Gaza and Global Neofascism

by Gilbert Achcar

Most of the recent electoral rounds in Western countries (lately in Norway and Germany) have yielded worrying results that confirm the rise of racist far-right forces. This buttresses the characterization of the era we live in as one comparable to the fascistic era between the two world wars of the past century, but in a new guise claiming to respect the democratic form of government, among other new features. Hence the labelling of these forces as neofascist (see “The Age of Neofascism and Its Distinctive Features”, 4 February 2025).

One of the most worrying characteristics of the current neofascist era is that it includes, in addition to the countries of continental Europe, the two Western countries that confronted the fascist axis in the last century in alliance with the Soviet Union: the United States and Britain. As the neofascist transformation of the US regime, overseen by Donald Trump and his acolytes, becomes more evident day after day, London witnessed last Saturday the largest rally organized by the far right in British history. This came against the backdrop of public opinion polls indicating that the far right, led by Nigel Farage, is leading the Labour and Conservative parties.

Δείτε το για να καταλάβετε τη σχέση της γενοκτονίας των Χερρέρος από τη Γερμανία με την άρνηση της να πληρώσει στην Ελλάδα τις οφειλόμενες πολεμικές επανορθώσεις.

Namibia: The Price of Genocide

It was the first such atrocity of the 20th century, committed between 1904 and 1908 in the name of Imperial Germany in the territory known then as German South West Africa.

Germany accepts responsibility for genocide in Namibia, but has it done enough to right the wrongs of the past?

In May this year, the German government formally acknowledged responsibility for the colonial-era genocide against Namibia’s Herero and Nama peoples more than 100 years ago.

It was the first such atrocity of the 20th century, committed between 1904 and 1908 in the name of Imperial Germany in the territory known then as German South West Africa. As such, many historians now see it as foreshadowing the Nazi Holocaust of World War II.

But Herero and Nama activists, who have long campaigned for reparations, say the compensation on offer does not truly reflect the appalling suffering of the tens of thousands who died – through ethnic cleansing, disease, starvation, imprisonment and torture.

In Namibia: The Price of Genocide, filmmakers Naashon Zalk and Hamilton Wende have been finding out why.

https://www.aljazeera.com/video/people-power/2021/12/16/namibia-the-price-of-genocide

Photo / picture: Protest against the genocide in Gaza at the monument to the Holodomor in Kiyv.

Solidarity message from Ukrainian Соціальний рух / Social Movement/ to the participants of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla that leaves for Gaza today from a lot of countries worldwide.

"We write from Ukraine with respect for your courage and in solidarity with the Palestinian people. We ourselves have experienced invasion, occupation, forced displacement and separation of our loved ones and know all too well what this means.

We also remember the history leading up to this day: the denial of the Nakba, the ongoing violence and land grab by colonists, the continued denial of the right to return and the suffocating blockade that turned Gaza into an open-air prison. We see how in Gaza citizens, women and children are disproportionately targeted, trapped on a narrow strip of land where famine has been created and where homes, schools and hospitals are in ruins. The paralysis of the so-called international community, unable or unwilling to intervene and end this madness, is painfully familiar to us.

We praise the dedication of the Freedom Flotilla and believe that solidarity, even if symbolic, can break the spell of inevitability. We join the demands for a permanent ceasefire and an end to apartheid structures, for a future based on equality and shared life.

May the road you take today become a safe passage for help, and tomorrow a corridor for freedom! ”

The Silencing of Anas al-Sharif

A haunting look at the targeted killing of journalist Anas al-Sharif and the war on truth in Gaza.

This is the story of Anas al-Sharif, Al Jazeera Arabic’s correspondent in northern Gaza, who risked everything to document the war unfolding around him.

Born and raised under blockade, Anas grew up surrounded by conflict but chose not to turn away. Instead, he became a journalist, determined to show the world the human cost of war. As bombs rained down and entire neighbourhoods were erased, Anas remained on the front line, reporting with unwavering courage. He captured starvation, the destruction, and the relentless targeting of civilians and journalists alike.

But in a place where truth is dangerous, Anas became a target himself. This is the story of a man who gave his voice to Gaza until he was silenced.

All That Remains

The journey of a 13-year-old amputee from Gaza named Leyan as she seeks treatment in the US.

Leyan Abu al-Atta, a 13-year-old girl from Gaza who lost her leg in an Israeli attack, is one of thousands of children who have lost limbs in this war in what experts say is likely one of the most intense mass-disabling events of children in our lifetimes.

Fault Lines follows Leyan’s journey as she makes her way to the United States for medical treatment in the hopes of overcoming a spinal cord injury and walking again on prosthetic legs. Along the way, we witness Leyan’s perseverance, her family’s unwavering love in the wake of her life-changing injury and an intimate portrait of what lies ahead for the child amputees of Gaza.

Neofascism and Climate Change

by ACHCAR Gilbert

What is driving neofascist movements to question, to varying degrees, the reality of climate change, or at least its connection to human behaviour?

As a record-breaking heat wave engulfs much of Europe and North America, and as climate change and global warming—against which environmental scientists have long warned, calling for urgent action before it’s too late—are increasingly confirmed, at this alarming juncture for the future of the planet and its human and animal inhabitants, it is worth asking what is driving neofascist movements to question, to varying degrees, the reality of climate change, or at least its connection to human behaviour. We have previously noted that “Neofascism is pushing the world towards the abyss with the blatant hostility of most of its factions to indispensable environmental measures, thus exacerbating the environmental peril, especially when neofascism has taken over the reins of power over the most polluting people in the world proportionally to its number, namely the people of the United States.” (“The Age of Neofascism and Its Distinctive Features”, Al-Quds Al-Arabi, 4 February 2025).

From Below: Iranian Civil Society Against War and Tyranny

by Siyavash Shahabi

In the shadow of sirens and smoke, where Tehran’s skyline is once again marked by fire and fear, a different kind of voice is emerging from within Iran—one that rejects both the bombs falling from foreign skies and the violence of the regime that claims to defend the homeland. While Israel’s attack on Iranian cities have intensified regional chaos and the Islamic Republic responds to the attack, an unprecedented wave of domestic dissent is rising from below. It is not the state, nor its generals or clerics, but workers, teachers, feminists, and writers—many of them imprisoned—who are speaking the clearest truths about war, justice, and survival.

In the past two days, six distinct but politically aligned statements have been issued by various sectors of Iranian civil society. These statements come from labor unions, educational syndicates, imprisoned women’s rights activists, and the Iranian Writers’ Association. They do not echo the calls for vengeance or nationalist pride. Instead, they condemn all sides of the conflict—from Israeli occupation and imperial violence to the Islamic Republic’s repressive and militarized rule. Together, these voices form a unified rejection of militarism and authoritarianism, and they call for peace, democracy, and dignity—not as slogans, but as survival strategies in a collapsing region.

Joint Statement by Independent Organizations in Iran

Opposing War and Warmongering Policies

June 16, 2025

The Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company, a member of the International Trade Union Solidarity and Struggle Network, is transmitting this text, signed with other independent organisations in Iran:

In light of the current unstable and dangerous conditions in Iran and the region, the undersigned organizations consider it their duty to adopt a collective position.

The working people of Iran — workers, teachers, nurses, retirees, and other wage-earners — have never had, and never will have, any interest in war, militarization, the bombing of the country, or in oppressive and exploitative policies.

Ce passé qui nous hante et façonne notre présent !

Adresses – internationalisme et démocr@tie n°12

Par Yorgos Mitralias

Il est manifeste que, par les temps qui courent, le passé revient en force pour hanter et même pour façonner de plus en plus notre présent ! C’est comme si les démons d’un passé prétendument exorcisés à jamais revenaient et, pire, occupaient de nouveau le devant de la scène politique. Prenez par exemple la seconde présidence de Trump et son trumpisme triomphant qui présente plus que des similitudes avec la peste brune de l’entre-deux-guerres. Évidemment, Naomi Klein et Astra Taylor ont tout à fait raison quand elles affirment que « nous devons reconnaître la réalité : nous ne sommes pas confrontés à des adversaires que nous avons déjà vus [1] ». Oui, sans doute, car cette seconde présidence de Trump semble inédite et n’a aucun précèdent non seulement parce qu’elle est dirigée et soutenue par des milliardaires mais aussi parce que tous ces ultra-riches qui la composent « ne se contentent pas de profiter des catastrophes, dans le style du capitalisme du désastre, mais les provoquent et les planifient simultanément ».

Capitalist Progress Threatens Human Survival

 by LÖWY Michael

Marxist scholar Michael Löwy, responding to Samuel Farber’s “In Defense of Progress” from the new issue of Jacobin, defends philosopher Walter Benjamin and argues that “progress,” as defined under capitalism, has come to threaten humanity’s very survival.

Samuel Farber’s article “In Defense of Progress” is very sensible and rational. We agree on many points, but I have some important disagreements. I’ll try to present them briefly.

The first capitulation of Tsipras and Varoufakis (Part 8)

by Eric Toussaint

At the end of January 2025, the main leader of Syriza, Alexis Tsipras, became Prime Minister and appointed Yanis Varoufakis, a left-wing economist close to his party, as Finance Minister. It is very important to take the time to analyse the policies put in place by Yanis Varoufakis and the Syriza government because, for the first time in the 21^st century, a radical left-wing party was elected in Europe to form a government. Less than six months later, the government finally gave in to the demands of the creditors against the wishes of the Greek people as expressed in the referendum of 5 July 2015. Understanding the failures and drawing lessons from the Syriza government’s handling of the problems are two essential questions. Éric Toussaint shows that it was possible to implement a different policy in line with Syriza’s commitments to the Greek people.

1. Greece 2015 | From hope to capitulation | Lessons for the future [Part 1]
2. Greece 2015: Varoufakis’ proposals were doomed to fail [Part 2]
3. A questionable account by Varoufakis of the origins of the Greek crisis [Part 3]
4. How Tsipras and Varoufakis’s turned their backs on Syriza’s platform [Part 4]
5. Greece 2015: Varoufakis’s Advisers [Part 5]
6. A Negotiation Strategy Doomed to Fail [Part 6]
7. Towards the first capitulation and the disastrous 20 February 2015 agreement with the Eurogroup [Part 7]
8. The first capitulation of Tsipras and Varoufakis (Part 8)

How Tsipras and Varoufakis’s turned their backs on Syriza’s platform

by Eric Toussaint

Yanis Varoufakis traces his collaboration with Alexis Tsipras and his alter ego, Nikos Pappas, back to 2011. That collaboration gradually broadened, starting with 2013, to include Yannis Dragasakis. There is a constant in the relations between Varoufakis and Tsipras: Varoufakis constantly argues for changes in the political programme that Syriza had adopted. Varoufakis tells us that Tsipras–Pappas–Dragasakis themselves clearly wanted to move toward an orientation that was different from, and significantly more moderate than, the one their party had adopted.

Varoufakis’s narrative is lively and piquant. Through it, we see how choices were made behind Syriza’s back at very important stages, without regard for basic democratic principles.

To hear Varoufakis tell it, he played a central role, and he did in fact exert influence on the line the Tsipras–Pappas–Dragasakis trio adopted. It’s also certain that Tsipras and Pappas, outside of Syriza, sought to create fairly close relations with certain individuals and institutions in order to gradually move the policies put into practice farther and farther away from the positions Syriza had championed. Varoufakis is not the only person they contacted, but at a given point Tsipras and Pappas felt that he was the right man to negotiate with the European institutions and the IMF.

Greece in 2015 :

A questionable account by Varoufakis of the origins of the Greek crisis

by Eric Toussaint

In the previous article entitled ‘Greece 2015: Varoufakis’ proposals were doomed to fail’, I critically analysed the proposals made by Varoufakis before joining Tsipras’ government in January 2015, showing that they led to failure. This article covers the ties Varoufakis maintained with Greece’s ruling political class (both the Pasok, historically linked to social-democracy, and the conservative New Democracy) for several years.

On several occasions, Varoufakis mentions the broad range of his relations with members of the Greek political milieu. He stresses his past friendship with Yanis Stournaras (the current governor of the Bank of Greece, an ally of Mario Draghi and of the private Greek and foreign bankers), his good relations in 2009 with George Papandreou (who implemented the policies leading to the first Memorandum of Understanding in May 2010) and his relationship with Antonis Samaras (who led the Greek government after the second Memorandum of Understanding), and he devotes a large part of the first four chapters of his book to relating how a close collaboration, and at times a complicity, was formed with three Syriza leaders. Those leaders were Alexis Tsipras (who led the Greek people into the third Memorandum of Understanding) and Nikos Pappas (Tsipras’s alter ego, who became a minister of state in the first Tsipras government), who were joined later by Yannis Dragasakis (before he became vice–prime minister of the first and second Tsipras governments). In this second chapter I will deal with Varoufakis’s account of the start of the crisis in Greece and his relations with Greece’s traditional political class.

Greece 2015: Varoufakis’ proposals were doomed to fail

by Eric Toussaint

In his book Adults in the Room [1], Yanis Varoufakis gives his version of the events that led to the shameful capitulation of the government of Alexis Tsipras in July 2015. Essentially it analyses the period 2009–2015, though it makes incursions into earlier periods.

With this voluminous (550-page) work, Yanis Varoufakis shows that he is a gifted storyteller. At times he succeeds in moving the reader. His direct and vivid style makes it easy to follow events.
This initial chapter will cover the first four chapters of a book that comprises seventeen in all. It deals with the proposals Varoufakis made before he became a member of the government in January 2015.

 Series Understanding what happened in Greece in 2015 when hope came from Athens

Greece 2015 | From hope to capitulation | Lessons for the future

by ERIC TOUSSAINT

25 January 2015, at a time when Greece had been suffering since 2010 under the burden of a severe austerity regime forced on the country by its creditors and by the social-democrat (Pasok) and conservative (New Democracy) parties who have taken turns exercising power in the country, Syriza (an acronym whose Greek meaning is “coalition of the radical Left”) won the legislative elections in Greece, with 149 deputies out of a total 300. Lacking an absolute majority in the Hellenic Parliament, Syriza formed a coalition government with ANEL (a small “souverainist” right-wing organization which announced that like Syriza, its priority was to put an end to the austerity policies). Syriza’s leader, Alexis Tsipras, became prime minister and appointed Yanis Varoufakis, a left-leaning economist close to Syriza, his finance minister.