Mideast War blowback
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ASPartOfMe
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18 Sep 2025, 5:56 pm
Italian port blocks arms for Israel as worker protests mount
The Italian Adriatic port of Ravenna on Thursday refused entry to two trucks said to be carrying arms to Israel, as protests mount among Italian dockworkers and other labor groups against the offensive in Gaza.
The center-left mayor of Ravenna, Alessandro Barattoni, told reporters the port authority had accepted the request from him and the regional government to deny access to the lorries carrying explosives en route to the Israeli port of Haifa.
"The Italian state says it has blocked the sale of arms to Israel but it is unacceptable that, thank to bureaucratic loopholes, they can pass through Italy from other countries," Barattoni said in a statement.
He did not provide details on where the containers had come from or provide evidence of their contents.
Similar actions to block arms shipments to Israel have been taken by dockworkers in other European countries, such as France, Sweden, and Greece.
Ravenna's decision reflects growing mobilization in Italy against Israel's assault and in support of an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to the Palestinians.
Trade unions strike to pressure gov't to end agreements with Israel, recognize Palestine
On Friday, Italy's largest trade union body, the CGIL, will hold a national half-day strike and marches in Rome and other cities, while on September 22, two other unions will halt work and try to block activity in the large ports of Genoa and Livorno.
"We won't let a single pin through the port," said Riccardo Rudino from the Calp dockers' union in Genoa.
The CGIL said its protests were aimed at generating pressure on Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's government "to suspend all commercial and military cooperation agreements with Israel, lift the humanitarian embargo, and recognize the State of Palestine."
Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on Thursday Italy would support EU sanctions against violent Israeli settlers and Israeli ministers who have made "unacceptable" comments on Gaza and the West Bank, and was open to considering trade sanctions.
Over 400 International Artists Sign a Petition to Remove Their Songs From Platforms in Israel
The initiative's statement cites the move as a response to "Israel's genocide in Gaza; ethnic cleansing of the Occupied West Bank [and] apartheid." Every participating artist or label is required to exclude Israel from their music distribution territories or to submit requests for geographic blocking of their content in Israel through distribution companies.
The boycott is being led by independent artists and record labels, who have succeeded in enlisting major artists including Massive Attack; Sudan Archives; Kneecap; Primal Scream; Fontaines D.C.; Rina Sawayama; the rapper MIKE; Faye Webster; Japanese Breakfast; King Krule; Arca; MJ Lenderman; and the singer MØ.
In their statement, the organizers directly called on major record labels such as Sony, Universal and Warner to join the boycott, similar to their decision to block access to their musical content in Russia a month after it invaded Ukraine.
"Culture can't stop bombs on its own, but it can help reject political repression, shift public opinion toward justice, and refuse the art-washing and normalization of any company or nation that commits crimes against humanity," the initiative's statement reads.
The statement added that the initiative is "part of a worldwide movement to erode the support Israel needs to continue its genocide."
The organizers also referenced other cultural and political actions in recent weeks opposing the war in Gaza, including the "Film Workers for Palestine" petition and the Spanish government's decision to ban ships and planes en route to Israel.
According to the initiative, its purpose is to inspire artists and provide them with a tangible tool to make an impact through their music against the war.
"Our first goal with No Music For Genocide is to inspire others to reclaim their agency and direct their influence toward a tangible act," the statement says. "The more of us there are, the stronger we will be. This is just the beginning."
At this time, most of the catalogs of many of the major artists who have signed the petition are still available to Israeli users, due to agreements between streaming platforms and the major labels, which hold the distribution rights to the music. While the songs of Fontaines D.C. are indeed no longer available in Israel, the music of Massive Attack, Primal Scream, and others remains accessible.
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19 Sep 2025, 11:42 am
I'm convinced Israel is commiting genocide and oppression, but at the same time I think that the global backlash against Israel and Jews in general has been largely unfair. I know this is "whataboutism" but even China hasn't received anywhere near the amount of hatred for their part in committing ethnic cleansing on Muslims in their own country. The whole world collectively shrugged their shoulders on that one but were quick to turn on Israel, even though what Israel has done is wrong too.
However I can't help but feel that some of these Pro Palestinian protestors would have supported Hitler back in the day if it meant sticking it to both Israel and the US.
19 Sep 2025, 4:02 pm
However I can't help but feel that some of these Pro Palestinian protestors would have supported Hitler back in the day
That may be the case. In the same way that quite a few of today's zionists would have supported Hitler.
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19 Sep 2025, 5:04 pm
However I can't help but feel that some of these Pro Palestinian protestors would have supported Hitler back in the day
That may be the case. In the same way that quite a few of today's zionists would have supported Hitler.
I find that hard to believe... but then again we have women, black people, and even Muslims supporting Trump so maybe that's not outside the realm of possibility.
21 Sep 2025, 2:15 pm
In full: Statement announcing UK's recognition of Palestinian state
"The UK has officially recognised a Palestinian state. Here's Sir Keir Starmer's announcement in full.
In the face of the growing horror in the Middle East, we are acting to keep alive the possibility of peace and a two-state solution.
That means a safe and secure Israel alongside a viable Palestinian state. At the moment, we have neither.
Ordinary people, Israeli and Palestinian, deserve to live in peace, to try to rebuild their lives free from violence and suffering."
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21 Sep 2025, 2:18 pm
Press release UK formally recognises Palestinian State
"The UK has formally recognised Palestine to protect the viability of a two-state solution and create a path towards lasting peace for the Israeli and Palestinian people.
The historic decision, announced alongside Canada and Australia, comes as the situation on the ground in Gaza continues to worsen, Israel continues to expand its illegal settlements in the West Bank, and Hamas continues to hold the hostages.
In July, the Prime Minister pledged to act if the situation did not change and firmly believes that the UK has a moral responsibility to do everything it can to support a peaceful future for Israel and Palestine – the prospect of which is slipping further away.
A two-state solution, with a safe and secure Israel alongside a viable and sovereign Palestinian state led by a reformed Palestinian Authority, is the only path to a lasting peace for the Israeli and Palestinian people - free from the horrendous violence and suffering of the last two years.
Recognising Palestine is a historic decision, firmly grounded in the Palestinian people’s inalienable right to self-determination, which the government committed to as part of its manifesto."
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21 Sep 2025, 2:21 pm
Statement by Prime Minister Carney on Canada’s recognition of the State of Palestine
"Since 1947, it has been the policy of every Canadian government to support a two-state solution for lasting peace in the Middle East. This envisioned the creation of a sovereign, democratic, and viable State of Palestine building its future in peace and security alongside the State of Israel.
Over many decades, Canada’s commitment to this goal was premised on the expectation that this outcome would be eventually achieved as part of a negotiated settlement."
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21 Sep 2025, 2:26 pm
Mapped: Which countries recognise Palestine as a state? Out of 193 UN member states, 147 recognise the state of Palestine – as Britain, Australia and Canada take action
With France, Austraila and Belgium recently announced their plans to step up to the plate as well.
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Last edited by BillyTree on 21 Sep 2025, 2:29 pm, edited 1 time in total.
ASPartOfMe
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21 Sep 2025, 2:26 pm
Apart from politicians I thought ordinary people, especially in Israel or the US, that are zionists actually thought Israel is not commiting a genocide.
Most people whether they believe Israel is committing a genocide or not figured Sanders thought they were long before he said it.
Zionists are not monolithic group. I would say zionists fall into four main groups.
1. Those that do not think Israel is committing genocide and think Israel is the most moral army in the world
2. Those that think Israel is committing war crimes but not genocide.
3. Those that think Israel is committing genocide but think it is a necessary evil if not fine with it.
4. Those that think Israel is committing genocide, hate that it is being done in their name but still believe Jews have a right to a state.
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Last edited by ASPartOfMe on 21 Sep 2025, 2:44 pm, edited 1 time in total.
21 Sep 2025, 2:31 pm
Apart from politicians I thought ordinary people, especially in Israel or the US, that are zionists actually thought Israel is not commiting a genocide.
Most people whether they believe Israel is committing a genocide or not figured Sanders thought they were long before he said it.
Ok. Then I get it.
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22 Sep 2025, 7:57 pm
Miami-Dade County’s Jewish mayor faces off against her own son over Israel bonds investment
But for her, the personal truly is political: Levine Cava is the mayor of Miami-Dade County, and her son is vocally opposed to her office’s investments in Israel bonds.
Ted Cava, a local writer and former labor leader, showed up at a recent county meeting to urge his mother to divest from the county’s Israel bonds. Wearing a “Jews Say Divest From Genocide” T-shirt, he and his 1-year-old daughter Leila stood with fellow members of Jewish Voice for Peace South Florida, the anti-Zionist group. The group says the county should shed what it believes is more than $151 million in Israel bonds.
“This is very uncomfortable for me. I love my mother a lot,” Cava, 36, told the Miami Herald at the event on Thursday. “We’re going to have Shabbat dinner tomorrow night. But she’s wrong on this.”
The spectacle was a potent illustration of how the ongoing war in Gaza, which began when Hamas attacked Israel from the enclave on Oct. 7, 2023, and is now approaching its grim second anniversary, has sharply split Jewish opinion — sometimes within the same family. Recent polling shows that overall approval of Israel’s war in Gaza among Americans is sharply split along generational lines, with 49% of those over 55.approving, and only 9% of respondents under 35 approving. Another poll specifically of American Jews, released last week, found that 53% disapprove of the war.
Likewise, the Cava family, Ted told the Herald, “is very divided on generational lines” when it comes to Israel.
Both parties in the Cava family strife acknowledged to the Herald that the war in Gaza has caused rifts between them.
“I know many, many people — including in my own family — who are extremely concerned about the situation, as am I, and exactly how we deal with it,” the mayor, 70, who is the first woman and the first Jew to hold the position, told the paper. She added, “There are differences, of course.”
Shortly after the war’s start, the second-term Democrat announced a boost in the county’s investment in Israel bonds to $76 million.
“Today, I am proud to make this additional investment in Israel bonds, as we send a clear message that Miami-Dade stands together with Israel and all nations that champion democracy,” she said in a statement at the time.
But in recent months she, too, has been critical of Israel’s conduct in Gaza. In a July statement amid reports of widespread famine in Gaza, the mayor denounced “the starvation and hunger innocent human beings face in Gaza today,” adding, “The eyes of the world are upon us. The U.S. has an obligation to lead because we have never forgotten that with power comes compassion and the strength to lead with moral courage.”
Still, she is not seeking to make a change in her county’s investment in Israel. “I’m not weighing in,” the mayor told the Herald about the bonds fight prior to the meeting Thursday of the County Commission, which was considering her latest budget request.
It’s unclear how much sway she could have on the county’s Israel bond investments. (According to JVP South Florida’s report, the $151 million includes both past and current investments.) Her office told the Herald that a recent change in Florida law puts local investments in the hands of the county clerk instead.
A county spokesperson recently told Axios the bonds are still a good fiscal investment despite unrest in the region and a downgrading of Israel’s credit score. That’s in line with what officials elsewhere who endorse investing in the bonds have said.
Still, two dozen activists from the JVP chapter from holding a press conference at the site of the meeting to protest what they say is “investing $151 million in genocide.”
“The County’s decision to invest $151 million in Israel Bonds has not been driven by a focus on improving quality of life for Miami-Dade County taxpayers but, rather, politically motivated by a desire to ‘stand with Israel,’” JVP South Florida wrote on its Instagram under a photo of Mayor Levine Cava attending an Israel Tech Week event.
Ted Cava did not speak at the Thursday protest. But speaking to media afterwards, he said, he understood that his presence would not go unnoticed.
“I decided to kind of take our family disagreement public,” he said, “knowing that some of her opponents could use it in bad faith against her.”
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29 Sep 2025, 8:29 am
Drones from Turkey circle Gaza aid flotilla as boats sail east
"ANKARA - Turkey has joined Spain, Italy and Greece in monitoring an international flotilla carrying aid for Gaza that was sailing east across the Mediterranean Sea on Monday despite warnings from Israel to stop the mission, flight data show.
Flight tracking websites showed that three long-endurance drones originating from Turkey's Corlu airbase have been circling over the flotilla for three days, highlighting the growing international interest in the boats which have vowed to breach an Israeli naval blockade around the embattled Gaza Strip."
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29 Sep 2025, 8:43 am
From diplomacy to soccer, Israel is becoming a pariah on the global stage
Israel is becoming increasingly isolated on the world stage as the war and humanitarian crisis in Gaza continue, with the backlash seeping into economic, cultural and sporting arenas.
International condemnation has soared since Israel announced a ground assault on Gaza City and conducted an unprecedented strike against Hamas leadership on Qatari soil. It also comes as an independent UN inquiry concluded for the first time last week that Israel had committed genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, a finding that echoes those of other genocide experts and human rights groups, but which the Israeli government has rejected.
Last week, the European Union – Israel’s biggest trading partner – proposed sanctions that would partially suspend its free trade agreement with Israel, if approved by EU member states. Several Western nations have already implemented targeted sanctions against certain Israeli individuals, settler outposts and organizations supporting violence in the occupied West Bank.
The global outcry is hitting Israel’s economy in other ways as well.
In August, Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, the world’s largest, announced it was divesting parts of its portfolio in Israel due to the worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Israel also faces partial or complete arms embargoes from France, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, the United Kingdom and others over its conduct in Gaza.
The backlash has been so stark that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu himself acknowledged it earlier this month, warning that Israel is facing a “kind of isolation” that could last for years, adding that the country has no choice but to stand on its own. Netanyahu said Israel would need to further develop its weapons industry and adapt its economy to become less reliant on external trade. He later downplayed those comments, saying he was talking only about the defense industry.
As the war escalates, Israel is also taking hits in the entertainment and culture sphere.
Broadcasters in several European countries, including Ireland, the Netherlands and Spain, have said they will boycott the much-beloved Eurovision Song Contest if Israel is allowed to participate in 2026. The Irish national broadcaster, RTE, said it “feels that Ireland’s participation would be unconscionable given the ongoing and appalling loss of lives in Gaza.”
Israeli singer Yuval Raphael representing Israel with the song "New Day Will Rise" performs during the dress rehearsal for the final of the Eurovision Song Contest in May 2025.
Israeli singer Yuval Raphael representing Israel with the song "New Day Will Rise" performs during the dress rehearsal for the final of the Eurovision Song Contest in May 2025.
Fabrice coffrini/AFP/Getty Images
Israeli broadcaster KAN 11 has pushed back, saying it will press ahead with selecting Israel’s 2026 contestant and arguing that the musical celebration should “not become politicized.” The European Broadcasting Union, the Eurovision organizer, has said member countries will vote in November about which countries can participate next year. Israel has been part of Eurovision since 1973.
In the fine arts, a music festival in Ghent, Belgium, recently canceled a concert by the Munich Philharmonic, which was set to perform with Israeli conductor Lahav Shani. The festival said in a statement that “Shani has spoken out in favor of peace and reconciliation several times in the past, but… we are unable to provide sufficient clarity about his attitude to the genocidal regime in Tel Aviv.”
The Israeli government has maintained it is conducting the war in Gaza in self-defense and in accordance with international law, firmly denying all accusations of genocide.
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29 Sep 2025, 5:10 pm
Spain blocks American ships carrying weapons for Israel
“Rota and Moron are not a backdoor,” a source was quoted by the paper as saying. "Rota and Morón are bases under Spanish sovereignty, under the command of a Spanish military officer, and everything that happens there must be authorized by the Spanish authorities," a source was quoted by the paper as saying.
The Spanish government, which has called Israel’s military actions a genocide, says it stopped exporting arms to Israel as of Oct.2, 2023, and has recognized a Palestinian state in May 2024. The move comes as Madrid continues to cancel arms contracts with Israeli companies.
The two American bases in southern Spain are officially shared by the two allies, but Washington often uses them as a hub for troops, weapons, fuel, and supplies bound further east. The bases were also used by 15 American KC-135 tanker aircraft during the war between Israel and Iran in June as the US flew its bombers towards Iranian targets ahead of Operation Midnight Hammer.
But, according to the 1988 Madrid-Washington military cooperation agreement regarding the base, America must obtain authorisation from the local administration to transfer “ammunition and explosives” to third countries.
And while Spain initially waived its right to know the final destination of the cargo and could not legally inspect them as they transferred through, it significantly limited their ability to stop the cargo. A 2011 operational amendment tightened the rules and obliged Washington to disclose flight origins, destinations, and descriptions of mission objectives and cargo.
Article 25 of the treaty also explicitly excludes missions carrying “controversial cargo or passengers” which require case-by-case approval by Spain.
Though Madrid is obliged to respect the bilateral defense agreement with Washington, the report noted that America is fully aware of the controversy surrounding the arms bound for Israel.
According to El Pais, six F-35 Adir fighter jets on their way to Israel from the US in March avoided stopping over at those bases, choosing instead to stop in the Azores before flying through the Strait of Gibraltar.
In September, a US State Department spokesperson said that limiting access to Spanish ports and airspace to ships and planes carrying weapons for Israel was “deeply concerning.”
UK Labour party votes that Israel is committing genocide, pro-Palestine groups celebrate
During the Labour Party Conference in Liverpool, which began Sunday, an emergency motion was brought that called on the party to accept the findings of a recent UN report that found Israel to be in breach of four of the five criteria for genocide.
The motion, now passed, also called for an end to arms sales to Israel, comprehensive sanctions, a ban on trade with internationally-deemed illegal settlements, and full access to humanitarian aid.
This marks the first time the Labour party has officially recognized Israel's actions in Gaza as a genocide.
Although this runs contrary to the official position of the government ministers and cabinet, it is still highly significant. As the New Statesmen pointed out, "even if government ministers are yet to recognise what is happening in Gaza as a genocide, that is now the official line of the party they represent."
Daniel Martin of The Telegraph wrote, "Sir Keir Starmer has been humiliated at his own conference."
Following the news, the Palestine Solidarity Campaign said, “Huge defeat for the Government as Labour conference votes that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza."
“The Government must listen and act. Stop arming Israel now!”
Recognizing genocide a "huge feat"
Sasha Das Gupta, the co-chair of left-wing political group Momentum, said: “Labour conference voting for the Government to employ all means to end Israel’s genocide is a huge feat."
She called on the government to listen to its own members and introduce a full arms embargo against Israel.
Co-Deputy Leader of the Green Party, Mothin Ali, said, “By agreeing that the Israeli regime is committing genocide in Gaza, Labour members have exposed their leadership for not only denying what the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry concluded, and most of the public believe, but also of complicity by continuing to arm Israel."
He called on Keir Starmer and his ministers to follow suit.
However, Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy reiterated his stance that it is not up to the government to decide whether or not Israel is committing genocide.
"It is for the ICJ with their judges and judiciary, and for the ICC, to determine the issue of genocide in relation to the convention. It is not for politicians like me to do that," he said.
The Jewish Labour Movement said it was "hugely disappointed" and lamented the fact that the motion neglected to mention October 7 or Hamas.
London music festival cancels Israeli DJ following outcry from Ravers for Palestine group
In a Substack post, Ravers for Palestine urged the Origins music festival to cancel Israeli DJ Roi Perez’s set, accusing him of “making apartheid look like a party,” despite his record of advocating for Israeli-Palestinian peace and LGBTQ+ rights.
“This is a DJ who encodes, via his plucky province-to-metropole settler backstory and appropriation of Black house music, the colonial narrative of a benevolent, queer-friendly liberal Zionism,” the blog post read.
The Origins organizers wrote in a temporary post on Instagram — now preserved elsewhere online — that it had canceled the event after learning of concerns about Perez’s “background” from Ravers for Palestine.
“We have read the recent statement from Ravers for Palestine and want to be absolutely clear that as a collective, we firmly and unequivocally support Palestinian liberation,” Origins said. “We do not want to take any action that undermines that struggle or risks platforming voices in ways that contribute to the ongoing genocide and Israel’s settler-colonial project.”
Ravers for Palestine specifically condemned a fundraiser hosted by Perez’s collective Laundrette in Berlin in November 2023.
In announcing the event, Laundrette said it had considered canceling given the “ongoing tragic events.” But instead, the collective decided to “emphasize our belief in coexistence and our hope for peace” and donate the proceeds to three nonprofits, including the coexistence group Standing Together.
“The funds will directly help survivors and evacuees of the 7/10 massacre, unsheltered Bedouin communities, displaced Palestinian communities due to settler violence, queer arabs in both Israel & Palestine in need of professional psycho-social counseling and other underserved groups,” Laundrette wrote.
Ravers for Palestine argued that the language was a way of downplaying Israel’s treatment of Palestinians, calling Perez and his Israeli supporters “settlers” themselves.
“Let’s be clear—’peace’ in this context is a euphemism for the orderly annihilation of Palestinian life,” the blog post read. “Any settler advocating for ‘coexistence,’ rather than full decolonization and right of return, supports the colonial occupation of Palestine and its continuance.”
Origins’ decision to cancel Perez’s set, which would have taken place at the London nightclub FOLD, has drawn condemnation online, with many noting Perez’s outspoken advocacy for Palestinians.
“AS AN ISRAELI!! !, I find it embarrassing to read what you wrote. Roi is one of the most prominent Israeli figures pushing against the state narrative, openly supporting Palestine and every action against Israel — and yet he’s the one you’re trying to crucify,” wrote one commenter on Ravers for Palestine’s Instagram post announcing the cancellation. Similar comments from people who said they were not Israeli also appeared.
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“Self Acceptance is a process not a performance”
“You are autistic enough. And you always have been”
Professionally Identified and joined WP August 26, 2013
DSM 5: Autism Spectrum Disorder, DSM IV: Aspergers Moderate Severity.
