In the early hours of Friday, November 3, Fr. Martin Newell of East London and Susan van der Hijden, of the Amsterdam Catholic Worker community, entered Wittering Air Force Base in Cambridgeshire. Taking the name "Jubilee Ploughshares 2000", they sought to enact the biblical prophecy - "beat their swords into ploughshares" - by symbolically disabling the special vehicle convoy that transports nuclear warheads to and from British Trident submarines.

After entering the base, the two disabled a Trident warhead carrier, hammering on the dashboard and other equipment in the back of the cab. They painted the words "The Kingdom of God is Among You," "Drop the Debt, Not the Bombs," and "Love is the Fulfillment of the Law." They then went in search of the guards and security people in order to tell them of their actions.

From their statement: "We have acted in a spirit of repentance for our complicity in crime against humanity and God. We have acted to uphold the law. Through the Jubilee 2000 campaign, the church has committed herself to working for justice for the poor and the oppressed. British nuclear weapons are a central part of the chains of oppression. As Christians we have taken responsibility and acted in solidarity with the 'least of this world'."

Susan van der Hijden, who lives and works with refugees in Holland, said: "I have lived with the victims of international violence for seven years. It is high time to go to the roots of the problem - the rich exploiting the poor - and Trident plays a major part in that."

Fr. Martin Newell said: "We are called to love God, do good and resist evil. Trident is a weapons system of mass-destruction worth 400 Hiroshimas. It is a choice of bread or bombs, education or elimination, healthcare or holocaust. This convoy is equipping the gas-ovens for the Holocaust of the 21st century."

In court the following morning, the pair did not ask for bail, and were remanded to prison. At their third preliminary hearing in January, Newell and van der Hijden each pleaded not guilty to a charge of burglary and two counts of criminal damage. A trial date has not been set.

In the interim, a Trident warhead convoy was halted twice by protesters on November 19 as it passed through Balloch, Scotland, on its way to the Coulport base for loading onto the Trident subs. Seven people were arrested, cited and released after the convoy resumed its journey.

Financial support can be sent to Jubilee Ploughshares c/o 38 Twinflower, Walnut Tree, Milton Keynes, MK7 7LH, England. For more information, contact Ciaron O'Reilly at ciaronx@hotmail.com

As the prisoners have been moved recently, letters of support should be sent to Fr. Martin Newell and Susan van der Hijden, c/o Peace Pagoda, Willen, Milton Keynes, MK15 OBA, England.