A new group called The List just targeted defence workers at their own homes
18 October 2026 · 18 October 2026Share
Terraced houses in a British residential street. File photo. Alan Hughes · CC BY-SA 2.0
A new group calling itself The List has just claimed a wave of attacks on the homes of British defence workers.
And counter-terrorism police are now involved.
So what happened?
Over a week ago, on the weekend of the 10th and 11th of October, homes were hit in South Queensferry and Dunfermline in Scotland, and in Fleet, Hampshire.
Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary say they were called out in the early hours of the 10th to a report of criminal damage in Fleet. Red paint was thrown across the front of a house. Two car tyres were slashed.
The victim is a female executive at Ultra Intelligence & Communications. That company is reported to supply Elbit Systems. A hooded person was seen vandalising the vehicles.
Now look at Scotland. Police Scotland is investigating two more incidents from the same weekend.
In Dunfermline, Fife, the home of a Leonardo UK employee was targeted. Leonardo UK makes military systems. Vehicles there were vandalised with red paint, and a video of it was posted online.
In South Queensferry, near Edinburgh, the home of an executive at Keysight Technologies was also hit. Keysight supplies parts to Elbit.
In one of the Scottish incidents, the words "baby killers" were sprayed on a garage door. That's understood to refer to children killed by the Israeli military in Gaza.
Counter-terrorism police are believed to be helping local forces with the investigation. A UK-wide inquiry may follow.
No arrests have been announced. No suspect has been named.
So who is behind it?
The group calling itself The List says it is behind these attacks, in encrypted messages said to have been seen by The Times.
It says it has built what it describes as an extensive bank of addresses and personal information on people it says work for firms it calls complicit, gathered through research, hacking, whistle-blowers and leaks.
And here's the message it is said to have sent, word for word: "Quit your job, or risk a visit from The List."
That's a group telling named individuals to leave their jobs or expect someone at their door.
The rest of this story is for Silver and Gold members.
Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd, a UK defence contractor. File photo. Colin Smith · CC BY-SA 2.0
How many people does it say it has targeted? Different outlets reading the same Times story give different numbers. One says at least six. One says more than half a dozen. One says over a dozen.
None of those numbers has been independently confirmed. They all rest on the group's own account, not on anything police have verified.
Leonardo UK says it is supporting the employee affected, and that the safety and wellbeing of its staff is a top priority. The firm says it is helping counter-terrorism police with their investigation.
Now here's the political reaction.
John Woodcock, Baron Walney, is a crossbench peer who used to advise the government on political violence and disruption. He has spoken out against the campaign.
He says quote "disturbing and inexcusable behaviour" that puts people serving their country, and their families, at risk.
That's a former government adviser saying this goes beyond protest, into risk to people's homes and families.
He also says The List looks like a copy of Palestine Action's methods, and wants ministers ready to act if it turns out to be a Palestine Action spin-off.
So why does that matter?
Palestine Action is a direct-action group. It has been a proscribed terrorist organisation under the Terrorism Act 2000 since last year. That means it is a crime just to belong to it or support it.
Palestine Action has targeted Elbit's own buildings before, including a break-in at its Bristol factory in 2024.
But The List has gone further than that. Not a company site. A house. A car. A family's front door.
Is The List actually linked to Palestine Action? Nobody knows yet. It could be a new splinter of that banned group. Or it could be a separate movement copying its methods and language.
That question matters because it decides whether counter-terrorism law applies to whoever is behind it.
And a lot here is still unclear. Is The List a formal organisation, or a loose, scattered movement? Nobody knows. Will this campaign stay at vandalism and threats, or go further? Nobody knows that either.
Nobody carrying out the attacks has been identified. Police have not given a timeline for when they expect to.
For now, the people named by The List are left waiting to see if an online message turns into another visit to their door.
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