SIXTEEN ARRESTED AS MAIN CARAVAN REGROUPS IN GREECE (INTERVIEW) ~ Gabriel Fonten ~  Sixteen members of the People’s Caravan to Kobane, who were travelling inside Turkey toward the Syrian border, were detained by Turkish police yesterday (28 January), said organisers. The group included many young people and several female journalists, and it is unclear whether and when they will be deported. At the same time, the main car convoy of the caravan was stopped at the Greek-Turkish border and denied entry. Activists are currently considering their next steps. The caravan is drawing attention to the Syrian state’s attack on Kurdish Rojava, with Western complicity. Earlier, Freedom interviewed a participant in the Caravan, which left Vienna on 25 January. Could you talk about the progress of the caravan so far, how many people have joined and what organisations are involved? We started from Cologne in two cars with ten people. This morning we met with the other routes coming from Berlin and the south of Europe, we met in Vienna and are now over 100 people.  So I would say that with each step and each city that we go through, we increase in number and also morale and energy.  There are many different organisations inspired by the Kurdish freedom movement, but also organisations that are connected to the cause like comrades from No Borders.  We are travelling many hours each day in the car. At first in German cities we were able to participate in demonstrations with many Kurdish comrades. We stopped in feminist centres and community centres in general.  This morning we began our conference in Vienna and now we are heading to Belgrade. I think this is like really a reflection of how much the revolution of Rojava could inspire activists in Europe and how much it can make people leave behind the inertia that the system lulls us into. So I think this is a really important aspect of this journey. Of course our objective is to protect the revolution and the people of Rojava. But at the same time it’s also something for us to get out of passivity and to react to a world that is more and more intense every day. Also it’s not just Europeans, but some Kurdish friends and also some friends from Colombia. We are from Germany, France, Colombia and other countries. Austria, UK, Ireland. What are the aims of the Caravan? The aim is also to break the silence that we find especially in European and Western institutions and mainstream media about what is going on. It’s unacceptable because, yes, it’s also the legitimation of the European Union that made this (the attack on Rojava) happen. Obviously also the USA and Israel also.  We are concerned here with developments like Ursula von der Leyen sending 260 million Euros to Al Jolani, the interim President of Syria. This is something that legitimises this authority and is basically something we cannot accept.  I mean, there are different things we could say also. How much we should take responsibility for what the revolutionaries in Rojava gave for the whole world by defeating ISIS. So this also I think. https://cdn.freedomnews.org.uk/news/2026/01/signal-2026-01-29-005014.mp4 12 years ago, four years in war against ISIS, many people gave their lives, and now European institutions are legitimising the government that is opening the prisons that were guarded by the comrades and freeing thousands of ISIS militias. So actually, our action to defend Rojava is an action to defend all of us from a threat that just a few years ago was terrorising the whole world. It’s important for us to remember this. Why did you choose Kobane as your destination in Rojava? I think the fact is Kobane is under siege. It’s surrounded by the forces of the enemy and the villages around it are attacked by jihadist forces and the city itself is at risk of falling in the hands again of jihadist forces such as the HTS, the militia that is at the head of the Syrian transitional government. Also, Kobane is an important symbol of resistance for the Rojava revolution. It was freed 11 years ago on the 26th January by the revolutionaries of the Autonomous Administration from the Islamic State. And I think it was, if I’m not wrong, one of the first big victories also against the Islamic State. And so it has big meaning also that Kobane stays free. And so that is why we are we’re going towards Kobane and trying to break the siege of Kobane. At this moment the situation is really difficult. There are there are a lot of people that have had to move (to Kobane) from other areas, so it’s overcrowded and not everybody has a place to sleep. There was news of four children dying of cold in their sleep. So yes, it’s also a humanitarian issue at the same time as being, as I said, a strong symbol.  When do you expect to arrive?  I expect to arrive… There is a bit uncertainty in this moment because yes, we are afraid that the Turkish state will block us at the border. So right now we’re trying to to pass them and we will see. The idea is to coordinate with the comrades in Turkey. So we will not probably arrive to Kobane, but we will reach the border from Turkey to Syria to be able to put pressure and raise attention on what is happening at the border. The Turkish border is very close to Kobane geographically. We are organising day by day. It’s not certain who will arrive or when, it will be seen with time.  But there are also comrades that could arrive in Bakur, that is Turkish Kurdistan by plane. So yeah, actually there’s already people that under the name of the People’s Caravan are in Kurdistan and are, yes, documenting the repression by the Turkish state and are bringing solidarity to the comrades there. How are you funded? Can you tell us more about how you’ve managed the logistics of moving a large group of people across Europe?  Well, at the beginning it was I think mainly private money or money from the organisations that are organised (the caravan), but I’m not sure because I wasn’t part of the organisation in this sense. I was just doing media and also same thing for the logistics.  But what I can say is that this started from a small group of very determined people who with this objective in 3-2 days could organise this and also by working everyday.  So making the first step until Vienna, where there are more  solidarity structures. So that is structured in the Kurdish community centres where we could go to eat dinner or lunch or yes, just make a break from travel. And then from Vienna on, yes, it was planned basically day by day, finding contacts of comrades, yes, asking for support and asking to bring cars also. And also from Vietnam, we tried to really move as a caravan. So we decided to have the biggest car at the beginning, at the end, so that we could really be at unity and also from an external point of view be seen as all together and be all together.  But it was managed mainly by like pure will of doing it and also from people coming. In the end they came also self organising. What can people do to help and what is best way for people/our readers to follow/contact you? I think a lot of things are needed and a lot of different things. Yes, it is good to donate money, but I think the best, most important thing is really in this moment is to organise in your local place. If you cannot or don’t want to go to to the Rojava in this time, to organise, to mobilise the society in your place. For example, to open a group of RiseUp4RoJava, get in contact and link with the network.  Talk with people about it to get informed. Also this is really important because the war also is a lot on information level. There are a lot of propaganda against the SDF, against the revolution in a lot of media. Al Jazeera for example, there was a campaign announced by young internationalist women to boycott Al Jazeera because it was spreading, yes, information that SDF was attacking the population, which was not true.  Basically how to help is basically to get yourself organised because to support the change in Roava we also have to change our our self and our surrounding, especially with the focus of keeping attention on what is happening and mobilising. The best way to contact us is probably the Instagram account of the people’s caravan. There’s also a website and there is a mail address in their website. The post Turkey blocks People’s Caravan to Kobane appeared first on Freedom News.

CALLS FOR INTERNATIONAL SOLIDARITY AS ASSAULT ON KURDISH AUTONOMY AND RIGHTS INTENSIFIES ~Blade Runner~ Between 20,000 and 30,000 Kurds and supporters filled the streets of London on Sunday 25 January in solidarity with the people of Rojava. Organised by Kurdish diaspora communities and solidarity networks, protesters gathered outside the BBC at Broadcasting House before marching towards Downing Street, calling on Western governments and international institutions to intervene to prevent an unfolding assault on Kurdish autonomy and rights. Passers-by along the route stopped to engage with the march, expressing curiosity and solidarity. RiseUp4Rojava, Women Defend Rojava and the 183 organisations and 72 individuals who have already endorsed the international call, urged supporters to escalate organising — through coordinated street actions, social media mobilisation, pressure on national governments and international bodies, and demands for political and legal recognition of the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (DAANES). On the ground, the situation remains highly volatile. In early January 2026, jihadist forces forming the backbone of Syria’s transitional government, backed politically and logistically by Ankara, launched a rapid offensive across territory previously administered by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), the military defence force of Rojava. Government-aligned forces seized cities, oil fields and key infrastructure east of the Euphrates in a matter of days. In the initial stages of the offensive, several tribal groups that had previously aligned with the SDF switched sides, accelerating the loss of territory, including in major urban centres. Amid the chaos, detainees from facilities formerly controlled by the SDF were reportedly released before being recaptured by Damascus-aligned forces. Clashes intensified around Aleppo, Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor and Hasakah, before Damascus and the SDF agreed a fragile ceasefire in mid-January. Under the terms announced, the SDF is to be integrated into Syrian state structures, with control of border crossings, energy infrastructure and Islamic State detention facilities transferred to the central government. The ceasefire was reportedly violated almost immediately, though harsh winter conditions and tactical regrouping by SDF forces appear to have slowed the pace of the assault.  The truce was brokered by international mediators, particularly the United States and France. Washington is reported to be seeking additional time to organise the transfer of thousands of detained ISIS fighters and their families out of the region. Kurdish-majority cities are currently under blockade, enforced by Turkish-backed militias, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and Islamic State cells. Displacement into remaining Kurdish-held areas is placing further strain on already fragile infrastructure and aid capacity as humanitarian conditions deteriorate rapidly. In the encircled city of Kobane, water and electricity supplies have been cut, forcing displaced families into public buildings without heating or basic services. Local sources report that at least five children have already died due to cold conditions, as tens of thousands of civilians flee ongoing bombardment and insecurity across the region. Borders with Turkey, Iraq and Iran have seen increased crossings by Kurds preparing for what many fear could become a decisive confrontation with Damascus and its allies. Organisers highlighted upcoming international days of action, including 26 January, marking the anniversary of the 2015 liberation of Kobane from Islamic State, and 31 January, a global mobilisation under the slogan “Women Defend Rojava“, calling on women and democratic forces to defend what supporters describe as Rojava’s women-led social revolution. Solidarity actions have been taking place internationally, including protests across Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Italy, Spain and South America, as Kurdish communities and allied organisations seek to apply pressure on governments in an effort to avert what many fear could become a genocidal assault on north-east Syria. International networks have also coordinated several convoys from Europe, with additional groups reportedly travelling from Iraq, Iran and Turkey to deliver humanitarian aid or join the defence of the region. The post Thousands march for Rojava in London appeared first on Freedom News.

ANARCHIST SPEECH AT THE BERLIN RALLY FOR FREE WESTERN SAHARA, 7 NOVEMBER ~ Anon ~ Some days exist to remind us of what we continually live through. The Green March occurred on November 6, but it was enabled by decades of colonial occupation. On November 6, 1975, the Green March, openly promoted by the Moroccan monarchy and quietly supported by European governments, particularly the Spanish state, unfolded. This event paved the way for a new phase in the colonial history of the region. The colonial occupation of Western Sahara by Moroccan forces resulted in the division of a people, with communities and friendships torn apart and violated at the most intimate levels of their existence. Languages were prohibited, customs criminalised, initially through extermination and forced displacement into the desert, followed by a local plan for assimilation and unification under a single national identity: in this case, Moroccan. But this is not a unique case; this is history repeating itself. It is crucial to acknowledge that the infrastructure and military conditions were already established because this territory had been under Spanish colonial dominance for decades. And it is particularly important to remember that although the Spanish state tries to propagate the fiction of a peaceful coexistence between Spanish colonisers and Saharawis, colonialism can never be pacific. Let us not forget that the Spanish state occupied the Sahara for geopolitical interests, to maintain control over the Canary Islands, which remain a Spanish colony today, absurdly treated as European territory despite their location off the African coast. The Canary Islands were the first colonised territory and a necessary base for the colonisation of Abya Yala. In summary, the narrative of peaceful coexistence between Spanish colonisers and the Saharawi people is not just a lie regarding that territory’s history; it stands as a falsehood because the colonisation of the Sahara happened over the blood of millions of people in Abya Yala and Canary Islands. Even though the Spanish crown, and later the Spanish state, have been intrinsically linked to colonialism, they have never operated alone. Colonial power is always a convergence of various actors, both state and private. However, today in a world of seemingly transnational capitalist interest, the role of nation states in the perpetuation of colonial relationships of power is obscured. Especially the role of the german state, which has always been a colonial force. The colonial policies of the Deutsches Reich were the inspiration and breeding ground for National Socialism. National Socialism became the foundation of the current German state with its extractivist, patriarchal, and racist policies. German repressive colonial tactics have been inspiration to other states throughout history. Let us not forget all the SS soldiers who continued their careers in the Global South, whether in NATO or fighting in Vietnam as part of the French Foreign Legion, just to name some examples. It is no coincidence that the alliance between Morocco, Israel, and Germany works so effectively. Germany’s interest in both providing and receiving military training from these two forces is significant. As people living in the territory claimed by the german state, we cannot view this situation as distant because we are part of it; it permeates our daily lives. The extreme militarisation of our society, the local war against migration, and the normalised police violence against feminist and anti-colonial movements show, that we must continue to walk opposing paths, those we have been tracing for a long time in search of different worlds. What does a country like Germany fear in the face of the feminist alliance? What does a monarchy like Morocco fear from women’s self-organisation in the streets? What we propose is not a reform; it is the creation of new worlds. What we suggest has no place and will never find space in their institutions. Anticolonial feminism comes to destroy all the pillars of our society. It confronts the Catholic Church and its evangelical counterparts with their developmentalist discourse on reproduction. We challenge the states and their constructs of private and public. We put our bodies—contested territory for over 500 years—on display, making others uncomfortable. Predictably, so dangerous. Anticolonial feminism comes to shout in the face of those who have historically silenced us: not one less! With the certainty that punitive measures are not the way, we will continue to chip away at the bars of every prison until all our sisters are free. We will keep fighting to laugh, to celebrate, to feel pleasure. Calling for a demonstration on the 6th of November has a symbolic meaning, being on the streets every day is what we should aim for. We do not forget any of the forcefully disappeared, Ni olvido ni perdon! Presentes ahora y siempre! We greet all people in the occupied territories from West Sahara to 48 and Gaza. From Abya Yala to Sudan and Congo. For autonomy, for anarchy, Sahara libre y feminista! PS. for all this white-washed anarchist still discussing the question of national flags, your time is over cuties, grow up and take a stand! Meet you on the streets, where we can actually be anarchic! The post “Anticolonial feminism comes to destroy all the pillars of our society” appeared first on Freedom News.

TO RESIST NORMALISATION, WE NEED ENDURING GROUNDWORK WITH ATTACKED COMMUNITIES—AND SPACES FOR OPEN STRATEGISING ~ Blade Runner ~ On Saturday 13 September, between 110,000 and 150,000 turned out in response to Tommy Robinson’s call, a mobilisation framed as a defence of “free speech” but saturated with white nationalist, Islamophobic and anti-migrant rhetoric. It is said to be the largest far-right protest in history. At the rally he was joined by international supporters: Elon Musk appeared by video link, calling for the government to be removed and parliament dissolved. Éric Zemmour, the French far-right politician, invoked the “great replacement” myth in openly Islamophobic terms. The crowds marched from the South Bank and Westminster Bridge towards Whitehall, but numbers quickly overflowed. Thousands remained on the bridge and in Parliament Square, while others spilled into Trafalgar Square. Police spent much of the day funnelling and dispersing the mass. Chants targeted migrants and Keir Starmer—Seven Nation Army was repurposed to sing “Keir Starmer’s a wanker” alongside with the co-opted slogan “Whose street? Our street”. Union Jacks and St George’s crosses were everywhere, along with American and Israeli flags. This mobilisation follows a summer of racist outrage, coordinated online, amplified by Labour politicians in particular, and legitimised by media coverage. Already in June, London hosted a mass rally under the “Football Lads Against Grooming Gangs / For Our Children” banner—another openly racist march where a small antifascist block was kettled “for its own protection”. Saturday’s counter-protest, around 20,000 people organised by local trade unions and grassroots groups marched after a rally at Russell Square and ended behind the far-right stage. They were surrounded and effectively kettled for hours, with hostile crowds pressing on police lines. A small black bloc was at one point stuck behind far-right lines before withdrawing to the left bloc. Beer bottles and other projectiles were thrown at the anti-fascist side. The sheer scale, fuelled by trains and coaches, initially took the police by surprise. By the end of the day, the Met reported 26 officers injured, four seriously, and at least 25 arrests for assault and violent disorder, mostly against far-right attendees trying to break cordons. Anti-fascist blocks were eventually escorted out through narrow corridors in the middle of hostile crowds. While much of the left hides behind its routines, single-issue campaigns and cycles of electoral hope, defeat and disillusionment, anarchists and anti-authoritarians continue to mobilise—but without the structures needed to strategise and build resilience. Open assemblies are rare. Too often disconnected from the non-white and marginalised communities we should be rooted in, we show up as external actors. We cannot afford to just react. The far right is being normalised as part of a wider domestic counter-insurgency strategy. Brexit and the myth of ‘invasion’ are offered from above as the answer to the growing gulf between the excluded and zones of consumer comfort. It is not strength but fear: a ruling class haunted by past revolts as it scrambles to pre-empt system collapse with repression at home and war abroad. In this situation, our task is to build bonds of trust with the communities most under attack, and to carve out spaces of refusal where we can strategise openly and disagree without splintering. We need local defence and mutual aid structures that endure beyond news cycles, rooted in everyday life rather than just spectacle. And we need the courage to confront not only fascism in the streets but the wider system that breeds it. Without this groundwork the far right will continue to dominate public space and the streets. With it, the next rupture may open the chance to strike at the roots of the system itself. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Photos: Peter Marshall on Facebook, Blade Runner The post Facing down the flagshaggers appeared first on Freedom News.

ARRESTS OUTSIDE PARLIAMENT RISK CENTRING LIBERAL FREEDOMS INSTEAD OF PALESTINIAN SURVIVAL ~ Kell w Farshéa ~ Its 9pm, last Saturday (6 September). I’m standing on the pavement in the dark, watching the arrests. Police vans queue down the side of Parliament Square, engines idling. Police in high-vis jackets wade through the crowd of chanting singing people. Every five minutes cops emerge from the crowd carrying someone pron,e whilst another cop walks alongside telling them that they are being arrested under the Terrorism Act 2000. A group of supporters chanting “we are the revolution” accompany a man walking to the police van. Others shout “shame, shame” or “are you proud of yourself”. On and on it goes. Yet how English and polite and obedient it is. People are quietly carried to the vans where they climb inside unaided. I see people chat to the police officers as if we are all on the same side—decency, civility, democratic values, common outrage. The hours pass, more people are driven off through the police road block to the police cells. Its relentless. Google tells me that in August 2025 there were only 900 cells available in UK men’s prisons. Yet almost 1,500 people have been charged for explicitly stating they support Palestine Action. Indeed the internet suggests many people charged will face a fine rather than imprisonment. The Prime Minister and his new Home Secretary look like paper tigers, not resolute law makers. 1,500 people showing they are not afraid of the consequences in breaking one of the more serious crimes on statute because the law is seen as morally bankrupt. There is something powerful in this spectacle of defiance played out in front of parliament at night. And yet If passive resistance is so powerful, if the prison and police cells are in such short supply—why have the mass protests against genocide not brought 100,000 marchers to sit down in the streets of London? Indeed why was it only when UK citizen’s rights were threatened that people were prepared to be arrested en masse? I am absolutely sure that members of Palestine Action still want the focus to be on Gaza, but it seems like white liberalism is now more focussed instead on the proscription itself. And beyond the sight of elderly pensioners bedecked in military medals being arrested—how effective is this protest at stopping the genocide and ending the occupation? How much has the proscription taken the focus off the millions being starved to death in Gaza? Perhaps in the face of almost two years of mass demonstrations, emails and petitions it is understandable that people grasp for some kind of meaningful protest. Yet in an age when Parliament is uninterested in moral, genocidal, ecocidal or democratic principles, this may no longer be relevant. And yet, the questions must be asked. How can we more effectively resist the actual genocide? How can we avoid centring the debate over liberal democratic ideas and conditional freedoms, and instead re-centre it on the colonial capitalist murder of the people of Palestine? Let us remember that Mr. Starmer is not sympathetic to principled ‘gesture’ arrests. He is on record saying XR actionists should get long sentences. Starmer endorses segregationist policies for trans people and leans into Farage and the EDL’s fascist language on immigration. He would leave every pensioner in London on bail and still not allow PA to return. The mass arrests on Saturday were magnificent, cinematic even. But lets not pretend it’s not a sideshow distracting from the real issue—ending the genocide and fighting for a Free Palestine. Not one Palestinian child’s life will be saved by any of these arrests unless they refocus on the key issue: that while the government mouths platitudes about the man-made famine, it provides logistical support for drone attacks on children and targeted assassinations of journalists. > — “C’est magnifique, mais ce n’est pas la guerre” (French General Pierre > Bosquet on the charge of the British Light Brigade at Balaclava, 25 October > 1854) > > > -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Photos: Peter Marshall The post Proscription Action: It’s magnificent, but it’s not war appeared first on Freedom News.

WHILE ISRAEL BRANDS IT AS ‘TERRORISM’, GENOA DOCKWORKERS THREATEN MASS ACTION SHOULD THE FLOTILLA BE INTERCEPTED ~ Santiago Navarro F, Avispa Midia ~ As the Sumud Flotilla sails through the Mediterranean, Israel’s stance has been swift, threatening to label its crew, from more than 44 countries, as terrorists and to arrest and imprison them. Following these threats, Italian dockworkers in the port of Genoa have warned that if they lose contact with the flotilla for even 20 minutes, they will block the departure of 14,000 containers of merchandise to Israel. The flotilla of over 50 boats set sail on Sunday (30 August) from Barcelona, carrying trade unionists, doctors, parliamentarians, and activists such as American actress Susan Sarandon and Portuguese actress Sofía Aparicio, as well as Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, who was detained and deported last June while attempting to break the Gaza blockade with the then-called Freedom Flotilla. Their objective is threefold: to deliver aid directly, to break the media and political isolation of Gaza, and to denounce to the world what they describe as a “genocidal war” and an “illegal siege”. Since October 2023, Israel has killed more than 62,000 Palestinians and injured more than 157,000. Meanwhile, it continues to systematically obstruct the entry of food and humanitarian aid into the enclave. “It’s unfortunate that we have to do it ourselves; that we have to load ships with humanitarian aid to try to break the blockade and stop the genocide”, said Saif Abukeshek, a spokesperson for the flotilla, who was detained by Egypt last June during the Global March for Gaza. “We’re not just announcing the mission itself, but the building of a global solidarity movement that works with all oppressed peoples”, he explained. Abukeshek speaking in Barcelona. Photos: Albert Hernández Israeli national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir warned that activists travelling aboard the flotilla will be subjected to prolonged detention and will be denied privileges. “We will not allow people who support terrorism to live in comfort. They will face the full consequences of their actions”, Ben-Gvir said. Responding from Genoa, Riccardo Rudino, representative of the Autonomous Committee of Stevedores (CALP), issued an ultimatum in a video warning that if contact with the fleet is lost for even 20 minutes, “we will block Europe”. He also emphatically stated that “not a single nail will come out. We will go on an international strike, block roads, and block schools”. In Genoa alone, more than 300 tons of humanitarian aid were collected prior to the flotilla’s departure. This cargo was sent to the port of Catania and distributed to Italian ships that will join the humanitarian voyage. The voyage is planned to last seven to eight days. Strict security and discretion measures have been implemented, mindful of previous experiences with Israeli repression. This year has already seen two bitter precedents: the Madleen, with Thunberg on board, and the Handala, which were intercepted in June and July respectively by drone attacks and boarded by Israeli commandos in international waters. Their passengers were beaten, kidnapped, deported, and had their phones confiscated. Despite the drone overflights of the vessels near the coasts of Mallorca and Menorca, which the Flotilla has reported, they continue on their way to Gaza. The vessels advance each day toward their destination, with actions in different countries taking place at all times, ranging from words of encouragement to the addition of more vessels and people. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Edited machine translation The post Sumud flotilla heads to Gaza “to break the blockade and stop the genocide” appeared first on Freedom News.

THINGS COULD BE, SHOULD BE, AND MUST BE BETTER—BUT WHAT KIND OF POWER DO WE WANT? ~ Dave, member of Haringey Solidarity Group ~ Power over people, or empowered people everywhere controlling their own lives? Is the top-down way our society is currently organised and run the natural “way things are”, and the only way? Do we have to put up with a system based on money, profits and greed, and on hierarchies, politicians and power structures? No! Why should we accept what inevitably comes with such a society – institutional injustice, exploitation, unfairness and discrimination, not to mention poverty, wars and environmental destruction? Things could be, should be, and must be better than that. But in what way? And how do we get from here to there? Firstly, whilst those with wealth and power, such as transnational corporations and governments, are relentlessly and ruthlessly working hard to maintain their domination of our world for their own profits and power, billions of people are acting in a different way in our everyday lives. REAL NORMAL BEHAVIOUR Families share resources and encourage the real human values of cooperation: mutual aid and respect. In every workplace workers try to do the same. In every neighbourhood and community, there are countless examples of such daily common sense, communication and solidarity. This is, in fact, the real “natural way” things should be done and how our whole society should be run. On top of such daily sensible, human connections everywhere, people are continuously making collective efforts at the grassroots to organise themselves, to share and spread skills, to articulate their views, to promote their common interests, to defend their rights, and to challenge things that are wrong. ORGANISING OURSELVES This is done through a plethora of groups, initiatives, projects and associations of all kinds (it is estimated there are a million voluntary associations in the UK alone) – from bee-keeping societies, to robot-wars conventions, sports clubs to choirs, from childcare sharing arrangements to evening classes, and from park user groups and residents’ associations to trade union branches. Many of these are strengthened through their efforts to build supportive networks and federations. Many, possibly most, of these groups will employ democratic principles (for example everyone being equal), be based around volunteering and sharing, and encourage collective initiative. In my own area alone, Haringey in North London, there’s a network of more than 100 residents’ associations, a Friends of Parks Forum with 65 independent local groups, an organised network of 35 community-run community centres, a forum for all the allotment site committees, and a range of other self-organised, horizontal grassroots networks. What this proves beyond doubt is that “ordinary” people are in fact extraordinary, and we are very capable of organising and empowering ourselves. This human way of doing things could be a real alternative to capitalism and governments if people realised that politics is not about voting for politicians but about what we can do ourselves, for each other and the common good. It’s our world – let’s take it back! We need to up our game, organise ourselves and take action together to build community counter-power in every street and workplace. At the same time activists need to build strong local solidarity groups in every town across the UK and beyond, to support our communities, local campaigns, and to spread anti-authoritarian ideas. PEOPLE POWER There is an amazing history of grassroots people power movements, strike waves and social revolutions throughout the world which should inspire us. Such movements should not only be against what’s wrong but also be for what is right – where people aspire to seize control of their own lives, communities and workplaces and run them directly and collectively together for the benefit of all. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This article first appeared in the Summer 2025 issue of Freedom Journal The post Today’s seeds are tomorrow’s future appeared first on Freedom News.

FIGHT CONTINUES FOR BAKERY WORKERS CONVICTED OF ‘COERCIVE’ UNION ACTION ~ punkacademic ~ The Suiza 6 began their jail sentences yesterday (10 July) after being ordered to report to prison by the authorities. The six, bakery workers in Gijón in Asturias and members of the CNT syndicalist union, were sentenced to three and a half years in prison and fined 125,000 euros by a regional judge in 2021. This followed an extended legal campaign by the owner of La Suiza bakery, after a worker joined the union in 2017 and levelled allegations of harassment and withholding of wages against him. The CNT issued a statement condemning the imprisonment, which it described as a “tremendous attack on trade union freedom”, and calling for their immediate release. The union said it was “not an isolated case” but “part of a repressive trend against unionism”, including the 23 arrests following the recent metalworkers’ strike in Cádiz. The six include the worker herself, who did not participate in the campaign for health reasons, and has effectively been jailed simply for joining a union. The workers’ actions, which focused on spreading information outside the business, were strictly non-violent and followed the business owner’s refusal to discuss the matter with the union. The judge characterised this as ‘coercion’. The sentence was upheld by the Spanish Supreme Court last July. In Spain and elsewhere, the case has caused uproar, with twenty-two unions supporting the group. Solidarity demonstrations for the six have been held across Europe, and a crowdfunder organised by the CNT for their legal costs raised 95,000 euros. On 29 June a major demonstration calling for the six to be pardoned took place in Gijón, drawing support from unions and activists across Spain. Union members met last week with the Spansish Minister of Labour Yolanda Díaz, a member of the Communist Party, who offered to attempt to expedite a pardon though it is unclear if her efforts will be successful. “We will continue to fight for the freedom of the La Suiza 6, which is to fight for union freedom”, said the CNT, “in the courts, in the streets, and in the conscience of this country. And above all, we will continue to wage war in every workplace”. The post Suiza 6 jailed: “A repressive trend against unionism” appeared first on Freedom News.

JEWISH RADICALS HAVE LONG CHALLENGED THE STATE PROJECT BUILT IN OUR NAME ~ James Horton ~ In view of the modern genocide the Israeli state is undertaking against the Palestinian people, it may not seem advisable or desirable to look at one’s own position in relation to it. It can feel self-centred to take a moment to interrogate one’s personal history in the face of such dystopian suffering. As a Jew, though, this feels slightly different. We’re told that the only way to establish security for Jews is through a nation-state with exclusionary policies that favour us. But should anyone, Jewish or not, pursue an interest in the history of politically active Jewish communities, they will find a richness of radical anti-nationalism—indeed, internationalism. Zionism was a story perniciously crafted by the Jewish upper classes, and its project relied on convincing working-class Jews to fight the fight and build the Jewish-only fortress on stolen land. The history of Jewish involvement in left-wing movements is far too extensive to summarise. Emma Goldman and Rosa Luxemburg are just two of the bigger names, but there were countless Jewish shop-floor strike coordinators, unknown newspaper editors, educators and artists—people of action and people of thought, who had a titanic influence not only on the left but on political discourse at large. Milly Witkopf, for example (1877–1955), married to the more famous Rudolph Rocker, and the Jews of her ilk are frequently absent from the discussion—despite the fact they did much of the groundwork on which movements were built. In modern times, these figures have been the target of naked smears by Zionist intellectuals and activists. The charge is often that they hold lofty “lefty” expectations (otherwise known as political principle), and care too little for the safety of the Jewish people. But for anyone with an ounce of media literacy, these smears come from the same figures who cheerlead the Netanyahu administration in its policy of ethnic cleansing—and so cannot be trusted. But for those foolish enough to take them seriously, such figures at least resemble serious political actors and must be discussed to the extent one can stomach. CLASS AND ZIONISM, THEN AND NOW The Zionist project, when distilled to its essence, is an elitist ideology. It began as a project among the Central European bourgeoisie—both Jewish and Christian—as a “solution” (always a troubling word in politics) to Jewish oppression in Europe and the US. But as scholar Albert S. Lindemann points out, Zionism chose to “solve” the problem not by fighting modern nationalism, but by following in its footsteps and crushing class solidarity. Early Zionists collaborated with the same imperialists who had collared the social rights of Jews—men like Arthur Balfour, a vicious opponent of Jewish migration while Prime Minister (1902–1905). Chaim Weizmann, later Israel’s first president, was a known anti-Bundist, led the Zionist Federation and attacked leftist Jews whom he rightly saw as potential challengers to the nationalist fantasy he sought to realise. He and others advanced the Zionist cause with the institutional and physical backing of some of the most vile antisemites of the era. Even down to the Language Wars—when in 1900, 8 million Jews spoke Yiddish—Zionists weren’t satisfied with this mongrel language of the working class. They saw it as synonymous with exile, failure, and persecution—not one of liberation, as Bundists did in Russia or anarchists in London. Using direct violence against their own people, including the burning of Yiddish publication houses, Zionists split the Jewish working class from their linguistic roots, seeking to homogenise them for a nationalism they would then exert on others. Today, Yiddish is considered a “dead language”, with only around a million native speakers globally. Where does this history leave us in an era of unmasked cruelty against Palestinians? One takeaway from the growing pro-Palestinian movement in the West is that more Jews raised on the idea of Israel are revolting against it. The 2023 Al Jazeera documentary Israelism tries to understand this phenomenon—though it has attracted heavy criticism. What Zionists push—through festivals, trips abroad, and propaganda—is that Zionism is sexy, and more importantly, necessary for Jewish security. Young Jews, mostly from New York and Los Angeles, are sponsored on trips to a land they are encouraged to inherit, with wealthy philanthropists manufacturing the same Zionist fervour they have always sought in the Jewish working class. But as before, many are slipping out from under this weight of radicalisation and standing for Palestinian self-determination. Jewish activists and writers, doing serious work at local and national levels, often speak of the “Not In Our Name” position. Crucially, it comes with a call not only to challenge the genocide in Gaza and the West Bank, but to build a new system in which oppression in all forms is no longer tolerated. Emily Apple, a Jewish woman and former editor at The Canary, said to me: I feel really strongly about the ‘Not In Our Name’ idea. When I was growing up, the distinction between anti-Zionism and antisemitism didn’t need to be made—it was just a given. Now a lot of Jewish people have been sold a lie that isn’t in the interest of Jews or Palestinians. When I see other Jews going after radical voices that want to make change—for Palestinians, for refugees, for anyone facing oppression—it makes me feel sick. Being Jewish for me is about my place in the world and my history. My great-great-grandparents’ generation were all refugees. When I’m engaging in campaigns, I feel that sense of responsibility really strongly. Jewish history is inspiring. Writing and fighting in any language and on any land they stood, radical Jews fought for the emancipation of workers, the end of colonial dominion, and the liberation of people deemed unconventional. That is not just our history—it is our present. And Zionism is a colossal obstacle to its continuation. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Photo: Peter Marshall The post Class, memory, and Jewish anti-Zionism appeared first on Freedom News.

CAMPAIGN LAUNCHED TO COVER APPEAL COSTS FOR KOUKAKI SQUATS COMMUNITY ~ Kate Moschou ~ As their appeal trial approaches, members of the Koukaki Squats Community (KSC) in central Athens have launched a funding campaign to help cover mounting legal costs. Several comrades face 6.5 years in prison after being convicted on three misdemeanour charges, following their arrest during the 2020 eviction of one of the squatted buildings. The Koukaki Squats Community (KSC) in central Athens included three buildings which had stood abandoned and decrepit before being occupied in 2017. Until their final eviction in 2020, the squats—at 45 Matrozou Street, 21 Panaitoliou Street, and 3 Arvali Street (also known as the Blue House)—were a hub of anarchist struggle and communal life. KSC opened its doors to people in need of shelter and collective living, who wanted to fight back against state violence and injustice. The community hosted a lending library, public baths and laundries, a free clothing bazaar, and spaces for political assemblies and public events. As part of wider struggles against gentrification, state repression, and ecological destruction, it stood in solidarity with political prisoners, anti-fascism, and resistance to patriarchy, racism and militarism. Fascist groups carried out multiple arson attacks against the squats, while the state launched a campaign of repression. All three buildings were violently evicted—first in 2018, again in 2019, and finally in 2020. On each occasion, squatters mounted combative resistance and attempted to reoccupy the spaces. These actions led to multiple court cases, aimed at exhausting them economically and mentally. After the final eviction of the Matrozou squat in 2020, the arrested comrades were convicted of three misdemeanours, yet received an unprecedented sentence of six and a half years’ imprisonment without suspension. This outcome followed a state-led media offensive, with even the President of Greece publicly calling for attempted murder charges. Although the sentence is currently suspended pending appeal, this is the first time in Greek history that squatters—and more broadly, political activists without felony charges—face the real threat of prison. Legal costs for all KSC-related cases—including lawyers’ fees, court charges and potential financial penalties in case of conviction—are enormous. Solidarity events and donations have covered part of the expenses, but needs remain high. To help meet these, the Koukaki Squats Community has launched a crowdfunding campaign on Firefund and are appealing for comrades to donate. The appeal trial is set for 2 December 2025. The post Athens: Squatters face prison after years of repression appeared first on Freedom News.