humanity

‘We Refuse to Remain Silent’: 1,000 North African Volunteers Make Their Way to Gaza to Break Israeli Siege

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Original article by Julia Conley republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).

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.

“This visit brings us joy,” architect Alaa Abdel Razzaq told Agence France-Presse.

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.”

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.

https://twitter.com/IrishhcwforPal/statuses/1932675184437178587

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“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.”

Original article by Julia Conley republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).

Experiencing issues with this image not appearing. I suspect because it's so critical of Zionist Keir Starmer's support of and complicity in Israel's genocides.
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/O74hZCKKdpA
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.
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.
Vote Labour for Genocide.
Vote Labour for Genocide.
Continue Reading‘We Refuse to Remain Silent’: 1,000 North African Volunteers Make Their Way to Gaza to Break Israeli Siege

The Courage and Necessity of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla

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Original article by Margaret Knapke republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).

The Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) launched the Madleen, a civilian ship now sailing toward Gaza carrying humanitarian aid and international human rights defenders in direct defiance of Israel’s illegal and genocidal blockade. (Photo: Courtesy of the FFC)

“We are doing this because no matter what odds we are against, we have to keep trying,” says humanitarian Greta Thunberg, “because the moment we stop trying is when we lose our humanity.”

Many people, armed only with moral and political convictions, would be too intimidated to confront an army or navy directly. But not all.

Twelve nonviolent human-rights activists with the international Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) are currently sailing a small boat, the Madleen, to Gaza. They hope to create a humanitarian sea corridor through Israel’s illegal blockade. If all goes well, they should arrive this weekend, with “baby formula, flour, rice, diapers, women’s sanitary products, water desalination kits, medical supplies, crutches, and children’s prosthetics.”

They know the danger. Ten volunteers were killed by Israeli commandos when they boarded the Mavi Marmara in 2010. But, as Greta Thunberg said before she embarked last Sunday, “We are doing this because no matter what odds we are against, we have to keep trying, because the moment we stop trying is when we lose our humanity.”

How Palestinians See It

The history is important, and one does not have to approve of Hamas’ attack against Israeli civilians in October 2023 to understand that.

During the Nakba in 1948, at least 750,000 Palestinians were violently displaced from their homelands by Zionist paramilitaries and nascent Israeli forces. As Palestinian-Canadian Samah Al-Sabbagh recently told a crowd, those who survived that colonial onslaught left their “homes, land, olive groves, even the freshly baked bread.”

The occupation has never stopped, and now the violence is more high-tech and all-inclusive in its reach. In Gaza, bombs (largely supplied by the United States) have destroyed homes, apartment buildings, schools, universities, hospitals, mosques, churches, and more—leaving thousands buried under rubble. Adding to that nightmare, doctors report the intentional killing of children with high-velocity bullets that can destroy surrounding tissues and organs.

The death toll is staggering. As of May 27, 2025, the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza reports that at least 54,056 people, including at least 17,400 children, have been confirmed as killed in Gaza since October 2023.

For those still living, Israel’s stranglehold on international humanitarian aid has created widespread malnutrition and starvation, with babies and children the most vulnerable. “One in five people in Gaza, about 500,000 people, faces starvation, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification platform said on May 12,” according to the UN. Indeed, the UN calls Gaza the “hungriest place on Earth.”

Israel and its fellow perpetrators, including the United States, refuse to take seriously the rulings by the International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice, much less the many human-rights groups decrying genocide, and less still the students and people in the streets making a ruckus for justice.

Perhaps the perpetrators think that ignoring the voice of the people will make it stop, that heartbroken people will give up their moral and legal agency. They should think again.

A Global Civil Society Initiative of Unarmed Civilians

Huwaida Arraf is a Palestinian-American lawyer and activist. She has worked with the International Solidarity Movement, the Free Gaza Movement, and more recently the FFC. Her rationale for sending small, unarmed boats in nonviolent direct actions against Israeli policy? “Our governments have failed. And so the people are taking action.”

Lawyers Arraf and Luigi Daniele assert that there is a strong legal basis for citizens taking action, as world governments ignore their “clear and urgent humanitarian obligations.”

In August 2008, the Free Gaza Movement successfully delivered aid to Gaza, using two small fishing boats named Liberty and Free Gaza. Participants included 44 activists from 17 countries, and they promised that they’d keep returning “until the siege on Gaza was broken.”

Included in the aid they brought were 200 pairs of hearing aids—far short of the 9,000 requested—because so many children were experiencing hearing loss as a result of Israel’s sonic booms.

Two years later, on May 31, 2010, the Israeli navy swarmed the Mavi Marmara. This ship was part of a larger flotilla, carrying nearly 700 people, which was attempting to deliver 10,000 tons of humanitarian aid to Gaza. The Israelis killed 10 activists—one died after being comatose for four years—and wounded fifty more.

Although the UN Human Rights Council declared the attack illegal—and despite Prime Minister Netanyahu’s apology to Turkey, whose citizens were killed—Israel continued its oppressive blockade.

Between 2010 and 2024, the FFC continued to challenge the siege. But “all ships were pirated by the IOF, and participants were assaulted, kidnapped, interrogated, imprisoned, and/or deported.” (“IOF” identifies the IDF as an occupation force.)

By May 2, 2025, the FFC had prepared their next attempt. The ship was named Conscience as an appeal to the world’s conscience. It was sitting in international waters near Malta, waiting for the volunteers to board and set out for Gaza. But the crew heard drones, and Conscience was struck by two explosives.

“The bombing was a deliberate act of aggression and intimidation,” the FFC wrote on their website. “Four crew members were injured, the ship was set ablaze, communications were severed, and the vessel was left adrift and taking on water. The attack occurred in European waters, in violation of international law.”

Madleen: Never Give Up

The activists say of the Madleen, “She may be small, but her mission is powerful: To break the silence. To challenge Israel’s illegal blockade through nonviolent direct action. To stand firmly and unapologetically, with Gaza.”

The Madleen set sail on June 1, one day after the fifteenth anniversary of the murderous assault on the Mavi Marmara. Activists gathered in Catania, Sicily, in preparation for their launch. The boat is named for Gaza’s first gender-role-defying fisherwoman; she personifies FFC’s steadfastness.

The ship’s namesake, Madleen, fell in love with the sea as a young child. When she was only 13 years old, she took over her injured father’s fishing boat and became the main breadwinner for her family. Although Madleen’s focus was on her family’s survival—not politics—she shared the fishermen’s encounters with Israeli patrols. She recounted, “They often directly attacked my boat. They stole my fishing nets more than once. The thing was that each time they attacked me, I would get a little stronger. I never gave up.”

Years later, she hopes her two daughters will become “two strong fisherwomen.”

May Madleen and the activists happily meet in Gaza this month. And may this stubbornly committed “civil society initiative of unarmed civilians” help the world see that legal and moral obligations are not overridden by governments’ corrupt colonial agendas.

To that end, the FFC asks that people raise their voices and contact the media and government officials to express support for breaking the siege against Gaza.

Readers can track the progress of the Madleen in real time and explore ways to support the FFC’s work. They promise: “We sail until Palestine is free.”

This article first appeared in Foreign Policy In Focus and appears here with permission

Original article by Margaret Knapke republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).

Continue ReadingThe Courage and Necessity of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla

‘I Call it Genocide Because IT IS Genocide’ Says UN Palestine Expert Francesca Albanese

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Original article by Brett Wilkins republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).

Francesca Albanese, United Nations special rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories, speaks during a press conference at Buswells Hotel in Dublin, Ireland on March 20, 2025. (Photo: Brian Lawless/PA Images via Getty Images)

“To end it, we must first be willing to see it.”

United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories Francesca Albanese pushed back Tuesday against Israel and its defenders, who for years have attempted to gaslight and malign the Italian legal scholar for tirelessly condemning what an increasing number of international experts—including many Israelis and diaspora Jews—agree is a genocide in Gaza.

“I call it genocide because IT IS a genocide,” Albanese wrote on the social media site X on Tuesday, amplifying a video she recorded last week in which she said that “Israel is committing genocide in Gaza.”

“It’s not an opinion, it’s a fact,” the 48-year-old Georgetown University scholar asserted. “Top international experts, including Israelis, agree upon that.”

Under Article II of the Genocide Convention, the crime of genocide is defined as killing, “causing serious bodily or mental harm” to a group of people, “deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part,” “imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group,” or “forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.”

Israel is currently facing a genocide case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) brought by South Africa and supported by dozens of nations, either individually or via regional blocs. The ICJ has issued three provisional orders for Israel to take steps including avoiding genocidal acts and ending weaponized starvation in Gaza. Critics say Israel has violated all three orders.

The International Criminal Court has also issued warrants for the arrest of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant, his former defense minister, for alleged crimes against humanity and war crimes in Gaza including extermination and forced starvation.

“In Gaza, Israel has killed nearly 60,000 people with bombs bullets, and drones, including 16,000 children,” Albanese said in the video. “It has flattened homes, schools, churches, hospitals, water networks, farms, even cemeteries. The death toll from hunger, disease, untreated wounds, an[d] deprivation could reach 300,000.”

“Prisoners, including medics and journalists, have been tortured. Many have been raped, using dogs and sticks; some have died in Israeli prisons,” she continued. “Forced displacement continues in the West Bank, and over 1,000 Palestinians have been killed in 20 months, and 1 in 5 is a child.”

“Beware of those who use Hamas’ crimes or the fate of the hostages to justify this massacre,” she said. “Civilians are never legitimate targets. Israel has masked everything with legal words: ‘evacuations,’ ‘safe zones,’ ‘human shields’—it’s fiction.”

Israel and its leaders deny they are committing genocide and say those who make such allegations—including Jews—are antisemitic. Albanese has been a prominent target of such smears, in which the Biden and Trump administrations as well as members of U.S. Congress, both Democratic and Republican, have taken part while supporting tens of billions of dollars in U.S. armed aid for Israel.

Albanese has called the U.S. and other Western nations that support Israel an “axis of genocide.”

“And what about us? We are failing the test of our humanity.”

Gaza officials say Israeli bombs, bullets, and blockades have left at least 193,000 Palestinians dead, maimed, or missing and millions more forcibly displaced, sickened, or starved— sometimes to death. Israeli forces are currently carrying out a plan by Netanyahu’s far-right government to conquer, indefinitely occupy, ethnically cleanse, and possibly recolonize Gaza, which U.S. President Donald Trump said he wants to make into the “Riviera of the Middle East”—presumably devoid of Palestinians.

“And what about us?” asked Albanese in the video. “We are failing the test of our humanity. Too many media, governments, companies, universities, too many guilty consciences and dirty hands. This genocide bears our fingerprints. It’s under our eyes. Denying it today means being ignorant, or complicit. Stopping it is the only way to remain human.”

“Genocide is a process, not a single act,” Albanese added. “A collective act. A criminal venture. To end it, we must first be willing to see it.”

Original article by Brett Wilkins republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).

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.
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.

Continue Reading‘I Call it Genocide Because IT IS Genocide’ Says UN Palestine Expert Francesca Albanese

Gaza Humanitarian Foundation’s head resigns, says he ‘will not compromise on principles’

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This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Jake Wood, seen in 2021, the CEO of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. [Photo by Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images]

Jake Wood, the CEO of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, has announced his resignation, saying current conditions make it impossible to deliver aid to Gaza without violating basic humanitarian principles—something he refuses to do.

In his resignation statement, Wood said that the current circumstances make it impossible to deliver humanitarian aid without compromising “the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence, which I will not abandon.” 

Wood also called on Israel to “significantly expand the provision of aid into Gaza through all mechanisms” while also urging “all stakeholders to continue to explore innovative new methods for the delivery of aid, without delay, diversion, or discrimination.”

READ: Israeli army controls 77% of Gaza: Media office

He stressed that the only path to a lasting solution lies in the release of all hostages held by Hamas, a ceasefire, and a clear roadmap toward peace, security, and dignity for everyone in the region.

Not much is known about the “Gaza Humanitarian Foundation,” which is supported by Washington and Tel Aviv and whose headquarters have been registered since February in Geneva, but the United States supported this foundation without revealing whether it contributes to it directly.

Jake Wood, the founder and outgoing CEO, is a former US Marine sniper who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. He has expressed support for Israel on social media platforms in the past.

Israel continues its policy of systematic starvation against around 2.4 million Palestinians in Gaza by closing border crossings to aid convoys, which have been stuck at the borders since 2 March. This has pushed the territory into a state of famine and has led to the deaths of many.

In recent days, the Israeli military has intensified its operations in both the northern and southern parts of the Gaza Strip, announcing a new ground offensive.

READ: UN food agency calls for ‘sustained, daily’ flow of aid to stave off starvation in Gaza

This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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.
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.
Experiencing issues with this image not appearing. I suspect because it's so critical of Zionist Keir Starmer's support of and complicity in Israel's genocides.
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/O74hZCKKdpA
UK Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch explains her reality that the Earth is flat, the Moon is made of cheese and that she was born from Unicorn horn dust
UK Conservative Party leader Kemi ‘‘not a genocide’‘ Badenoch explains her reality that the Earth is flat, the Moon is made of cheese and that she was born from
Unicorn horn dust
Continue ReadingGaza Humanitarian Foundation’s head resigns, says he ‘will not compromise on principles’

20 years of ALBA-TCP

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Original article by Pablo Meriguet republished from peoples dispatch under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 (CC BY-SA) license.

Heads of State Summit of ALBA-TCP in Caracas, Venezuela. Photo: ALBA-TCP

ALBA-TCP was founded in 2004 in an attempt to counter the US proposal of creating a “free trade zone of the Americas

December 14 marked the 20th anniversary of the creation of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America-People’s-Trade Agreement (ALBA-TCP). ALBA-TCP was created in 2004 as a geopolitical alternative to the devastating advance of neoliberalism in the region.

The project was founded on December 14, 2004, in Havana by Cuban President Fidel Castro and Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez. Currently, the organization has 10 member countries and four countries considered “special guests.” In 2006, Bolivia signed its membership; in 2007, Nicaragua; in 2008, Dominica; in 2009, Antigua and Barbuda and St. Vincent and the Grenadines; in 2014, St. Kitts and Nevis and Grenada; and in 2021, St. Lucia. The special invited countries are Syria, Haiti, Suriname, and now Palestine.

To commemorate the 20 years, social movements, political parties, and heads of state gathered in Caracas, Venezuela for the 24th Heads of State Summit as well as parallel meetings. The event was attended by the host, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro; Bolivian President Luis Arce; Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel; Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega; Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Ralph Gonsalves; Prime Minister of Dominica, Roosevelt Skerrit; and the Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, Gaston Browne.

Independence and solidarity among countries

In their addresses during the Summit on December 14, the heads of state and invited countries stressed the importance of solidarity among countries seeking alternative ways of development and the need for unrestricted solidarity among people struggling against imperialist attacks. They also demonstrated their support for Nicolás Maduro and his victory in the last presidential elections.

Miguel Díaz-Canel said “We reiterate the strongest support for the Bolivarian revolution, led by President Nicolás Maduro…We also call for the elimination of the blockade against Cuba …We cry out for a free Puerto Rico and declare our solidarity with Haiti, our Cuban doctors are there…We reiterate our demand for a ceasefire in Gaza and condemn the attacks perpetrated by Israel against Lebanon, Syria, and Iran.”

The Bolivian President, Luis Arce, highlighted the historical importance of ALBA in its fight against economic projects promoted by the United States such as the FTAA (Free Trade Area of the Americas): “The embrace of Hugo Chávez and Fidel Castro not only marked history but also manifested the defeat of the hegemonic project of the FTAA. ALBA was born, ALBA placed the human being at the center, promoting that a better world is possible. Bolivia reaffirms, once again, its commitment to ALBA-TCP, because it is a resistance that raises its voice against the unjust and criminal blockade against Cuba…ALBA is also a firm voice against the arbitrary and unilateral measures imposed against Venezuela and Nicaragua, which affect the welfare of our peoples.”

Nicolás Maduro said, “We must win the battle of life and truth in the streets, networks, media, and walls, as well as in the conscience and spirituality of the people.” He also added the importance of the struggle of the people to be masters of their destiny without imperial impositions or impositions of any kind. In the same line of discourse, Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega said “From Nicaragua we reaffirm our commitment to ALBA. We will continue to fight the battle.”

The Prime Minister of Dominica, Roosevelt Skerrit stated “We congratulate the electoral triumph of President Nicolas Maduro on July 28. We wish him all the best…We also want to reaffirm our solidarity with the people of Cuba, a brave people for whom we have our greatest respect and love; we will never cease to lend our voice against the United States to eliminate the blockade against Cuba.”

Ralph Gonsalves, Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, harshly criticized US interference in the development of the past Venezuelan elections “Perhaps [the US government] thinks it is superior,” he said in this regard. He also stressed that the creation of ALBA-TCP was a fundamental invention for the emancipation of the American people, “ALBA is the product of the geniuses of our peoples.”

Inclusion of Palestine to ALBA-TCP

At the current summit, it was announced that Palestine had been included as a “brotherly country” and was included as a “permanent guest”. According to the resolution of the Heads of State, ALBA-TCP condemns the attacks against the Palestinian population and the “illegally occupied territories” and rejects “the merciless and inhuman genocide committed by the State of Israel, the occupying power, as well as its plan of spoliation, invasion, and domination.” Likewise, they denounced the support of several governments currently collaborating with the actions of the Israeli army and called for an “immediate ceasefire…From the heart of the peoples and governments of this alliance, we declare Palestine a brother country of the ALBA-TCP, and reaffirm our commitment to the defense of the Palestinian cause, which is the defense of humanity,” reads the resolution.

Riyad al-Malki addressing ALBA-TCP Summit. Photo: ALBA-TCP

In this regard, Riyad al-Malki, advisor to the President of State for International Affairs of Palestine said “History will remember those who stood on the side of justice, ALBA’s lasting solidarity with Palestine is a testimony of freedom and collective resistance.” Furthermore, Malki added “This Alliance is a living testimony of collective integration to challenge imperialism and ensure a just world. These values resonate with the Palestinian struggle, an end to the illegal occupation.”

A call for counter-hegemonic struggle

The joint document signed by all the countries highlights the historical importance of ALBA-TCP in the struggle for a more equitable world: “Twenty years after this giant step, we pay homage to the founding leaders, Hugo Chávez Frías and Fidel Castro Ruz, who adopted that December 14, 2004, in Havana, Cuba, the vision of the future embodied in the founding documents of ALBA, which have allowed us to walk united until the present, animated by the ancestral force that led our peoples to be free and that encourages us to continue integrated in this Alliance for Life.”

Similarly, it was stressed that the existence of this multilateral organization operates as a possibility to create a region that resists the impositions of the most developed countries: “Today, we want to ratify before our peoples, the counter-hegemonic, democratic, anti-imperialist and anti-fascist nature of our Alliance and renew our commitment to help and protect each other, to continue building together a future of shared goals under the founding principles of complementarity, cooperation, social justice, defense of our sovereignty and solidarity.”

In this sense, Luis Arce stressed that “In the face of the challenges of a world threatened by fascism and neo-fascism, ALBA is not an option, ALBA is a necessity that must continue with firm steps, reaffirming the founding principles of solidarity, justice, and cooperation…ALBA is not only an alliance, it is a promise for the future, a living resistance, an instrument for the most dispossessed, and a reminder that together, as peoples, we are invincible.”

Objectives and principles of ALBA-TCP

According to ALBA’s official website, the fundamental objective of the project is “to achieve integral development, ensure social equality and contribute to guaranteeing the quality of life, good living, independence, self-determination and identity of the peoples.” For this very reason, the principles of ALBA-TCP propose that political decisions be made horizontally and take into account the economic differences of its members without meaning that the importance of each of the members is underestimated.

The principles shared by the countries are “trade and investment should not be ends in themselves, but instruments to achieve sustainable development; special and differentiated treatment, according to the level of development of the various countries; economic complementarity and cooperation; cooperation and solidarity; the creation of the Social Emergency Fund; the integrative development of communications and transportation; the sustainability of development; energy integration; the promotion of investments of Latin American capital in the region; the defense of Latin American and Caribbean identity and culture; respect for intellectual property; and the agreement of multilateral positions and in negotiations with countries and blocs in other regions.”

Original article by Pablo Meriguet republished from peoples dispatch under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 (CC BY-SA) license.

Continue Reading20 years of ALBA-TCP