Fossil fuel investors utilities sabotaged and Palantir recruitment event disrupted in actions linking climate crisis and Gaza genocide

~ Alisa-Ece Tohumcu ~

Two militant climate action groups staged separate but thematically linked actions in London on Monday (18 August)—underscoring the growing urgency of confronting the institutions driving ecological collapse, militarism, and social injustice.

In London, the underground network Shut The System claimed responsibility for sabotaging utilities at the offices of major fossil fuel investors, declaring the launch of a “Summer of Sabotage”. The coordinated action cut electrical and communications infrastructure at the UK offices of JP Morgan Chase, Allianz, and Barclaycard, with activists using cable-cutting and glue to disable service cabinets and masts. The group accused the firms of underwriting not only climate breakdown but also war crimes, highlighting Barclays’ and Allianz’s links to fossil fuels and, in Allianz’s case, its insurance of Elbit Systems, a key arms supplier to Israel.

A spokesperson likened financiers’ complicity in fossil fuel expansion to wartime collaboration, calling it “unhinged, psychopathic greed at the expense of billions of people”. The group, which previously vandalised Barclays properties and disabled fibre optic cables at insurance offices earlier this year, promised escalation if their demands go unmet by October. Their manifesto, drawn from the Banking on Climate Chaos 2025 report, demands an immediate halt to fossil fuel expansion financing, absolute emissions reduction targets, robust transition plans, and the protection of Indigenous rights.

Meanwhile, Climate Resistance disrupted a Palantir-run training camp for 16- to 18-year-old students. Chanting outside the venue, demonstrators condemned the attempt to “groom” young people for careers at a firm, whose technology supports surveillance states and the Israeli military. Palantir, which builds AI-driven data analytics platforms, has lucrative contracts with governments and militaries worldwide, including a £330 million data deal with NHS England.

Although the company is opaque about its work with Israel, activists point to Palantir’s Gotham platform, described as part of the AI-assisted “kill chain” used to determine targets in Gaza. CEO Alex Karp has previously admitted the company’s software has been used to kill Palestinians, a claim framed by him as targeting “mostly terrorists”.

“Students shouldn’t be groomed by companies like this,” said Climate Resistance spokesperson Sam Simons. “Palantir is enabling an ongoing genocide and helping authoritarian governments track every move of their citizens”.

Neither Palantir nor the targeted financial institutions have issued public statements regarding Monday’s disruptions.