“Developments in the Middle East. We strengthen our solidarity with the peoples of
Palestine, Lebanon and Syria”
Contribution of the Workers Party of Ireland to the European Communist Action meeting in Istanbul (19th January 2025)
The latest meeting of European Communist Action convened today (19th January) in İstanbul, hosted by the Communist Party of Turkey. The theme of the meeting was, “Developments in the Middle East We strengthen our solidarity with the peoples of Palestine, Lebanon and Syria”. Speeches by parties from across Europe, were followed by a wide-ranging discussion on imperialism, the future of Plaestine, the 'right to nations of self-determination', and the role of communist and workers parties in the current crises.
The speech below was delivered by Gerry Grainger, International Secretary of the Workers Party, three of whose members attended via zoom.
We express our sincere thanks to the comrades of the Communist Party of Turkey for facilitating this meeting and convey our greetings to all the parties participating in this meeting.
The Middle East continues to occupy a position of strategic and geopolitical importance for imperialism. Israel and its imperialist allies have imposed a state of permanent war in the region with decades of relentless and bloody attacks on the West Bank and Gaza, Lebanon, Syria and beyond.
The endless stream of war crimes, atrocities, and human rights violations committed by Israel with the unwavering moral, political, military, financial and logistical support of the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union and other imperialist powers has vividly reminded the world of the true nature of imperialism and the barbarism it engenders.
Since the counter-revolution which led to the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the socialist states, imperialism has dressed up its sanctions, interventions, wars, its theft of resources, its subversion of governments and sovereign states and the oppression and exploitation of peoples worldwide under the pretence of “high principle”.
It has manipulated the United Nations and international law to its purposes, using concepts such as international humanitarian law and the responsibility to protect, to justify its wars and to sanction regimes in pursuit of the interests of capital.
The genocidal Israeli war against the Palestinian people, and the support provided to it by the US, EU, UK and others have exposed the emptiness of terms such as “rules-based international order”, “the international community”, and “humanitarianism”. The imperialist war in Ukraine, and the disregard shown for the lives of workers in Russia and Ukraine by their own bourgeois governments and foreign powers, has also been dressed up in grandiose language destined to hide the brutal and bloody truth.
From the beginning of the recent genocidal attacks by Israel, the WP Ireland has demanded a ceasefire which has been, until now, resisted by the state of Israel. During that time the Israeli state has engaged in the indiscriminate and mass killing of Palestinians, including women and children and from infants to the elderly, the destruction of their homes, their expulsion and displacement, the detention and torture of prisoners, the blockade on food, water and medical assistance, the destruction of essential medical and health care facilities, causing serious mental and bodily harm, and deliberately inflicting conditions meant to "bring about their physical destruction as a group” which amounts to genocide. The Palestinian death toll from the war in Gaza could be substantially higher than official figures reported according to research published in The Lancet medical journal.
Israel has deliberately targeted children in schools and hospitals, it has targeted aid workers struggling to provide some relief to a traumatised people, it has deliberately asked people to move and then targeted those people and it has zeroed-in on journalists attempting to tell the world the truth by exposing Israeli war crimes.
In Ireland, the Workers Party has been actively involved in the mass demonstrations in solidarity with the people of Palestine. So vocal have the working people of Ireland been in favour of Palestine that the Israelis withdrew their ambassador and have recently announced they will close their embassy in Ireland. From the beginning of Israel’s genocide against the Palestinians, the WP Ireland has demanded a ceasefire. Even since the proposal was announced last Wednesday, Israel has escalated its murder-
ous bombing campaign across Gaza. Israel has a long record of breaching agreements. This agreement must not be a pause before the genocide resumes.
There must be an immediate and complete lifting of Israel’s siege on Gaza to allow the unhindered access of humanitarian aid, including food and medical supplies. There must be a total withdrawal of all occupying Israeli forces and a complete end to all Israeli attacks. All those illegally detained, including the over 10,000 Palestinians held in Israeli detention, whether in prison or the torture camps in Gaza, and the Israeli hostages held in Gaza should be freed
These immediate measures must be followed by a long-term solution which is only possible through the recognition of the legitimate and inalienable rights of the Palestinian people to self-determination, national independence and sovereignty. The Workers Party of Ireland reaffirms its longstanding solidarity with the communist parties in Palestine and Israel.
The war in Lebanon represents part of a broader strategy by the Israelis to seize additional territory using the excuse of securing their borders. When the Israeli regime talks of “security zones”, what is really meant is annexation and expulsion of those living there. During discussions at the
League of Nations the Zionist movement sought to expand the borders of Palestine (as a future Jewish homeland) up to the banks of the Litani river. The WPI expresses solidarity with the Communist Party of Lebanon and supports the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Lebanon and the freedom of the Lebanese people to decide their own future.
Further, Israel’s genocidal, aggressive and expansionist policies which in addition to its murderous attacks in Palestine and Lebanon now involve intervention in Syria. The dangerous role of Turkey, which despite its rhetoric actively engages in cooperation with the Zionist regime in Israel, further poses a major threat to the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of Syria. The people of Syria who have suffered years of aggression and war are now confronted by an unstable and dangerous road ahead under the jihadist forces mobilised by the US, Israel, Britain and the AKP government in Turkey as part of the plan hatched by imperialism in the region.
While recognising the reality of the nature the Assad regime and the Syrian bourgeoisie, who also acted in the interests of imperialist forces, there is a real danger of territorial division, further war, sectarianism, religious obscurantism and oppression. As Communists, our task is to highlight the real nature of those who have taken power, the extent to which imperialist rivalries are now being played out in Syria, and the consequences for working people there. As with the fascist forces in Ukraine, the capitalist media is seeking to whitewash the nature of the forces involved now that an alliance of convenience has been formed. The design is to break up of Syria, and to destabilise it, like Libya and Iraq, in the interests of US imperialism and its allies in the region, with a view to control of markets, raw materials such as oil, and transport routes.
The WPI condemns these developments and stands in solidarity with our communist allies in Syria.
It is essential to identify the driving forces behind this imperialist competition. The US, the EU, China, Russia and their monopolies are engaged in an inter-imperialist confrontation. This is a dangerous time for the world, and the interests of the working class and popular strata which have received serious setbacks, both in the Middle East and further afield.
Individually and collectively, our parties have taken an active part in demonstrating solidarity with the peoples of Palestine, Lebanon, and Syria, in opposing this war, in exposing its true nature and the role of imperialism - just as we have with the war in Ukraine. Our Marxist-Leninist analysis places imperialism and class struggle at the forefront of understanding the wars going on around us. The reality of capitalist exploitation manifests the vital necessity for class struggle and socialism which cannot be deferred.
The ongoing wars in the Middle East and beyond are a vivid illustration of the nature and ruthlessness of imperialism and the capitalist social system. As Communists it is our duty to wage the class struggle in our own countries but we also hold dear our obligations as internationalists. Our struggles are linked to those abroad against the same opponent – the class that benefits from imperialism. Our internationalist obligations are never greater than at a time like now. We express our solidarity to the peoples of Palestine, Lebanon, and Syria who have been suffering at the hands of imperialist aggression, and we continue our efforts to support them, as individual parties, and collectively.
A secure, peaceful and safe world can never be achieved under capitalism which inspires and emboldens nationalism, chauvinism and racial intolerance and has ravaged, divided and destroyed countries, and exploited and oppressed their peoples and workers.
The Workers Party of Ireland salutes its comrades and expresses its solidarity with the people, workers and the communists of Palestine, Lebanon and Syria in these dangerous times.
Imperialist war is no solution!
Capitalism can never serve the interests of humanity and peace!