An Israeli soldier carries a shell next to a tank in northern Israel, September 27, 2024
ISRAEL’S illegal and unprovoked bombing of Iran, killing military leaders, scientists and numerous other civilians, puts us on the brink of catastrophic conflict.
An attack on this scale would be treated as an act of war by any country. Nor is the Israeli strike a one-off: besides its long record of murdering scientists and bombing diplomatic premises, its strikes on Iranian territory are ongoing, with the overnight bombing of Tehran being followed up by daytime strikes on Tabriz, Shiraz and other cities.
The British government’s calls for restraint are grossly inadequate. The aggressor is Israel and its conduct puts us all at risk. Its attack on Iran must not just be unequivocally condemned: the already overwhelming case for a halt to military co-operation and arms supplies has become more urgent.
Its formal excuse for attacking Iran is illegitimate. Suspicion that Iran might be close to developing nuclear weapons is not grounds for attacking it. Only an imperialist mindset can hold the possession of such weapons by some states acceptable and by others not: and Iran has nothing like Israel’s record of routine attacks on its neighbours. The dangerous and destabilising power in the Middle East is Israel. Besides, those in Iran who say nuclear weapons are their only safeguard against attack will be strengthened today.
Could we be drawn in? Easily. Britain is already directly involved in Israel’s wars. It has bombed Yemen and conducted intelligence-sharing RAF flights over Gaza. It supplies a military committing genocide. It is not illogical for actors in the region to see Israeli allies like Britain and the US as directly culpable for its actions, especially given US President Donald Trump’s hints he is behind the attack.
Genocide denier and Current UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is quoted that he supports Zionism without qualification. He also confirms that UK air force support has been essential in Israel’s mass-murdering genocide. Includes URLs https://www.declassifieduk.org/keir-starmers-100-spy-flights-over-gaza-in-support-of-israel/ and https://youtu.be/O74hZCKKdpAUK Labour Party government ministers Keir Starmer, Angela Rayner and Rachel Reeves explain that they are partners complicit in Israel’s Gaza genocide. The UK has provided Israel with arms, military and air force support. They explain that they don’t do gas chambers but do do forced marches, starvation, destroy hospitals, mass-murders of journalists and healthcare workers.
‘We scientists, philosophers, writers, artists and citizens of the world have a responsibility to denounce and resist the resurgence of fascism in all its forms.’ Photograph: Karl B DeBlaker/AP
As in 1925, when Mussolini was in power, we must openly defy the brutal imposition of the fascist ideology
On 1 May 1925, with Benito Mussolini already in power, a group of Italian intellectuals publicly denounced his fascist regime in an open letter. The signatories – scientists, philosophers, writers and artists – took a stand in support of the essential tenets of a free society: the rule of law, personal liberty and independent thinking, culture, art and science. Their open defiance against the brutal imposition of the fascist ideology – at great personal risk – proved that opposition was not only possible, but necessary. Today, 100 years later, the threat of fascism is back – and so we must summon that courage and defy it again.
Fascism emerged in Italy a century ago, marking the advent of modern dictatorship. Within a few years, it spread across Europe and the world, taking different names but maintaining similar forms. Wherever it seized power, it undermined the separation of powers in the service of autocracy, silenced opposition through violence, took control of the press, halted the advancement of women’s rights and crushed workers’ struggles for economic justice. Inevitably, it permeated and distorted all institutions devoted to scientific, academic and cultural activities. Its cult of death exalted imperial aggression and genocidal racism, triggering the second world war, the Holocaust, the death of tens of millions of people and crimes against humanity.
At the same time, the resistance to fascism and the many other fascist ideologies became a fertile ground for imagining alternative ways of organising societies and international relations. The world that emerged from the second world war – with the charter of the United Nations, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the theoretical foundations of the EU and the legal arguments against colonialism – remained marked by deep inequalities. Yet, it represented a decisive attempt to establish an international legal order: an aspiration toward global democracy and peace, grounded in the protection of universal human rights, including not only civil and political, but also economic, social and cultural rights.
Fascism never vanished, but for a time it was held at bay. However, in the past two decades, we have witnessed a renewed wave of far-right movements, often bearing unmistakably fascist traits: attacks on democratic norms and institutions, a reinvigorated nationalism laced with racist rhetoric, authoritarian impulses and systematic assaults on the rights of those who do not fit a manufactured traditional authority, rooted in religious, sexual and gender normativity. These movements have re-emerged across the globe, including in long-standing democracies, where widespread dissatisfaction with political failure to address mounting inequalities and social exclusion has once again been exploited by new authoritarian figures. True to the old fascist script, under the guise of an unlimited popular mandate, these figures undermine national and international rule of law, targeting the independence of the judiciary, the press, institutions of culture, higher education and science, even attempting to destroy essential data and scientific information. They fabricate “alternative facts” and invent “enemies within”; they weaponise security concerns to entrench their authority and that of the ultra-wealthy 1%, offering privileges in exchange for loyalty.
This process is now accelerating, as dissent is increasingly suppressed through arbitrary detentions, threats of violence, deportations and an unrelenting campaign of disinformation and propaganda, operated with the support of traditional and social media barons – some merely complacent, others openly techno-fascist enthusiasts.
Democracies are not flawless: they are vulnerable to misinformation and they are not yet sufficiently inclusive. However, democracies by their nature provide fertile ground for intellectual and cultural progress and therefore always have the potential to improve. In democratic societies, human rights and freedoms can expand, the arts flourish, scientific discoveries thrive and knowledge grow. They grant the freedom to challenge ideas and question power structures, propose new theories even when culturally uncomfortable, which is essential to human advancement. Democratic institutions offer the best framework for addressing social injustices, and the best hope to fulfil the post-war promises of the rights to work, education, health, social security, participation in cultural and scientific life, and the collective right of peoples to development, self-determination and peace. Without this, humanity faces stagnation, growing inequality, injustice and catastrophe, not least from the existential threat caused by the climate emergency that the new fascist wave negates.
In our hyper-connected world, democracy cannot exist in isolation. As national democracies require strong institutions, international cooperation relies on the effective implementation of democratic principles and multilateralism to regulate relations among nations, and on multistakeholder processes to engage a healthy society. The rule of law must extend beyond borders, ensuring that international treaties, human rights conventions and peace agreements are respected. While existing global governance and international institutions require improvement, their erosion in favor of a world governed by raw power, transactional logic and military might is a regression to an era of colonialism, suffering and destruction.
As in 1925, we scientists, philosophers, writers, artists and citizens of the world have a responsibility to denounce and resist the resurgence of fascism in all its forms. We call on all those who value democracy to act:
Defend democratic, cultural and educational institutions. Call out abuses of democratic principles and human rights. Refuse pre-emptive compliance.
Join collective actions, locally and internationally. Boycott and strike when possible. Make resistance impossible to ignore and costly to repress.
Uphold facts and evidence. Foster critical thinking and engage with your communities on these grounds.
This is an ongoing struggle. Let our voices, our work and our principles be a bulwark against authoritarianism. Let this message be a renewed declaration of defiance.
Nobel laureates: Eric Maskin, Roger B Myerson, Alvin E Roth, Lars Peter Hansen, Oliver Hart, Daron Acemoglu, Wolfgang Ketterle, John C Mather, Brian P Schmidt, Michel Mayor, Takaaki Kajita, Giorgio Parisi, Pierre Agostini, Joachim Frank, Richard J Roberts, Leland Hartwell, Paul Nurse, Jack W Szostak, Edvard I Moser, May-Britt Moser, Harvey James Alter, Victor Ambros, Gary Ruvkun, Barry James Marshall, Craig Mello, Charles Rice
Leading scholars on fascism and democracy: Ruth Ben-Ghiat, Timothy Snyder, Jason Stanley, Claudia Koonz, Mia Fuller, Giovanni De Luna and Andrea Mammone
The original Fascists Mussolini and HitlerElon Musk urges you to be a Fascist like him, says that you can ignore facts and reality then.UK Labour Party government ministers Keir Starmer, Angela Rayner and Rachel Reeves explain that they are partners complicit in Israel’s Gaza genocide. The UK has provided Israel with arms, military and air force support. They explain that they don’t do gas chambers but do do forced marches, starvation, destroy hospitals, mass-murders of journalists and healthcare workers.Image of Mussolini & Co hanging out. What happens to Fascists.
An Israeli soldier points his weapon during a military raid in the West Bank city of Nablus, June 10, 2025
THE MINISTRY of Defence has admitted that Israeli troops are currently being trained in Britain as the government is accused of “active participation” in the genocide of Palestinians in Gaza.
Armed forces minister Luke Pollard responded to a parliamentary question from Rachael Maskell MP by saying that Britain is “currently training” Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) personnel on “UK-based training courses.”
Mr Pollard said the training was one part of a “routine defence engagement” with Israel.
His response followed investigations into the British army’s training of Israeli personnel by media outlet Declassified.
Labour MP Richard Burgon, who chairs the Socialist Campaign Group of MPs, told the Morning Star the admission was “truly sickening, especially given the genocide being carried out in Gaza.
“It’s also a flagrant violation of international law. The International Court of Justice has been totally clear that all states must stop any co-operation that aids Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine.
“Britain has a moral and legal duty to immediately end all arms sales and military co-operation with Israel.”
The Scottish Greens also hit back at the government’s admission, saying Britain’s role in the Gaza war “goes beyond complicity.”
Party co-leader Patrick Harvie MSP said: “This is nothing short of disgraceful. This goes beyond complicity — it is direct, active participation in the genocide of the Palestinian people.
“The UK is actively training members of the Israeli military while they carry out a brutal assault on Gaza.
“Every bomb dropped, every home destroyed, every child killed is a crime that the UK government is now tied to.
“Training soldiers who are part of these atrocities is a betrayal of every principle of human rights and international law. It must stop now.”
Palestine Solidarity Campaign deputy director Peter Leary said the “disgraceful” revelation highlights the total inadequacy of the government’s actions.
“On Tuesday, Britain announced long-overdue sanctions against two Israeli ministers but continues to supply weapons to a regime that is perpetrating well-documented war crimes and crimes against humanity.
“We need much more than just a change of rhetoric and blocks on two ministers’ bank accounts.
“We need a full arms embargo, wide-ranging sanctions on the Israeli state, and a complete end to all military co-operation now.”
In a statement to the Morning Star, a spokeswoman from the Stop The War Coalition said: “That Britain is actively involved in training a foreign military currently engaged in genocide comes as little surprise given Labour ministers have been actively enabling the brutality of the IDF throughout.
“The political rhetoric may be starting to shift as Keir Starmer, David Lammy and the rest try to realign their government’s support for Israel’s war on Gaza in an attempt to placate public opposition.
“But it’s clearer than ever just how deep their collaboration with and enabling of war crimes goes.”
UK Foreign Minister David Lammy confirms that UK government and military are active participants in Israel’s genocides and that the F-35 parts that they suspended from supplying to Israel are instead simply diverted via the United States. He says see https://youtu.be/QILgUHrdWREGenocide denier and Current UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is quoted that he supports Zionism without qualification. He also confirms that UK air force support has been essential in Israel’s mass-murdering genocide. Includes URLs https://www.declassifieduk.org/keir-starmers-100-spy-flights-over-gaza-in-support-of-israel/ and https://youtu.be/O74hZCKKdpAUK Labour Party government ministers Keir Starmer, Angela Rayner and Rachel Reeves explain that they are partners complicit in Israel’s Gaza genocide. The UK has provided Israel with arms, military and air force support. They explain that they don’t do gas chambers but do do forced marches, starvation, destroy hospitals, mass-murders of journalists and healthcare workers.
Ukip leader with his ‘goons’ intimidating aid workers and migrants in Calais. Photo: Lachlan Macrae
This is what happens ‘when you’ve got a prime minister echoing Enoch Powell’.
British far-right thugs harassing migrants in northern France are being encouraged by mainstream politicians’ increasingly dehumanising rhetoric, aid workers have told Novara Media.
Faced with daily police violence and no safe route to the UK, migrants living in refugee camps in northern France have more than enough to worry about. But just to make things even worse, last week far-right troublemaker Nick Tenconi turned up with a mob of activists who filmed themselves intimidating migrants and aid workers for a self-promotional video.
Wearing black leather gloves, a stab vest and wielding a megaphone, Tenconi is seen goading aid workers by calling them “communists”, “Nazis” and “terrorists”, and tells viewers that leftists are “architects in the subversion of British culture and Christianity”.
Tenconi, who is 41 years old, gets exasperated when aid workers won’t “rationalise” with his arguments before telling them to “go win a war”. This was then packaged as a promotional video for Ukip, ending with a plea for money for this “vital work”.
Ukip’s national chairman Ben Walker has set up a crowdfunding page asking the public to donate £50,000 to support “a crucial initiative” to “secure our borders”. Making a sinister – and almost certainly fabricated – claim that the party had just “conducted its first operation… collaborating with French police to locate and stop small boats from crossing the channel”, the fundraiser asked for donations in order to “maintain designated teams on rotas in the North of France, working tirelessly to prevent the dangerous and illegal crossing of our borders.”
Tenconi is leader of Ukip and far-right group Turning Point UK (TPUK). TPUK was behind a series of protests against drag performances in south London pubs in 2023. Last year, Novara Media reported how TPUK was a key force organising far-right action against leftwingers and Palestine protests, sometimes descending into disorder, while attempting to maintain links with leading figures in the Conservative party. Its honorary president, Marco Longhi, has since defected from the Tories to Reform.
Pro-Palestinian activists wave Palestinian flags and keffiyehs from open bus windows as they, along with around 1,000 other participants in the Sumud or “Resilience” Convoy, depart from Tunis, Tunisia, on June 9, 2025. (Photo: Chedly Ben Ibrahim/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
“A tsunami of humanity is rising for Gaza.”
As Israeli forces unlawfully boarded the Madleen, a boat carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza, and detained the volunteers on the vessel on Monday, approximately 1,000 pro-Palestinian advocates from across Northwest Africa were boarding a convoy of buses and cars in Tunisia—planning to travel for days to the Rafah crossing, where they aim to break Israel’s blockade that’s starving people across the war-torn enclave.
The Sumud Convoy, whose name means “steadfastness” or “resilience” in Arabic, is carrying aid and being led by the Coordination of Joint Action for Palestine in Tunisia, and has ties to the Global March for Gaza, which includes rights advocates from about 50 countries across the world who were en route to Cairo on Wednesday.
“This is a civil and popular initiative in response to the ongoing genocide in Gaza,” Wael Naouar, a member of the organizing team, told The New Arab. “We refuse to remain silent.”
The convoy crossed into Libya on Tuesday and has been resting after a full day of travel as organizers wait for permission to cross the eastern part of the divided country.
In Tripoli in the western region, the volunteers have been welcomed by hundreds of locals, and fuel station owners have reportedly said they will provide free gas to all cars, buses, and trucks that join the convoy.
Thousands of North African volunteers launched a mass land convoy toward Gaza, aiming to break the Israeli blockade through Egypt. pic.twitter.com/OLuX7iZzh4
Along with the current delay in receiving approval from eastern Libyan authorities to cross the region, the convoy and the Global March for Gaza could face resistance from the Egyptian government as organizers plan to march for three days from El Arish in the Sinai Peninsula to the Rafah crossing.
Egypt classifies the area between El Arish and Rafah as a military zone and has not released a statement on whether it will allow the march.
If the volunteers make it to the Rafah crossing, they will have to contend with the Israel Defense Forces. In addition to abducting international activists including Swedish climate leader Greta Thunberg and Palestinian-French member of European Parliament Rima Hassan this week, Israeli forces killed 10 activists carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza on a Turkish flotilla in 2010.
Ghaya Ben Mbarek, an independent journalist from Tunis, told Al Jazeera that people in the convoy “are feeling courage and anger” as they head toward the Gaza border.
“The message people here want to send to the world is that even if you stop us by sea, or air, then we will come, by the thousands, by land,” Ben Mbarek told Al Jazeera. “We will literally cross deserts… to stop people from dying from hunger.”
Fadi Quran of the U.S.-based advocacy group Avaaz said the journey of the convoy—which has been growing as more people have joined since leaving Tunisia—is “one of the most beautiful things humanity has to offer in 2025.”
“A tsunami of humanity is rising for Gaza,” said Quran. “Amplify it.”
If you’re not watching people across North Africa come out in droves to celebrate the convoy to break the siege, you’re missing out on one of the most beautiful things humanity has to offer in 2025.
The Sumud Convoy is supported by the Tunisian General Labor Union, the National Bar Association, the Tunisian League for Human Rights, and the Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights, while groups including the Palestinian Youth Movement and CodePink are affiliated with the Global March for Gaza.
Advocates from countries including the Netherlands, Canada, and Ireland plan to arrive in Cairo on Thursday, when they hope to begin the three-day march to Rafah.
Canadian Sen. Yuen Pau Woo wrote to the Egyptian government on Tuesday, asking for support for the march.
“I believe that Egypt’s support for this humanitarian action would send a powerful message to the international community,” said Woo.
Kellie McConnell, a member of Irish Healthcare Workers for Palestine, also expressed hope that the international action will force governments around the world, including those that have backed Israel’s bombardment and blockade of Gaza, to “pay attention and do everything in their power” to end the attacks that have killed more than 55,000 Palestinians.
“We can turn the tables in this genocide,” said McConnell. “We can stop the absolutely appalling brutalization and desperate treatment of people in Palestine.”
If the advocates are blocked at the border like the Madleen was intercepted on Monday, one activist in the Sumud Convoy told The New Arab, “even that will send a message.”
“People over power,” they said. “If they stop dozens, thousands will rise.”
Genocide denier and Current UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is quoted that he supports Zionism without qualification. He also confirms that UK air force support has been essential in Israel’s mass-murdering genocide. Includes URLs https://www.declassifieduk.org/keir-starmers-100-spy-flights-over-gaza-in-support-of-israel/ and https://youtu.be/O74hZCKKdpAUK Labour Party government ministers Keir Starmer, Angela Rayner and Rachel Reeves explain that they are partners complicit in Israel’s Gaza genocide. The UK has provided Israel with arms, military and air force support. They explain that they don’t do gas chambers but do do forced marches, starvation, destroy hospitals, mass-murders of journalists and healthcare workers.Vote Labour for Genocide.
An Israeli soldier carries a shell next to a tank in northern Israel, September 27, 2024
