Jun 23, 2025
Tens of thousands rally across Europe for Gaza ceasefire
Synopsis In Berlin, more than 10,000 people gathered in the centre of the city in support of Gaza, according to police figures. And in the Swiss capital Bern, march organisers estimated that 20,000 people rallied in front of the national parliament, urging the government to back a ceasefire.
Photo: People attend a pro-Palestinians demonstration in Berlin
And in the Swiss capital Bern, march organisers estimated that 20,000 people rallied in front of the national parliament, urging the government to back a ceasefire.
Thousands also gathered outside a French trade fair near Paris attended by Israeli defence firms, calling for an end to war profiteering and Israel’s offensive in Gaza.
Continue reading at economictimes.indiatimes.com
Italian workers strike against war and militarization
by Ana Vračar
June 21, 2025
The Italian grassroots trade union Unione Sindacale di Base (USB) launched a general strike on Friday, June 20, to escalate national mobilization against armament and war. Echoing a slogan from broader peace campaigns – “Abbassate le armi, alzate i salari” (“Lower the weapons, raise the wages”) – striking workers aiming to expose the consequences of Europe’s, and more specifically Italy’s, growing military-industrial agenda, including more cuts in the region’s public services.
“This is a strike against war and rearmament, but also against the devastating militarization of the economy and society,” USB stated ahead of the strike. “Every euro invested in weapons is one less for education, healthcare, public research, transportation, and wages. Every factory converted to war production is a factory taken from civil, ecological, and sustainable development. Every job ‘created’ in the arms industry fuels death.”
Despite frequent political claims about job creation through militarization, USB pointed out that even these promises are overstated. According to the union, the defense sector relies heavily on automation and artificial intelligence to boost profits, and less so on flesh-and-blood workers. As a result, production processes are highly vertical and exclusive, obstructing the redistribution of wealth. “On the contrary,” USB warned, “they concentrate profits in the hands of a few, mostly private, actors, while relying on substantial public funding.”
Leonardo: a case study of Europe’s defense industry
One of the clearest examples of how the military industry functions, according to progressive trade unions and media, is Leonardo: Italy’s largest arms producer and currently one of the top defense companies in the whole continent. Once involved in civilian industry as Finmeccanica, Leonardo has shifted almost entirely toward military production, generating billions in profit annually. Although the Italian state owns 30% of the company, over 50% is controlled by international investment funds, banks, and similar actors who benefit from the many armed conflicts in the world.
The government led by Giorgia Meloni continues to justify support for defense manufacturers like Leonardo with the same claims about employment USB debunked in its call to action. That such claims are not based in reality is confirmed by Leonardo’s own example. As USB reports, the group has cut approximately one-quarter of its Italian workforce in the past 15 years despite record profits. “Leonardo’s massive output of weapons doesn’t even yield significant benefits for our economy,” the report noted.
Complicity in Israel’s war crimes
Importantly, Leonardo’s involvement in Israel’s genocide in Gaza has added urgency to the union’s strike. The company develops and produces key weaponry used by Israeli forces, including armored vehicles involved in the destruction of Palestinian homes and components for F-35 fighter jets. “Italy – our labor, our taxes – is directly complicit in a colonial and genocidal war, with institutions, political parties, and the media remaining complicit and silent,” USB declared. “We are striking because we want wages, rights, peace, and social justice, not bombs, tanks, and drones that bring death.”
Continue reading at peoplesdispatch.org
Palestine Action break into RAF base and damage two planes
Britain
June 20, 2025
PALESTINE Action targeted two military planes at an RAF base in Oxfordshire today, where daily flights depart for another base in Cyprus used for military operations in Gaza.
Two activists broke into RAF Brize Norton and approached the planes on electric scooters.
They used repurposed fire extinguishers to spray red paint into the turbine engines of two Airbus Voyagers, before causing further damage using crowbars.
Activists then sprayed red paint across the runway, symbolising the bloodshed in Gaza.
They were undetected by security and managed to evade arrest.
Flights depart daily from the base for RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, used by Britain to support Israel, the group said in a statement.
More than 500 RAF surveillance flights have flown over the Gaza area from Akrotiri in 15 months, according to analysis by Action on Armed Violence.
The base is also used for British and US military cargo transports to the Israeli military, Palestine Action said.
A spokesperson for the group said: “Despite publicly condemning the Israeli government, Britain continues to send military cargo, fly spy planes over Gaza and refuel US/Israeli fighter jets.
“Britain isn’t just complicit, it’s an active participant in the Gaza genocide and war crimes across the Middle East.
“By decommissioning two military planes, Palestine Action has directly intervened in the genocide and prevented crimes against the Palestinian people.”
The home secretary is looking to ban Palestine Action as a terrorist organisation in the coming weeks, the BBC reported.
Yvette Cooper is understood to be preparing a statement before Parliament on Monday which will make being a member of the group illegal if passed.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said in a post on X: “The act of vandalism committed at RAF Brize Norton is disgraceful.
“Our armed forces represent the very best of Britain and put their lives on the line for us every day.
“It is our responsibility to support those who defend us.”
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said: “We strongly condemn this vandalism of Royal Air Force assets.
“We are working closely with the police, who are investigating.”
Thames Valley Police has launched an investigation and said inquiries are ongoing to locate and arrest those responsible.
Shadow armed forces minister Mark Francois told the BBC that the there were “serious questions for the MoD to answer” about how protesters were able to “gain access to what is supposed to be a secure RAF air base.”
On Saturday, thousands are expected to gather in London for the National March for Palestine to demand that the government stop arming Israel.
The march will depart from Russell Square at 12pm.
Continue reading at morningstaronline.co.uk
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