Smash EDO Press Release - Anti Arms Protester Given ASBO by the Back Door

In a worrying precedent a five year restraining order has been imposed
against an anti arms trade protester today.

The order will impose an exclusion zone, preventing Elijah Smith, from
continuing to protest against EDO/ITT, a factory manufacturing armaments
for Israel and the MOD.

The judge used a new amendment to the Protection from Harassment Act (PHA)
1997, a law originally designed to protect people from stalkers, but
frequently used against protesters. This is the first time the amendment,
allowing the use of restraining orders, has been used against a protester.

Previous attempts by EDO to injunct anti-arms trade activists resulted in
a year long high court battle ending in failure.

Chloe Marsh, Smash EDO press spokesperson, said "These laws have been
designed to protect people from domestic violence and stalking. Instead
they are being used by the police to protect corporations from protest".

Smith was convicted of witness intimidation after making a political
outburst at Brighton Magistrates' Court while he was on trial for another
campaign related offence. Smith had been on remand for the previous six
months, for the decommissioning of EDO MBM, for which he was acquitted in
July 2009.

At the time of his outburst he was confined in a glass box. He made the
statement after the prosecutor stopped EDO MD Paul Hills' evidence and
asked Mr Smith why he "was staring" at Mr Hills.

Smith is a committed protester against the Brighton arms manufacturer
which has been the subject of a relentless campaign since 2004.

Andrew Beckett, press spokesperson for the campaign, said "The restraining
order is intended to prevent Elijah from continuing to campaign lawfully
against EDO, it is another attempt by Sussex Police to misuse the law in
the interest of silencing dissent. Restraining orders are simply ASBOs by
the back door."

Alison Bailey, defending, said that preventing Smith from protesting at
EDO could be likened to stopping a civil rights activist from protesting
against apartheid or preventing a suffragette for calling for the vote.

For more info contact: Andrew Beckett or Chloe Marsh, Smash EDO campaign
Tel: 07526557436 E-mail:  smashedopress@riseup.net Website:
www.smashedo.org.uk

Notes for Journalists

The 2005 PHA Injunction against the Smash EDO Campaign:

The injunction referred to was served under the 1997 Protection from
Harassment Act (originally designed to protect women from stalkers) and is
the first of its kind directed at activists outside of the animal rights
movement. Crucially it is a civil injunction but carries criminal
penalties. It affects anyone deemed to be a protester. Initially EDO/MBM
requested a large "exclusion zone" comprising the whole of Home Farm
Industrial Estate.

They and Sussex police also wanted to limit demonstrations to two and a
half hours, with less than ten people who had to be silent. Judge Gross
refused to impose these conditions at the initial hearing of an interim
injunction, which was put in place in the period before the full trial to
be heard at the High court in London from November 21st. In his summing up
he said, "The right to freedom of _expression is jealously guarded in
English law" and consequently refused to impose the requested limits on
size, timing or noise made at demonstrations. He also said that he doubted
that protesters were 'stalking' employees of EDO MBM. The injunction
subsequently collapsed

EDO MBM Technologies Ltd are the sole UK subsidiary of huge U.S arms
conglomerate EDO Corp, which was recently named No. 10 in the Forbes list
of 100 fastest growing companies. They supply bomb release mechanisms to
the US and UK armed forces amongstothers. They supply crucial components
for Raytheon's Paveway guided bomb system, widely used in the "Shock and
Awe" campaign in Iraq.

EDO also withdrew a threatened libel action against Indymedia over being
named as "warmongers".

Who are EDO/ITT?

The EDO factory on Home Farm Road in Brighton, where the decommissioning
took place, has been part of ITT Corporation (www.itt.com), since December
2007.

Before ITT took over the factory was known as EDO MBM, a trading unit of
the EDO Corporation
( http://web.archive.org/web/20070716124730/http://www.edocorp.com/),
another US company which acquired EDO MBM
( http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-23543062_ITM) in 2003
and was bought by ITT in 2007. Prior to that the factory was owned by the
Emblem Group, a British company.

ITT stands for International Telegraph and Telecom. The company was
established in 1920 and diversified to weapons production in the 1930s
when it acquired the German Focke-Wulf company who were a manufacturer of
aircraft for the Nazi Luftwaffe. It is now the 19th largest defence
manufacturer in the world.

People involved in the anti-EDO campaign include, but are not limited to:
local residents, the Brighton Quakers, peace activists, anti-capitalists,
Palestine Solidarity groups, human rights groups, trade unionists,
academics and students. The campaign started in August 2004 with a peace
camp. It's avowed aim is to expose EDO MBM and their complicity in war
crimes and to remove them from Brighton.

The Campaign against EDO

Campaigners have been calling for the closure of EDO MBM/ITT since 2004.
The campaign was kickstarted with a roof occupation and lock-on at the
factory in May 2004 and demonstrations have taken place every week since
then. Several protest camps have been held outside the factory and recent
mass demonstrations at the factory have attracted thousands of people, for
example at last years Mayday demonstration.

EDO/ITT's Supply of Weapons to Israel

ITT supplies weapons to Israel both from the EDO/ITT factory in Brighton
and as a global corporation. Here are a few examples. Please contact
 smashedopress@riseup.net for more details of what EDO/ITT manufacture and
documentary evidence.

The Saar Gunship

ITT has several contracts to supply equipment to the Israeli Navy. One of
those contracts is for the SAAR gunship (see
www.defense.itt.com/Sas/Electronic/ITT_ES_RRAS_Bro_R5.pdf page 9).

After Operation Cast Lead the British government reviewed all licenses
from Britain to Israel and found that there was 'credible evidence' that
the Saar gunships had been involved in attacks on Gaza
( http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/news/latest-news/?view=PressS&id=16637031), as a
result licenses relating to the SAAR were revoked.
( http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/britain-punishes-israel-for-gaza-naval-bombardment-1744969.html).

Bomb Racks for the Israeli F-16 and F-15s

The EDO/ITT factory in Brighton owns the patents for several components
for main the bomb rack used in Israel's F-16, the VER-2. Israel has been
supplied with hundreds of F-16s by the US government under a series of
agreements known as Peace Marble, that date back to the 1970s. These F-16s
have been used repeatedly in attacks against civilians in Lebanon and
Palestine.

EDO have advertised the VER-2 on their website
(web.archive.org/web/20040401120233/ http://www.mbmtech.co.uk/br.html) and
own the patents for several parts for the VER-2 – the ERU-151
( http://es.is.itt.com/ERU151.htm) and the Zero Retention Force Arming Unit
( http://es.is.itt.com/WeaponInterfacingMechanical.htm#ZRFAU). ITT also
manufacture the ESTER bomb rack which is used on the F-16
( http://es.is.itt.com/DocumentationCenter/ESTER%20brochure.pdf)

Research and Development of Weapons Systems

EDO/ITT have manufactured thousands of bomb ejector units for F-16 and
F-15 war planes around the world, and supplied these direct to the Israeli
Air Force from at least as early as the 1980s.

EDO/ITT in Brighton is a UK Government approved ‘List-X’ facility cleared
to handle classified military secrets. They have led the way in research
and development of smart bomb racks and ancillary components for these
planes and are a world leader in the production of arming units, bomb
fuses, and ancillaries for smart weapons release systems. They hold sub
contracts with, amongst others, BAE, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, General
Dynamics and Cobham. Some of these weapons are then supplied to Israel as
part of larger armament systems.

The Brighton firm are also engaged in research and development of fifth
generation jet fighter weapons systems such as the F-35 (which Israel is
negotiating to buy from the US) and have pioneered miniature bomb racks
for military drones and UAV’s including BAE’s classified programs in
collaboration with the Israeli arms industry

FRCS (Field Replaceable Connector System)

The FRCS is an 'umbilical' weapons release mechanism invented, patented
and produced by ITT Integrated Structures at the EDO factory in Brighton.
It was designed by current Brighton director John Eaton. The FRCS is used
as a connector for smart bomb racks and weapons pylons on, amongst others,
F-16 fighter planes.I TT says that each FRCS release mechanism can be used
for over 100 “ejected releases” (i.e. bomb drops), providing 'efficiency'
and 'consistency' of weapons releases. Managing Director of EDO, Paul
Hills, has been quoted expressing the degree to which the FRCS has
“strengthened” the market position of ITT. Since 2006 The FRCS has been
used on American A-10, B-1B, F-15, and F-16 weapons release systems. Some
of these systems have then been supplied to Israel and were almost
certainly used in the attacks on Gaza.

Paveway Guided Bombs

Since the 1980s, EDO/ITT in Brighton have been involved in the production
of the Paveway bomb series in conjunction with Raytheon. This development
work led to the creation of enhanced systems that have since been
incorporated into US variants of the bombs that have in turn been supplied
to Israel. Israel has since been supplied with Paveway II, Paveway III and
has ordered Raytheon Enhanced Paveway III 5000lb Bunker Buster bombs with
could be used to attack Iran. Paveway weapons were extensively used in the
Israeli attacks on Gaza and Lebanon.

What do EDO/ITT Say?

ITT make no attempt to hide their supply of weapons components to Israel:
a previous CEO of ITT defence said "Israel's military needs make it a good
market," (see  http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/states/IN.html).
The managing director of EDO/ITT in Brighton, Paul Hills, maintains that
the Brighton factory do not supply components to Israel. "We make things
that ensure the safe carriage and release of weapons from aircraft.”
(www.theargus.co.uk/news/4330205.EDO_boss_tells_Brighton_protesters___You_ve_got_your_facts_wrong_/).
Campaigners hotly contest this assertion.

For more info contact: Andrew Beckett or Chloe Marsh, Smash EDO campaign
Tel: 07526557436 E-mail:  smashedopress@riseup.net Website:
www.smashedo.org.uk