highlighting Lakenheath’s role in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza, the role of the military in climate breakdown, and NATO’s nuclear network in Europe:
The protests come after the Mirror ran an exclusive investigation revealing a shocking government cover up about the new US nuclear weapons deployment. Legal letters from the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) to the Ministry of Defence resulted in the declassifying of a document exempting US Visiting Forces in Britain from meeting nuclear safety regulations. This blanket exemption not only applies to troops stationed at RAF Lakenheath, but across all US bases in Britain.
This means that Suffolk County Council will never be informed of the US nuclear bombs arriving at RAF Lakenheath. The council would therefore be under no obligation to have emergency plans in place in the event of a nuclear accident at the base:
CND General Secretary Sophie Bolt said:
Solidarity with the seven people who were arrested as part of this successful action which shut down the main entrance to RAF Lakenheath for over three hours.
Rather than arresting people for peacefully protesting the return of US nuclear weapons to Britain and the base’s role in supporting Israel’s genocide in Gaza, the police should be investigating the clear violations of international law being facilitated by both the British government and US bases in Britain.
Nuclear weapons don’t make us safer, they make us a target. We’re going to keep on protesting at these bases to stop US nuclear dangers. We want an end to these US bases in Britain.
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