EUROPEAN dockworkers have gathered in Italy to discuss plans to impose a weapons blockade on Israel.
The Italian USB union will host workers from Spain, France, Greece, Cyprus, Morocco and Germany in Genoa on Friday and Saturday to agree a joint strategy, Politico reports.
Francesco Staccioli, of the union’s confederal executive, told the news site: “We hope to come out of this meeting with a plan for serious, concrete action – both immediate and long-term.”
The initial focus will be on the Global Sumud Flotilla, a convoy laden with humanitarian aid which has been targeted by Israeli drones.
But the ramifications could be broader and threaten Israel’s wider trade ties with the European Union.
Staccioli added: “Looking ahead, it could mean coordinated industrial action in European ports against not just weapons, but all goods directed to Israel.”
The initiative started as a way to coordinate Mediterranean dockworkers with the aim of making ports “arms-free zones”, according to the trade unionist.
“What started as a plan for a common front in the autumn — to step up pressure and disrupt arms loading and unloading in European ports — has been reshaped by recent events,” he added, in reference to blocks on weapons shipments from Piraeus in Greece, Marseille in France and in Genoa.
But what changed matters was the Global Sumud Flotilla. “The flotilla changed the game,” Staccioli told Politico. “It amplified the debate and put Gaza front and centre, demanding strong, immediate intervention.”
Also in Italy, a general strike was called earlier this week over the genocide in Gaza. The USB has threatened to block all trade shipments to Israel if contact is lost with the humanitarian flotilla, with which Swedish activist Greta Thunberg is involved.
On Friday, delegates at the Genoa conference will see talks aimed at agreeing joint measures for all ports involved.
The following day will see a public meeting alongside other workers in the weapons supply chain, with discussions on strikes relating to loading and unloading weapons.
Some majorly powerful unions are involved, such as Spain’s Coordinadora, France’s CGT Port & Docks and Morocco’s ODT, which represents workers in Tangier, a vital gateway to the Mediterranean.
