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2 April 2022: International day for the liberation of Georges Abdallah

The appeal below was issued by the Unitary Campaign for the Liberation of Georges Abdallah.

Because Georges Abdallah is an Arab resistance fighter, a Lebanese communist who fought against the invasion of his country, Lebanon, by the troops of the Zionist occupier, and because resistance is a right!

Because Georges Abdallah is a fighter for the just cause of national liberation of the Palestinian people, he has never denied his fight for a free Palestine from the river to the sea, and because Palestine will live, Palestine will win!

Because Georges Abdallah is a political prisoner, held hostage to the imperialist-Zionist policy of imprisonment or liquidation of the strugglers of the Palestinian cause and more generally of the revolutionaries, and because the revolutionary political prisoners are the torches of the resistance.

Because Georges Abdallah is our comrade and we recognize ourselves fully in his unfailing revolutionary internationalist commitment to the end of colonialism throughout the world, for the end of capitalism and exploitation, and in support of the peoples’ struggle against all forms of oppression.

Because Georges Abdallah – a whole life of struggle for justice – combines in himself all the struggles of the anti-Zionist, anti-imperialist, anti-capitalist, anti-fascist resistance and against the reactionary Arab States, and that today, strong in this political line with clear contours and without any concession on his principles, we refuse the trappings of their imperialist wars and their strategy of chaos: their wars, our dead!

We refuse the frantic race of their moribund capitalist system and all its barbarism: capital is waging war on us! War on capital! We refuse all forms of their fascism, which has entered the country head-on and distilled intravenously into the media: fascism – “is not the opposite of democracy but its evolution in times of crisis (Brecht) – it’s gangrene: you amputate it or you die of it! We urge war on their class war, by the people, for the people, for the peoples.

Because Georges Abdallah is no longer just a symbol for revolutionaries around the world but a universally recognized symbol of resistance whose release everyone demands in the name of the just and legitimate right to revolt and resist.

Because Georges Abdallah – one of the longest-held political prisoners in Europe, detained in France since 1984 – does not surrender, faces his 38 years of detention and remains standing in the face of the prison hell that is the “little eternity of life imprisonment”; because he has been eligible for release for 23 years and must be released!

Because since the end of 2012, when French justice gave, for the second time, a favorable opinion on the release of Georges Abdallah, no Minister of the Interior, since then, has agreed to sign the decree of expulsion allowing his release when Lebanon is now ready to welcome him; because he must sign!

Because on February 10, the Paris administrative court rejected the request filed by Georges Abdallah’s lawyer to enjoin the current French Interior Minister, Gérard Darmanin, to sign this decree and because Darmanin will not do so!

Because the refusal by the French State to release Georges Abdallah is indeed a political decision, and the fight for his release must, therefore, mainly be fought on the ground of the political balance of power so that his incarceration begins to outweigh the political threats inherent in his release.

Because on the ground of the struggle, everywhere in France and internationally, the mobilization to highlight the situation and the fight of Georges Abdallah and to demand his release, continues to grow but it is imperative to develop this movement, and because it is together and only together, in the diversity of our expressions, that we will win!

Because, Georges Abdallah, your comrades are here!

We call on all the forces involved in the release of Georges Abdallah to make April 2, 2022 –  the birthday of our comrade – the international day for the release of Georges Abdallah. That a thousand initiatives, that day, flourish everywhere in France and internationally to make visible, by this new high point of coordinated struggles, the demand for the liberation of our comrade. From Albertville to Aubagne, from Bordeaux to Grenay, from Grenoble to Lille, from Lyon to Marseille, from Montpellier to Nanterre, from Nîmes to Paris, from Pau to Saint-Denis, from Saint-Etienne to Tarbes, from Toulouse to Ajaccio, from Finistère to Gers, from Lot-et-Garonne to Pas-de-Calais, from Poitou-Charentes to Puy-de-Dôme, from Algeria to Germany, from Ireland to Argentina, from Belgium in Brazil, from Canada to Spain, from Greece to India, from Italy to Lebanon, from Morocco to occupied Palestine, from Peru to Turkey via Tunisia, everywhere in France and in the world, on this 2 April 2022,

General mobilization! Such is the cry, at a time when all antagonisms enter into direct confrontation, thrown into all the barracks, on all the TV sets, in all the hemispheres, and taken up in chorus by all the dupes of 8 p.m. on all the places of Europe – their cry of general mobilization for their dirty war of their repartition of the world. General mobilization! This is the cry that we must make heard with one voice: Our determination to resist which inevitably involves the release of our comrade.

“Solidarity, inscribed in the dynamics of ongoing struggles, is a weapon that breaks the chains of isolation behind the abominable walls and allows incarcerated comrades to transcend their conditions of detention to effectively join the movement as revolutionary protagonists operating under their special conditions”. (Georges Abdallah)

Because Georges Abdallah is Georges Abdallah, general mobilization for his release, for victory or victory!

Solidarity is our weapon! Freedom for Georges Abdallah!

For a new great leap forward! Let’s amplify, coordinate and intensify  the mobilization for the release of Georges Abdallah!

One, two, three, a thousand initiatives, on April 2, 2022, for the international day for the release of Georges Abdallah!

Paris, 11 March 2022

United Campaign for the Liberation of Georges Abdallah

campaign.unitary.gabdallah@gmail.com

Vancouver Palestine stand commemorates Land Day, urges boycott of apartheid wines

On Saturday, 26 March, activists in Vancouver gathered at the Broadway/Commercial Skytrain station for a Palestine Stand highlighting the 46th anniversary of Land Day, the campaign to boycott “Israeli” wines, and confronting the criminalization of Palestine activism in France and elsewhere.

Despite the rainy weather, Palestinian flags and large banners calling to “Free All Palestinian Prisoners,” “End Israeli Apartheid” and win “Freedom for Palestine” drew attention from passers-by at the busy transit hub. Participants solicited signatures for the campaign to pull Israeli wines produced on occupied Palestinian and Syrian land from the shelves at publicly owned BC Liquor Stores. Palestinian music and songs in solidarity with Palestine from artists like Lowkey and Kofia played over the sound system.

The stand was organized by Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network in Vancouver together with Canada Palestine Association, BDS Vancouver – Coast Salish and the Palestinian Youth Movement. Organizations such as Independent Jewish Voices, Canada Philippines Solidarity for Human Rights, the International League of Peoples’ Struggle, the Communist Party of Canada and the Communist Party of Canada Marxist-Leninist delivered solidarity messages at the event.

Charlotte Kates of Samidoun opened the event, highlighting the 46th commemoration of Land Day, when six Palestinians demonstrating to defend their land from Zionist colonization in occupied Palestine ’48 were shot dead by occupation forces. Since that day, Palestinians and supporters of Palestine mark Land Day to support the ongoing struggle to defend and liberate Palestinian land. She noted that the event also stands in solidarity against Canadian settler-colonialism and in support of Indigenous land and water defense struggles in Turtle Island, for sovereignty, self-determination and land back.

Hanna Kawas, president of the Canada Palestine Association, spoke about the campaign to boycott Israeli wines, highlighting the BC government’s double standards in pulling Russian vodka and liquor from the shelves while holding that Israeli settlement products are a valid “consumer choice.” He urged all to participate in the campaign to boycott Israeli wines and hold the BC government accountable, especially as it is governed by the NDP, which adopted a federal position against trade in settlement products.

He also emphasized the importance of solidarity with the people of Yemen, noting that this demonstration fully supports the days of action in solidarity with Yemen, including the demand that Canada stop selling weapons to Saudi Arabia.  He also emphasized how strongly the Yemeni people have repeatedly affirmed solidarity with Palestine despite the horrific siege and brutal war imposed upon them by Arab reactionary regimes at the behest of the U.S., Canada and other imperialist powers.

Samidoun activists spoke about the current struggles of Palestinian political prisoners, noting that there are over 4,650 Palestinians currently imprisoned in Israeli occupation prisons, including approximately 500 jailed without charge or trial under administrative detention. The administrative detainees are currently boycotting the Israeli occupation military courts and have been since 1 January 2022 and demand an end to this system of injustice.

Speakers from BDS Vancouver – Coast Salish, Independent Jewish Voices and Canada Philippines Solidarity for Human Rights emphasized the importance of collective solidarity in defending Palestinian rights, holding the Canadian government accountable and confronting imperialism and the use of so-called “terror” designations to repress popular movements from Palestine to the Philippines.

The rally also included solidarity with the Collectif Palestine Vaincra and other pro-Palestine and progressive organizations facing “dissolution” or banning by the French government. Participants took solidarity photos with signs in English, French and Arabic against the dissolutions and in defense of Palestinian rights. A speaker from La France Insoumise, the French left political movement, spoke about France’s role in Palestine and the need to hold the government accountable for its alignment with Israeli oppression and colonialism.

Dozens of people signed letters to BC members of the legislative assembly calling on the government to act and pull Israeli wines from BC liquor stores as part of the action, and hundreds of flyers about the campaign to boycott Israeli wines and the campaign to free imprisoned Palestinian students were distributed to passers-by.

An action in Victoria, Vancouver Island, was also organized by the Coalition Against Israeli Apartheid (CAIA) Victoria outside a BC Liquor Store. Activists reached out to passers-by to inform them about how BC Liquor Stores are involved in war crimes against the Palestinian people by selling these wines from stolen land, and called on people to sign on to the letter campaign.

Samidoun Vancouver will be working to organize more events and actions for Palestine in the Vancouver area. To get involved with Samidoun Vancouver, reach out to us via email at vancouver@samidoun.net.

Albuquerque Land Day rally highlights anti-colonial struggle

Around 40 people gathered to commemorate the Palestinian Day of the Land in Albuquerque, Tiwa Territories. It was an open mic with many people coming up to speak and offering reflections and fierce words.

Samidoun Albuquerque (Samidoun ABQ) member and longtime anti-Zionist Jewish activist Benay Blend welcomed everyone and grounded the space with history around the importance of commemorating Land Day. The first speaker was a Native man who had just been driving by, he saw the flags and wanted to express his solidarity. He spoke about how Palestine is getting no media coverage and how we need to be active and continue to speak out for Palestine.

Onyesonwu with the All African Peoples Revolutionary Party reminded us about how zionism is our common enemy as the state of Israel has funded, trained, and armed racist and US backed states from Azania (South Africa) to El Salvador. Siihasin with the Giniw Collective spoke about the connections to defend Palestinian land and Indigenous land here specifically about how they have been involved in defeating pipelines and also how they had travelled to Palestine. Jerome with La Raza Unida reminded us that we indeed have a common enemy and that we also have common friends i.e. Palestine.

Kah, a Pueblx comrade from the newly formed K’owa Collective, gave the most rousing speech fiercely inviting everyone to be active. They specifically called upon people to study about Palestine and the ongoing struggle, to participate in ongoing boycotts and actions called for by Palestinian comrades, and to join organizations to build anti imperialist movement. Micheailin with Samidoun ABQ closed the day’s event by speaking about the work of Samidoun, the importance of supporting our comrades in prison, and thanking everyone for participating.

Samidoun Albuquerque was honored to participate and hold space with comrades who have been involved and continue to be involved in the Palestinian solidarity movement. We announced our intention to co-launch a Palestine Solidarity Committee to coordinate popular education, future events, and solidarity actions. We look forward to growing the movement, to the defeat of imperialism, and the liberation of Palestine within our lifetime.

To get involved with Samidoun Albuquerque, please reach  out to Samidoun ABQ on Facebook or Instagram.

Charleroi activists commemorate Land Day, call for freedom for Georges Abdallah

On Wednesday, 30 March, Palestinians will commemorate the 46th Land Day. The annual commemoration of Land Day  symbolizes the rootedness of Palestinians in their land. 30 March 1976  was a moment of unprecedented protest against expropriations of Palestinian land in the Galilee, in occupied Palestine ’48. Palestinian citizens of the Israeli state organized nationally to put up fierce resistance to the plan, following years of political and civil organizing against land confiscation. During these protests, six unarmed Palestinians were shot and killed by Israeli forces and dozens more were injured. Since then, the Day of the Land has been commemorated every year by Palestinians around the world.

Poster produced on the occasion of the 46th anniversary of Land Day, by the Global Campaign for the Return to Palestine

Land Day is a day of struggle and resistance against the continuing Nakba, land confiscations and ethnic cleansing. But as much as the Israeli regime persists in carrying out its attempt to empty Palestine of its original population and control its land, the Palestinian people are only increasingly determined to resist this settler colonial project.

This is the message that the Plate-forme Charleroi-Palestine brought forward on Saturday 26 March at its  “Elle s’appelle Palestine” (The name is Palestine) stand in Charleroi, Belgium.

Distribution of flyers, lots of discussions around the stand, the pleasure of seeing long-time friends, meeting young people who are mobilizing, people who have their pictures taken with the poster for Land Day, many others who leave us their contact details, selling dates exported by Palestinian farmers, playing Palestinian music and a small action with the large Palestinian flag… in short, our awareness campaign was a real success.

Free Georges Abdallah and Salah Hamouri

We also took the opportunity to, once again, draw attention to the longest-held political prisoner in Europe,  Georges Abdallah, unjustly imprisoned for more than 37 years in Lannemezan prison in France. This action also took place within the framework of the international day for his release which takes place on 2 April.

Further, the Collectif Palestine Vaincra, recently dissolved in France by Emmanuel Macron alongside the Comite Action Palestine, has been a major part of the campaign for the release of Georges Abdallah. Indeed, the participation of Collectif Palestine Vaincra in the campaign for the release of Georges Abdallah was one of the reasons given by the government to justify its decision. Despite this attack on organizing for Georges Abdallah and his freedom, this campaign is growing and is supported by hundreds of organizations in France. As a former member of the Collective said in an interview:The dissolution will not end this struggle!

At our stand we also highlighted the case of Salah Hamouri, a French-Palestinian lawyer who has been consistently targeted by the occupation authorities for arrest, imprisonment and expulsion from his homeland, and who was arrested again on 7 March. He is now being held in administrative detention without charge or trial. 

We have many upcoming actions and events planned in Belgium. Do you want to be informed of the actions of the Plate-forme Charleroi-Palestine? Write to us at charleroi.palestine@gmail.com and follow us on FB on the Pour la Palestine page.

Source: Pour la Palestine / Plate-forme Charleroi-Palestine

Solidarity stand in Aubervilliers, France, supports Palestinian prisoners

On Saturday, 26 March during the weekly market in the Paris suburb of Aubervilliers, France, Samidoun Région Parisienne held its monthly stand. These stands provide an opportunity to launch discussions with residents about the need for solidarity with the Palestinian resistance and the current reality of Israeli occupation and apartheid. As usual, the group met with a very warm welcome, with many people stopping at the stand to pick up literature or learn more about our activities.

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Several posters of the Unified Campaign for the Liberation of Georges Abdallah underlined the importance of mobilizing for the Paris demonstration on 2 April, the international day for the release of Georges Abdallah, the Lebanese Arab struggler for Palestine and the longest-held political prisoner in Europe. Georges Abdallah has been jailed in France for 37 years despite being eligible for release since 1999.

In parallel with the actions and rallies in Palestine in support of prisoners and mothers of prisoners as part of Palestinian Mother’s Day, we expressed our support for the 31 women unjustly imprisoned in Damon prison. Many people showed solidarity for these imprisoned women, including members of France Insoumise and the Anti-Imperialist Front .

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We also collected many words of support and solidarity for our monthly letter-posting to Palestinian female prisoners. The card addressed to Nafeth Hammad, a 16-year-old girl (14 at the time of her arrest) detained at Damon, received particular attention. Here are 14 of the 19 letters sent this month by Samidoun RP :

In addition, we displayed two banners against the dissolution of the Collectif Palestine Vaincra, which has filed a legal appeal against this extremely serious attack against the entire solidarity movement with Palestine. Please sign the petition of support an circulate it!

Finally, we distributed many flyers to call for mobilization on Saturday 2 April from 3 p.m. at the Barbès metro station for the march in support of the Palestinian resistance organized by the Palestine Resistance Support Coordination.

Samidoun Région Parisienne would like to warmly thank all the people who met at the stand. To participate in sending letters of support to women prisoners at Damon, do not hesitate to contact us on our social networks (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter) or by email at samidoun.rp@gmail.com.

3 April, online event: DSA Naila and the Uprising National Screening

JOIN US and the DSA BDS and Palestine Working Group on Sunday April 3rd, 2PM EST // 11AM PST for a national screening and panel discussion of the film, Naila and the Uprising. This feature-length documentary chronicles the remarkable journey of Naila Ayesh and a courageous community of women organizers whose stories weave through the most vibrant, nonviolent mobilization in Palestinian history – the First Intifada in the late 1980s.

REGISTER to join online: https://bit.ly/nailapanel

It’s an especially exciting opportunity as the panel discussion will include the Palestinian activist who helped organize the first Intifada and the film’s namesake, Naila Ayesh, along with the film’s impact producer, Emma Alpert.

Please share this opportunity with all as it’s an amazing film, and a great way to continue Palestine solidarity events beyond March’s global Israeli Apartheid Week of action.

24-31 March, Ottawa: Israeli Apartheid Week at Carleton – including “Fedayin” screening 25 March

From this Thursday, March 24 to next Thursday, March 31, join OPIRG Carleton and SJP Carleton for a week full of campaigns and events during Israeli Apartheid Week. Check out our list of events so far below.

Thursday, March 24: Introducing the Shame & Boycott List with @bdscoalition

Friday, March 25, 7-9 PM: “Fedayin: George Abdallah’s Fight” Film Screening and Letter Writing Campaign to Imprisoned Palestinians with @books2prisonersottawa over Zoom — Register: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_pZGJtCWjSjCOXkq9riVCwA

Sunday, March 27, 1-3 PM: A Discussion on Carleton’s Complicity in Apartheid over Zoom, on campus event TBD

Wednesday, March 30: #FreePalestinianStudents campaign with @samidounnetwork

Join us March 25th at 7pm for an online screening of the new film, “Fedayin”! Register online: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_pZGJtCWjSjCOXkq9riVCwA

This film tells the story of Georges Abdallah imprisoned since 1984 in France for his involvement in the struggle for the liberation of Palestine and Lebanon from Israeli, Zionist colonization. From the Palestinian refugee camps that forged his conscience, to the international mobilization for his release, we will discover the man who has become one of the longest-held political prisoners in Europe.

Following the film screening, we will be writing letters to Georges Abdallah, led by the @books2prisonersottawa!

Have your friends and family with you for a fun and education-filled night!

Please sign petition  for the immediate release of George Abdullah.

25 March, Montreal and online event: Solidarity with Palestinian Political Prisoners: Webinar with Charlotte Kates and Elyaa Abuhijleh

Friday March 25, 2022
12pm-1:30pm Eastern (9 am Pacific, 5 pm Europe, 6 pm Palestine)
By Zoom- register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_VWdyq7IQTEOw1sdNtXJknQ

In many respects, Palestinian prisoners remain on the frontlines of the Palestinian struggle for self-determination. Despite facing tremendous repression- often in the form of interrogation, sleep deprivation, solitary confinement and restrictions on family visits- they continue to educate other prisoners, organize campaigns for their release, stage hunger strikes, and participate in the national liberation struggle more broadly. This year has witnessed historic resistance from Palestinian prisoners, as six prisoners staged a heroic escape from Gilboa prison in September 2021, sparking a rebellion behind prison walls along with an outpouring of support across Palestine and around the world. More recently, Hisham Abu Hawash and Miqdad Qawamseh were released from Israeli custody after being on hunger strike for 141 and 114 days, respectively.

Join us for a panel discussion on political prisoner resistance in Palestine. Charlotte Kates, international coordinator for the Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network, will give an overview on Palestinian political prisoner struggles. Elyaa Abuhijleh- a law student at Birzeit University- will also speak about her experiences as a former political prisoner in Israeli occupation jails.

This event is taking place as part of Israeli Apartheid Week- Montreal 2022. The full schedule is available here: https://www.facebook.com/events/326196309493121

For more information:
Israeli Apartheid Week- Montreal
apartheidweekmtl@gmail.com

“France is a strategic ally of the Israeli occupation”: Speaking out on the dissolution of Collectif Palestine Vaincra

The following article is translated and republished from the original French at ACTA.

In this interview, a former activist of the Collectif Palestine Vaincra reacts to the dissolution of the group initiated at the end of February by French Minister of the Interior Gérald Darmanin, and ratified on March 10. Retracing the main stages of their steps of struggle centered on supporting the resistance against the Zionist state and the campaign for the release of Palestinian prisoners, he puts into perspective the repression and targeting of the collective amid the broader context of the authoritarian turn of the French state and its strategic alliance with Israel.

Can you review the history of your organization, its birth, its main lines of work and its political strategy?

The Collectif Palestine Vaincra was founded in March 2019 following ten years of work in support of the Palestinian resistance in general and Georges Abdallah in particular, in the Toulouse region. The work of the collective was to develop anti-imperialist solidarity with the Palestinian people who have been fighting for more than 70 years against one of the last settler colonial projects on the planet: the Zionist state. This involved regular activity in the city center and in several popular neighborhoods of Toulouse, building solidarity and mobilization campaigns, for example for the boycott of Israel, for the defense of the legitimacy of the resistance against the occupation, for the release of Palestinian prisoners and Georges Abdallah, or even locally against the twinning of Toulouse with Tel Aviv, etc. This reflects a line and commitment that has existed in France for more than 50 years through many organizations and which is now seriously criminalized.

You were dissolved a few days ago: how were you informed?

We were informed of this by a tweet from the Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, on Thursday February 24, in the late afternoon. This was followed by the submission of a document announcing the government’s desire to initiate a dissolution procedure which was validated by the Council of Ministers on March 9th. The following day, Thursday March 10, the decree of dissolution was published in the Official Journal, making the ban on the collective effective in France.

Prior to the CPV, other organizations, notably those fighting against Islamophobia, had been targeted by dissolution procedures. How do you see the procedure targeting the CPV in the context of the authoritarian turn of the state on the one hand, and the criminalization of support for the Palestinian cause on the other?

Since the beginning of Macron’s five-year term, we have seen an authoritarian shift take place, in particular through the dissolution of many Muslim and/or anti-racist organizations as well as the adoption of draconian laws, such as the law on so-called “separatism” or the so-called “global security” law. The dissolution of the Collectif Palestine Vaincra is obviously part of this reactionary dynamic, but it has a particular dimension around the criminalization of the solidarity movement with Palestine.

Indeed, France is a strategic ally of the Israeli occupation and is developing in this context a serious policy of repression against supporters of justice in Palestine. This involves the prosecution of activists from the campaign to boycott Israel or attempts to equate anti-Zionism with anti-Semitism. But for several years, we have observed a radicalization of the French position of support for Israeli apartheid. The latest is the speech of Jean Castex at the dinner of the CRIF (Representative Council of Jewish Institutions of France) which affirms that “Jerusalem is the eternal capital of the Jewish people”, a statement that confirms an alignment with the Israeli far right as it pursues its policy of ethnic cleansing in the occupied Palestinian city, particularly in the neighborhoods of Sheikh Jarrah and Silwan.

In the decree of dissolution, support for the PFLP and for Georges Abdallah is particularly highlighted. What do you think about this?

The fact that support for Palestinian prisoners, in particular Ahmad Sa’adat and Georges Abdallah, is invoked as grounds for dissolution speaks volumes about the political nature of such a decision. Not only is the Zionist state and its allies imprisoning Palestinians who are fighting for their right to self-determination, but it is now the turn of the organizations that support these prisoners to be criminalized. It should be recalled that recently, two support organizations for Palestinian prisoners were classified as “terrorist organizations” by Israel: the international Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network and Addameer. It is therefore today the Collectif Palestine Vaincra which is dissolved in France, for similar reasons. These are extremely serious attacks that must be widely denounced. This highlights the importance and centrality of the cause of the Palestinian prisoners who today embody the true leadership of the Palestinian resistance for the return and liberation of Palestine from the river to the sea.

What strategy will you adopt for the future?

At the legal level, the group is appealing to the Council of State to challenge this dissolution. In parallel, a committee against the dissolution of the Collectif Palestine Vaincra is being formed. It brings together many political organizations, trade unions, and collectives who have decided to develop a solidarity campaign to denounce these attacks and the criminalization of the Palestine solidarity movement. This dissolution is indeed an attack against all the organizations engaged in struggle against colonialism, racism and imperialism. We must therefore form a common front to fight against this repressive offensive! Soon, solidarity initiatives should take place in several cities in France and abroad.

International actions to defend Palestine from French repression in Stockholm, Barcelona, Geneva and more

International solidarity actions are continuing to challenge the French government’s ban on two collectives advocating for justice in Palestine, including the Collectif Palestine Vaincra. In its dissolution order, French officials, including President Emmanuel Macron and Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, explicitly targeted the collective for advocating for freedom for Palestinian prisoners — and for Georges Abdallah, the Lebanese struggler for Palestine jailed in France for over 37 years, supporting the boycott of Israel, and expressing solidarity with the Palestinian resistance. This escalating attack on Palestinian rights and the Palestinian liberation movement in France is highlighting the repressive and anti-democratic policies of the French state that are also targeting Muslim, anti-racist and anti-fascist organizations for banning and threats of fines and jail time.

In Stockholm, Sweden, members of Samidoun Stockholmm visited the French embassy in the Swedish capital to distribute flyers and information to passers-by about France’s attack on Palestine and the Palestinian liberation movement.

Meanwhile, in Barcelona, Jaldia Abubakra of Samidoun Spain, the Palestinian Alternative Revolutionary Path Movement (Masar Badil), and Alkarama Palestinian Women’s Mobilization, delivered a letter on behalf of dozens of Spanish and Catalan associations to the French consulate, demanding that the ban on organizations advocating for justice in Palestine be rescinded.

In Geneva, outside the French consulate, demonstrators displayed banners in solidarity with Georges Abdallah, demanding his freedom, and in support of the Collectif Palestine Vaincra against the dissolution orders.

There are further actions coming up this weekend that highlight this case as part of the struggle for justice in Palestine, including the protest in Napoli on Friday, 25 March in solidarity with Collectif Palestine Vaincra, protests and Palestine stands in Lyon, Aubervilliers, Paris and Charleroi, as well as Land Day actions in Vancouver, New York, Albuquerque and elsewhere.

Take Action: 

  1. Individuals: Sign the petition in support of Collectif Palestine Vaincra! Add your signature here. https://www.change.org/p/non-%C3%A0-la-dissolution-du-collectif-palestine-vaincra
  2. Organizations: Sign the solidarity statement for Collectif Palestine Vaincra. Add your organizational endorsement here: https://bit.ly/defendcpv 
  3. Stand against criminalization of Palestinian rights in France with a statement or action! Send organizational solidarity statements to collectifpalestinevaincra@gmail.com (and copy us at samidoun@samidoun.net. Protest at a French embassy or consulate in your area. Find the embassy near you: https://www.embassy-worldwide.com/country/france/
  4. Call the French embassy or consulate in your area and speak up about the targeting of CPV! Find the closest French embassy or consulate in your area: https://www.embassy-worldwide.com/country/france/ For easy reference, the French embassy in the US can be reached at +1 (202) 944 6000, the French embassy in Canada at +1 (613) 789-1795, and the French embassy to the UK at [+44] (0) 207 073 1000. Find the embassy near you: https://www.embassy-worldwide.com/country/franceWhen you call, say, “My name is _____ and I am calling from _____. I am calling about the Interior Minister’s statement today that he will dissolve and ban two pro-Palestine organizations. This is an outrageous attack on freedom of expression. I stand with Palestine and with the Collectif Palestine Vaincra, and France should stop these attacks immediately.”
  1. Take an individual or group photo or video with the campaign posters (below), make your own sign and share on social media! Tag us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and use the hashtag: #SolidaritéCollectifPalestineVaincra

Download PDFS: English, French, Arabic, German, Dutch, Swedish, Spanish

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Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network
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