Block Lockheed Protestors Blockade Lockheed Martin’s Largest UK Facility in Anti-Arms Protest

A group of protestors from the group Block Lockheed have blocked the entrance to Lockheed Martin’s Ampthill facility
They say they are doing so in action against Lockheed Martin’s role in the murder of civilians and environmental damage across the world
They say they plan to shut the site for the day Block Lockeed activists have used ’lock-ons’ to prevent access to the 64 acre site that produces weapons used all around the world, including Ukraine and Palestine.

The group moved onto the access road at 5:45 this morning, preventing traffic from entering and leaving the site. They unveiled banners and signs exposing Lockheed Martin’s crimes against humanity. The group said they plan to continue to block the company until they cease operations.

Rebekah Lloyd, spokesperson for the group, says “Lockheed Martin get rich selling weapons that cause untold destruction to lives in Palestine and Yemen, whilst simultaneously destroying our environment. This is a line in the sand, we are telling them we won’t accept it anymore. We stand with our friends across the world campaigning for an end to this blood-soaked industry.”

Amnesty International [1] reported in 2019 that Lockheed Martin were supplying weapons used against Yemeni civilians by the Saudi Arabian/ UAE coalition. They failed in their due diligence by producing weapons they knew would be used against the innocent civilian population, consistently shifting blame onto governments. This is blatant denial of their role in human rights violations, as the very company that produces the weapons. In 2018 The Guardian [2] reported that a bomb produced by in the USA by Lockheed Martin was used in the murder of 40 schoolchildren in Yemen. Despite its supposed commitment to human rights, Lockheed Martin supplies weapons used in massacres time and time again.

As recently as December 2021, there is evidence [3] of Lockheed Martin supplying weapons to the Israeli military. This is part of a decades-long dirty handshake involving weapons such as F-35 fighter aircraft. These are the same aircraft reported to have been used against civilians in Lebanon, The West Bank, and Gaza. Human Rights Watch reported [4]** the deaths of some 1000 Lebanese civilians were directly due to indiscriminate Israeli use of arms including those produced by Lockheed Martin.** In Palestine, the same source [5] concludes Israeli policies “rob the more than two million Palestinians of Gaza of their right to freedom of movement, severely limit their access to electricity, health care, and water, and have devastated the economy.” This is a clear result of the use of Lockheed Martin Weaponry. In May of last year, the British Government admitted [6] this country’s role in arming the Israeli state, no doubt fuelled by facilities like Lockheed Martin’s Ampthill one.

In 2014 it was revealed [7] Lockheed Martin caused extensive, prolonged environmental contamination in California. This impacted up to 12% [8] of Los Angeles’ water supply. Only in 2018 did they begin to take responsibility for this, after state intervention. Alongside this, in 2020 the company was responsible for around the same amount of CO2 (or equivalent) emissions as the entire country of New Zealand! [9]

Block Lockheed are calling on anyone who is outraged by the fact that this murderous company profits off of the suffering of millions, to join the campaign and our fight against Lockheed Martin.

For further information or interview please contact

media.blocklockheed@gmail.com Photos can be found here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1zKKehtJsbLoPK07q2TOKJ6NR23N59VIr

Notes to editors

Who are Block Lockheed?

Block Lockheed [10] are a direct action group, whose primary target is Lockheed Martin. They aim to disrupt the the supply of lethal weapons to conflict around the world. Most recently, on 28th Feb 2022, members of Block Lockheed used spray paint to write Stop War on their Ampthill site [11].

Block Lockheed are calling on anyone who is outraged by the fact that this murderous company profits off of the suffering of millions, to join the campaign and our fight against Lockheed Martin.

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