CounterPunch Exclusives

CounterPunch Exclusives

Ports of Resistance: Blocking the War Machine and the Genocide Economy

Photograph by Port Workers for Palestine

As Israel’s genocidal campaign grinds on — with over 70,000 Palestinians slaughtered in Gaza and its aggression now spreading into Lebanon — a powerful new front of resistance is emerging at the world’s ports. Dockworkers, truckers, and solidarity activists are refusing to be complicit in the machinery of death, physically blocking weapons shipments and exposing the global supply chains that fuel endless war and profit from mass slaughter.

These actions are not symbolic gestures. They are a developing strategy to choke the war machine and dismantle the genocide economy at its weakest links. But to succeed, they must evolve into a sustained, coordinated international effort. Isolated blockades can raise awareness; only synchronized, cross-border action can truly starve the beast.

Italy’s Ports of Resistance

Italian dockworkers have been at the forefront. Unions like the Unione Sindacale di Base (USB) and the Autonomous Collective of Port Workers of Genoa (CALP) have repeatedly shut down operations to prevent arms and military components from reaching Israel.

In September 2025, dockworkers in Genoa and Livorno blocked ports during a nationwide general strike that brought millions into the streets. In Ravenna, workers refused entry to trucks carrying explosives bound for Haifa. Similar actions have targeted vessels linked to ZIM and other carriers.

The resistance has spread south as well. In Calabria, at the strategic port of Gioia Tauro, activists and port workers have mobilized against suspected dual-use shipments and military cargo destined for Israel.

Greece........

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