End the Bombing and the Genocide!
By International Socialist League, Britain
The USA and UK bombed 73 Yemeni locations on 12 January to defend Israel’s genocide against Gaza and all Palestine. “Some of the richest countries in the world are bombing some of the poorest people in the world for the crime of defending some the most persecuted people in the world” Lowkey, a British rapper from London.
The UK does what it’s told by the US, which is looking out for the interests of Israel. Together with Israel they are spreading the war into other countries such as Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and now Yemen. The Houthis carried out dozens of attacks on container ships concerning Israeli trade, in solidarity with Gaza without killing anyone and they restricted navigation in the area, which represents 12% of global trade, about one trillion dollars. They say if Israel ends the genocidal war, ships will not be attacked.
Many Arab speakers at Palestinian demonstrations in Britain condemned imperialism’s attempt to widen the war and received immense support for their speeches. One of them said, “The UK government are war criminals who break their own laws to wage war against civilians.” And added, in the past “the Royal Air Force offices played an active role providing target guidance to the Saudi Air Force.”
It shows that while the British media often “forget” about the past, the military attacks by Britain in the past are remembered by many Yemenis, whose de facto Houthi government has vowed to resist the latest onslaught.
A U.N. Security Council resolution demanded the Houthis immediately cease their attacks on shipping and noted the right of U.N. member states “to defend their vessels from attack, including those that undermine navigational rights and freedoms”. This statement gave an implicit endorsement of Operation Prosperity Guardian, a US-led multinational naval taskforce in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden to attack the Yemeni Houthis supported by 20 countries. The Houthis are the de facto government of the main areas of the country. The resolution had no votes against, as Russia and China abstained.
While Russia and China abstained, the web site Declassified revealed “The UK military has flown 50 surveillance missions over Gaza since December” and
“The flights have taken off from Britain’s controversial air base on Cyprus, RAF Akrotiri, and averaged around one a day since the beginning of December.”[i]
Irish opposition to Israel
After the attack on Yemen, Israel was called a pariah state by Irish MEP Clare Daly. Israeli genocide, the bombing and the international mass movement against them, have increased EU divisions. Many Irish people have an immense feeling of support for Palestinians. They are in support of the South African case at the International Court of Justice, and many are against the bombing of Yemen.
Sinn Féin is explicitly pro-Palestine and is widely predicted to become the largest party in government after the next Irish general election. The party has expressed its support for the BDS (boycott, divestment and sanctions) movement.
Ireland was Britain’s oldest colony and a template for Palestine. The Irish people have the historic experience of occupation and violence by the British state and army, and this is one of the strong reasons pushing the large mobilisations in Dublin for the Palestinian anti-colonial struggle.
At the same time, this semi-colonial country is dominated by 100s of US multi-nationals. Young people and low paid workers experience acute social problems such as over the very high cost of living and lack of housing that is affecting a whole generation.
The Irish people should increase the fight to expel the Israeli ambassador and stop any involvement of manufacturing or transporting any arms to Israel.
A continuation and deepening of old ways
Rishi Sunak is following in the footsteps of Churchill, and Labour’s Attlee and Wilson and five other PMs who have bombed Yemen since the Royal Air Force was created in 1918.
British colonialism existed in Palestine from 1839 when they took over the town of Aden. Aden had a long history of suffering from British atrocities. It took an armed revolutionary insurgency between 1963 to 1967 to defeat British rule.
In 2015 the Saudi-led coalition launched its war on Yemen. The British state supplied the aircraft and bombs used to massacre our sisters and brothers in Yemen.
Those “air raids have frequently targeted civilian gatherings such as weddings and busy marketplaces where there was no military target nearby, often with extremely deadly consequences. Many of these air raids appear to be clear violations of International Humanitarian Law” says Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT).
Over 150,000 people have been killed in Yemen by these attacks, with estimates of more than 227,000 dead because of an ongoing famine and lack of healthcare facilities due to the war, with Saudi Arabia being guided and supplied by the French, British, and US military.
End the war on Palestine and the Middle East
“Attacks to stop Israeli ships or those heading to the ports of occupied Palestine will continue,” Chief negotiator for Yemen’s Houthis Mohammed Abdulsalam told Reuters. The group demands “an end of the war in Gaza, and for humanitarian aid deliveries to the north and south of the Gaza Strip.’
“‘We do not want escalation in the Red and Arabian Seas” Abdulsalam said. It was the United States and Britain that were militarizing the Red Sea with their warships.”[ii]
But the British spy base based at GCHQ surveillance station in Oman that covers the Middle East has had major construction work. Britain could use Oman as a launchpad for operations against Houthis in Yemen ahead of a “new war with Iran over Israel”.[iii]
The expansion of the war into the Middle East is being caused by Israel, with US and British support. However, if they continue, the Arab regimes will no longer be able to stop a much greater response from Arab forces in the region.
Build international action
The struggle for Palestine has always been international, as the Palestinians have had to fight Israel’s colonial settlers, army, world powers and many others, including Labour leader Keir Starmer who refuses to condemn the genocide. He will follow in the foots steps of previous imperialist Labour governments if Labour wins the next general election this year.
We should stand alternative workers and socialist candidates for Palestine and for all workers and oppressed people’s rights in Britain and prepare to fight a Labour government. Let’s combine the cause of Palestine in this election year with all the class issues of exploitation and oppression, including immigrants, all the strikes in Britain, the fight against the far right and the general strike in the six counties of Ireland.
Our international struggle for Palestine is seen in the demonstrations, vigils, blockades and strikes to stop arming Israel. We must force union leaderships not only to implement BDS, but to build a campaign to answer the call by Palestinian trade unions to oppose arms production for Israel. Two Elbit factories have been closed by Palestine Action and community mobilisations. Let’s shut them all down.
We call for increasing the trade union blocks and increasing the demonstrations of workers, youths, Arab and all oppressed people and activists. Everyone has the right to express their support for Palestine. Let us defend all those who are threatened with the sack or discipline for being against Israeli genocide. Hands off all activists, we will continue.
Stop bombing Palestine and Yemen!
End genocide Now!
[i] https://www.declassifieduk.org/rishi-sunak-is-ninth-uk-prime-minister-to-bomb-yemen-from-air/
[ii] https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/houthis-vow-keep-up-red-sea-attacks-after-us-led-strikes-2024-01-15/#:~:text=He%20said%20the%20group%20was,with%20their%20warships%2C%20he%20added.
[iii] https://www.declassifieduk.org/uk-quietly-expands-secret-gchq-spy-base-near-iran/
