21st February 2007

Funeral procession for the victims of the US bombing of Somalia at EDO MBM

Smash EDO Press Release

Contact Andrew Beckett or Sarah Johnson For more
Details

Email - smashedopress@yahoo.co.uk, tel 07875708873

www.smashedo.org.uk

Protestors will be marching from the bottom of Home Farm Road, Mouslecoomb, Brighton to the EDO-MBM arms factory to protest against the civilians killed by US airstrikes in Somalia in January. Protesters will be wearing black and carrying coffins to represent those killed.

Sarah Johnson, Smash Edo Spokesperson, said “These attacks against a defenseless country have taken hundreds of innocent lives. The world reacted in horror and disgust to the bombing of Lebanon, but the extent of the carnage in Somalia has been hidden from people here. Essential components of the weapons and planes used in these attacks are made by EDO. We want to make it clear that we will not remain silent whilst EDO’s bombs are killing civilians anywhere in the world.”

Pictures availible on Request

Contact Andrew Beckett or Sarah Johnson For more Details

Email - smashedopress@yahoo.co.uk, tel 07875708873

www.smashedo.org.uk

Details of the US bombing of Somalia

Villages in the South Coast of Somalia were targeted by US planes and helicopter gunships last month. At least 200 people were killed when the USA targeted coastal villages for attack.

The first airstrikes took place on 8th and 9th of January 2007 in a forest near the town of Afmadow . An AC-130 gunship is believed bombed the area for about 30 to 45 minutes. On January 10 2007, additional strikes were carried out in areas near the coastal village of Ras Kamboni, and the
villages of Hayo and Badmano were also attacked by US planes and helicopters. In Banka Jiira, at least 70 shepherds were killed in a single US attack.

Southern Somalia was bombed again on January 24th. USA officials claimed that the attacks were aimed at Al Qaida terrorists, although they later admitted that they had not killed a single suspect.

Pictures available on Request

Smash EDO demonstrate every Wednesday at EDO, 4-6pm, on Home Farm Road, Brighton

Notes for Journalists

Brighton & Hove is a UN Peace Messenger City

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 protestor. 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 thanten people who had to be silent. Judge Gross refusedto 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.

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".

Lawson-Cruttenden & Co
Solicitors firm working for EDO have been instrumental in developing the Protection of Harassment Act 1997 from a measure designed to safeguard individuals to a corporate charter to make inconvenient protest illegal. Theyhave pioneered to use of injunctions to create large "exclusion zones". They have secured numerous injunctions against anti-vivisection and anti-GM protestors.

Campaign against EDO MBM
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.

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