A pro-Palestinian activist caused £1 million of damage to a BBC transmitter and other locations believed to have links to Israel, a court has heard.

Martha Goddard, 50, is said to have torched the mast in Tacolneston, Norfolk, after cycling in the dead of night for more than an hour from her home in Norwich.

Other alleged targets were two Starbucks cafes, a McDonald’s restaurant and the city’s Millennium Library at The Forum, which houses the BBC’s regional headquarters.

Goddard is claimed to have started the blazes using thermite, a substance capable of burning at extremely high temperatures. 

Posters left at the scene of the incidents raised issues about Palestine, Gaza and the West Bank, with one calling the BBC ‘cowards’, Woolwich Crown Court was told.

Opening the case this week, prosecutor Fiona Robertson said: ‘Between March 3 and September 28 last year, a series of targeted attacks were carried out in and around Norwich.

‘The prosecution case is that the same person was responsible for each of these attacks, which were strikingly similar.’

Police found evidence at Goddard’s home which included a ‘confession’ on a computer and jurors could be ‘sure’ that Goddard was responsible, Ms Robertson added.

Martha Goddard, 50, denies 16 charges including intending to cause explosions, criminal damage and making an explosive substance

CCTV played to the court showed a suspect leaving the area by Goddard’s home at 12.35am on September 28 before travelling in the direction of Tacolneston.

The bike being used had a basket on the front, a pannier on the back and the same person returned to the spot after 7am.

CCTV footage from the Tacolneston transmitting station, which transmits BBC radio and TV broadcasts, showed someone inspecting the area between 3am-4am.

Just before 4.30am, a ‘strong light source’ could be seen. Two hours later flames were flickering from the base of the mast before they were put out by a member of staff just before 7am.

The cost of the damage was around £1 million, Ms Robertson told the jury.

Objects outside the Forum building in Norwich, where the BBC studios are situated, were set alight on a different occasion.

There were also blazes outside a McDonald’s and a Starbucks in the city’s Haymarket and another Starbucks in St Stephens Street, with thousands of pounds of damage caused.

Jurors heard that the attacks appeared to be ‘in support’ of Palestine and the Palestinian people.

She is said to have cycled for an hour from her home in Norwich, Norfolk, to start the fire at the BBC’s transmitter in Tacolneston

The damage to the mast was around £1 million, jurors were told

Posters left on the windows of premises, which were assumed to have links to Israel, included one with the message: ‘Broadcast Gaza medics in fear, you cowards.’

The prosecutor said this may have been a ‘challenge’ to the BBC.

Another poster demanded that bombing in Gaza be halted. Others called for the release of a doctor called Hussam Abu Safiya and the lifting of a blockade on the West Bank.

A reversible camouflage jacket the suspect wore during the incidents was later seized from the defendant’s home, as was the bicycle and a distinctive tote bag seen on the CCTV footage.

Goddard gave ‘no comment’ answers when interviewed by police, jurors were told.

The court has heard that CCTV footage showed an individual dressed in dark clothing and carrying a ‘distinctive’ tote bag at locations linked to the incidents.

Goddard denies 16 offences, including intending to cause explosions, criminal damage and making an explosive substance.

Police were called to reports of a suspected arson attack at a Starbucks in St Stephens St, Norwich, on July 25

Mrs Justice Maura McGowan told jurors: ‘No decisions based on your personal opinions – whatever you may think of Palestine, whatever you may think of McDonald’s.’

The trial, which is due to last two weeks, continues.