AYESHAH BEHIT, 31, AND HIBA AHMED, 26, ARE ON TRIAL AT CARDIFF MAGISTRATES' COURT ACCUSED OF HARASSING LABOUR MP ALEX DAVIES-JONES IN THE LEAD-UP TO THE GENERAL ELECTION 18:24, 02 Jun

2025 A Welsh MP has recounted in court how she was left "terrified" after a confrontation with two pro-Palestinian campaigners while on an election trail. Alex Davies-Jones, Labour

MP for Pontypridd, relayed the incident at Cardiff Magistrates' Court during the trial of Ayeshah Behit, 31, and Hiba Ahmed, 26, who are contesting harassment charges. The trial, part

heard at the magistrates' court on Monday, disclosed that while Ms Davies-Jones, a justice minister, was visiting Treforest village, Rhondda Cynon Taf, on June 26, she encountered Behit

such as Labour Friends of Israel." She further explained: "They asked me about the ceasefire and why I had abstained. I clarified I hadn't abstained, I wasn't in the

country, I was paired in that vote." Describing the intensity of the incident, she told court: "It was escalating in terms of passion and intensity. We walked off in the opposite

direction. We felt scared and intimidated and we wanted to leave the situation." Concerned for her team's safety, she added: "I had a number of young members with me. They

already felt uncomfortable, I didn't want them to feel more at risk. Article continues below "They began to follow us. They were shouting and bellowing down the street at us:

'Why do you support genocide, why are you murdering babies, Alex Davies-Jones, do you support genocide?'." Ms Davies-Jones recounted how her team had entered the University of

South Wales campus and resumed their canvassing, only to encounter Behit and Ahmed again roughly 20 minutes later. She detailed the unsettling experience of Labour volunteers engaging with

residents, while being shadowed by the two defendants distributing leaflets and accusing her of "supporting genocide and murdering babies". The decision was made to wrap up early

after they found one of their vehicles had been "covered with stickers and leaflets". The same day Behit and Ahmed escalated their campaign against the Labour office in Pontypridd,

which served as the hub for Ms Davies-Jones' general election efforts, plastering it with posters alleging complicity in "enabling genocide". In a further act of provocation,

they fixed stickers to the office in bold black letters stating: "Alex Davies-Jones how many murdered children is too many?". They also positioned a poster on a nearby bus stop

declaring "Alex Davies-Jones supports genocide". Ms Davies-Jones told the court: "I was terrified. I was scared about what things they were going to do and what they were

doing." A video of the confrontation was then uploaded onto social media, with the caption describing Ms Davies-Jones as racist. She added: "The abuse was endless. It was awful. It

was relentless. I felt under attack. The video was clipped and manipulated in a way that made it seem I had lied." Following the daunting experience the MP for Pontypridd since 2019

has significantly cut back on public engagements, now having to be escorted by security personnel. Ms Davies-Jones spoke of the heartbreak surrounding the killings of Jo Cox and Sir David

Amess, stating: "They have an impact on all of us. They have changed our lives fundamentally in how we live and work." When testifying in court, Ahmed disclosed her and

Behit's intentions to spread information about Ms Davies-Jones' stance on Palestine before the elections. Ahmed, residing in Treforest with Behit, shared their spontaneous

encounter with the MP saying: "I was genuinely really surprised when I saw her. I've lived in Treforest for a couple of years, I've never seen her." She likened spotting

the MP to a rare sighting: "It was like seeing a celebrity almost, like a unicorn in the wild. I took the video because I thought nobody would believe me. It was a surprise when she

approached us and said hi and she was willing to have a conversation." According to Ahmed, the exchange seemed civil despite differing viewpoints: "It felt like a really normal

conversation between people who don't agree on something. Have you ever seen MPs talk to each other in the House of Commons? They can be quite brutal to each other." Ahmed

commented that it was her inaugural experience distributing leaflets, following previous engagement with Ms Davies-Jones through email and peaceful demonstrations. "This wasn't

really about her, it was about Palestine," she clarified. Behit informed the court: "She was running for MP and where I lived there were posters everywhere. It was constant,

everywhere you looked was pro-Alex. "My intention was to show a different perspective, to get people to do their own research. It was never about Alex as a person. Part of her job as an

MP is having people look at her policies, her opinions and how she voted." Article continues below Both accused reject the notion that their conduct constituted harassment. Their trial

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