Imperialism and Zionism are carrying out a global campaign to silence any condemnation of the State of Israel’s genocide against the Palestinian people and its expansion into the territories of neighboring countries.

With the support of capitalist governments and Zionist lobbies, Israel has imposed the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition of antisemitism worldwide. They exploit the memory of one of the worst crimes in human history, defining any criticism or condemnation of the State of Israel as antisemitism. They deliberately confuse the terms “anti-Zionism” and “anti-Semitism,” equating the Zionist state, the Israeli population, and Jews worldwide. Based on this fallacy, an international policy has been established that includes laws enabling political persecution, the suppression of protests through mass arrests, deportations, and actual prison sentences for demonstrating or displaying Palestinian flags.

In the United Kingdom, members of Palestine Action were sentenced to up to eight years in prison for a protest against Elbit Systems, a company linked to the Zionist military-industrial complex. Furthermore, Palestine Action was outlawed by Keir Starmer’s government and Parliament. Hundreds of people were arrested during protests against this ban.

In the United States, the Trump administration is pushing for arrests, deportations, and visa suspensions against pro-Palestinian activists. The German government is pursuing a similar policy: 12,000 police investigations—in Berlin alone—against pro-Palestinian activists. Furthermore, five activists are currently facing a completely irregular trial for an action against Elbit Systems in the city of Ulm. The case is known as Ulm5.

In Italy, one of the strongest actions in support of a free Palestine and against the imperialist war in the Middle East took place. Under the slogan “Blocchiamo tutto,” protests took place in 75 cities and—most notably—roads and ports were blocked, demanding that the Meloni government halt arms shipments to Israel. The government’s retaliation, aside from violent repression of the blockades and picket lines, included disciplinary action against public sector workers and the dismissal of activists in logistics and port operations. 

The prosecutions and arrests of activists and ordinary protesters have sparked public campaigns calling for their acquittal and release. Such is the case of Vanina Biasi in Argentina, a congresswoman from the Workers’ Party–Left Front, who is being prosecuted for denouncing Zionist genocide and defending the Palestinian cause. The plaintiff is the DAIA (Delegation of Argentine Jewish Associations). It should be recalled that President Milei boasts of being “the most Zionist president in the world” and supports the war against Iran and Lebanon.

In Brazil, the federal criminal court sentenced Zé María, president of the PSTU, to two years in prison “for racism” due to the pro-Palestinian content of a speech. The case was brought by Brazil’s Zionist organizations: CONIB and FISESP.

Using the same method of criminalization and curtailment of the right to free speech, Anasse Kazib, a railroad worker and union activist, is currently on trial in France; a broad campaign is underway to have the charges against him dropped.

The repression against the crew of the Global Sumud Flotilla deserves a separate mention; they were carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza and were intercepted in international waters, in violation of all relevant laws. In these cases, the repression was not carried out “by proxy,” but directly by the Israeli military, relying on the passivity and inaction of most European governments. The repression took the form of the seizure of vessels and their crews, as well as psychological and physical punishment, including beatings and torture. In what were effectively Zionist floating prisons, a premeditated plan of abuse and physical punishment was carried out, resulting in injuries and fractures. Prominent figures from the flotilla, such as Thiago Avila and Saif Abu Keshek, were imprisoned in Israel before being deported. The abuse suffered by members of the Sumud flotilla is just a small sample of what the more than 9,000 Palestinian political prisoners endure on a daily basis, more than 3,000 of whom are held under “administrative detention,” a measure that allows them to be imprisoned without charges or trial.

Another very serious case was the kidnapping and one-month detention in eastern Libya of ten members of the Sumud Maghreb land-based humanitarian convoy, who were deprived of the most basic legal safeguards.

No to the genocide of the Palestinian people; no to the persecution of those who stand in solidarity with that cause; anti-Zionism is not anti-Semitism. No to governments aligning themselves with Israel and the United States; a free Palestine from the river to the sea.