FRENCH DOCKWORKERS BLOCK ARMS SHIPMENT FOR ISRAEL, GENOA PREPARED TO FOLLOW SUIT

INTERNATIONAL PROTEST • Dockworkers in Marseille are refusing to handle a container with ammunition components destined for Israel, denouncing a "genocide" in Gaza. The ship is expected to call at Genoa, where Italian dockworkers are ready to follow suit, despite French government assurances about the cargo's final use.

Marseille, France – A shipment of ammunition components bound for Israel has been blocked at the French port of Marseille. The city's dockworkers have refused to load the container onto a ship, citing their dissent against "the ongoing genocide orchestrated by the Israeli government." The vessel, the "Contship Era" operated by Zim, is then scheduled to call at Genoa, Italy, where Ligurian dockworkers have also announced their intention to block the ship if it arrives with the controversial cargo, before proceeding to Salerno and then Haifa.

Military Cargo Under Scrutiny

According to Christophe Claret, Secretary General of the CGT union for port workers in the Gulf of Fos, the cargo that triggered the protest is a container holding 19 pallets of "maillons" – small metal components used to link ammunition for machine guns – produced by the Marseille-based company Eurolinks.

"We were informed that a ship on the regional Mediterranean line was due to load these components. We managed to identify them and set them aside," Claret explained to AFP. The union specified that once dockers refuse to load goods, no one can replace them. Other containers destined for the same ship will be loaded as usual. "The CGT stands for peace and against all wars," the union stated in its press release, reiterating its opposition to involvement in the ongoing conflict in Gaza.

Political Reactions and Denunciations

The presence of these armaments was first exposed by the investigative media outlet Disclose. The French government has assured that the armaments are not intended for the Israeli army. According to the license granted to Eurolinks, which manufactures spare parts for machine guns and submachine guns, these links are to be assembled in Israeli territory, but the final product would then be re-exported to France.

The action by Marseille's dockworkers has received widespread praise from left-wing political figures. "Glory to the dockers of the port of Marseille-Fos," wrote Manuel Bompard, a Member of Parliament for La France Insoumise, on X, referring to a global mobilization against "the genocide in Gaza." Party leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon also commended the gesture, calling for an "immediate embargo on the weapons of genocide." Olivier Faure, First Secretary of the Socialist Party, added: "Humanism is not for sale."

Mobilization in Genoa

Genoese dockworkers are ready to follow the example of their French counterparts. The USB union in Genoa has announced a strike for tomorrow to prevent the ship, should it dock with the cargo in question, from carrying out the necessary operations for its departure. "We strongly reiterate that we do not want to be complicit in the genocide that continues in Gaza and that we firmly oppose all wars," the union stated in a press release.

Protests have also come from the Five Star Movement. "We appeal to the Italian government not to allow the use of our ports for this death ship, even if only for a technical stopover," wrote Francesco Silvestri, Marco Pellegrini, and Bruno Marton, group leaders of the Foreign Affairs and Defense committees in the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate, in a joint statement.