A-Infos (en) France, OCL CA #340 - Stop Arming Israel, in France too! (ca, de, fr, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

The French government, which only talks about war and rearmament, is 
providing military companies with 413 billion euros for the period 
2024-2030, of which more than half (around 60%) of the expenditure is 
sucked up by the renewal of nuclear deterrence. . That is to say the 
modernization of weapons (nuclear warheads), vectors (M51-2 and ASMP-A 
missiles) and carriers (Rafale and nuclear missile submarines). This 
jackpot will come at the expense of ecology, culture, health and 
education. The future tastes like powder! ---- Block the war machine

According to the annual report on arms exports from the Ministry of the 
Armed Forces published in July 2023, France has sold 208 million euros 
worth of military equipment to the Hebrew State since 2013, including 
25.6 million in 2022, this which represents 0.2% of France's total 
exports that year. Added to this are nearly 9 million euros in export 
authorizations for ML4 military category weapons (bombs, torpedoes, 
rockets, missiles, other explosive devices and charges, and related 
equipment and accessories). On October 16, 2023, more than 30 
Palestinian unions launched an appeal to "end all complicity, stop 
arming Israel". The text calls on unions internationally to: refuse to 
manufacture weapons for Israel, refuse to transport weapons to Israel, 
adopt motions to this effect, take action against complicit companies 
participating in the implementation of the brutal and illegal siege of 
the Gaza Strip by Israel, particularly if it is the subject of a 
contract, pressuring governments to cease all military trade with Israel.

The Stop Arming Israel France collective was created to respond to this 
call and bring international worker solidarity to life in concrete 
terms. He decided not to be satisfied with declarations concerning the 
end of the bombings, but to "impose it by all the means at our disposal, 
in particular by massively mobilizing employees during demonstrations of 
support, and by strike in the sectors concerned. As trade unionists and 
unionized workers, the collective asks the union leaderships (if they 
have not already done so): to officially position themselves for 
unreserved support for the call of the Palestinian unions, to 
disseminate it to all their members .es, to contact these Palestinian 
unions to let them know of support for the appeal and to inquire about 
forms of solidarity that would help them, to contribute to organizing by 
all means (intervention of union sections directly concerned, blockades, 
distribution of leaflets in front of companies...) the cessation of the 
production and delivery of military equipment from France to Israel, as 
is done in many countries, to demand the cessation of all financing and 
all military research for the benefit of Israel, to put even more 
pressure on the French government to demand an immediate ceasefire.

International solidarity with Gaza
In Liège, Genoa, Barcelona, Melbourne, Oakland, Toronto. Since the start 
of the bombardment of Gaza, unions have attempted to block arms 
deliveries to Israel, recalling trade unionism's tradition of 
internationalist struggle. Initiatives that are insufficient to hinder 
the country's armament, but which have the merit of making arms 
exporting states face their responsibilities. On the French side, we 
cannot say that the unions have concretely expressed their opposition 
for the moment! It must be said that the repression is fierce, such as 
the detention for "apology of terrorism" of the secretary of the CGT in 
the North for having distributed a pro-Palestinian leaflet last October, 
the ban on demonstrations demanding an end to the bombings , incessant 
media propaganda unconditionally supporting the State of Israel.

Faced with this context, Stop Arming Israel France published in March 
2024 an activist guide designed for action. This work is the result of 
volunteer activists, based on research carried out from public sources. 
This guide essentially consists of summary sheets on companies complicit 
in the massacre of the Palestinian people, because they maintain links 
with the Israeli military-industrial complex. An interactive map of arms 
companies is available to allow the general public to be well informed 
to be more efficient; 168 sites participating in the production of 
weapons delivered to Israel are listed in France. Stop Arming Israel 
goes every week to meet workers in the sectors concerned and their 
unions, by organizing leaflets at the doors of arms companies, 
participates in mobilizations and demonstrations and organizes public 
information meetings.

France/Israel: a long but discreet armament
France-Israel military cooperation has existed since the creation of the 
Hebrew state. France and its companies helped this new state to equip 
its army and develop its arms industry. In addition to different types 
of tanks and missiles delivered by France, the company Dassault 
Aviation, for example, supplied Israel with different models of combat 
aircraft (Mystère IV, Mirage III, Mirage 5, etc.). The Atomic Energy 
Commission enabled Israel to build its first nuclear power plant and 
acquire the atomic bomb.

A collaboration and arrangements with the rules that do not date from 
yesterday. Already in 1967, faced with the imminence of the Six Day War, 
General De Gaule declared a preventive embargo on the delivery of 
offensive weapons to the Middle East, hardened in December 1968 by the 
declaration of a total embargo on weapons destined for Israel, after the 
attack on Lebanon. If the embargo blocks the delivery of 50 Mirage 5 
fighter bombers produced by Dassault, ordered by Israel in 1966, it does 
not strictly prohibit French companies from sending spare and spare 
parts provided for by previous contracts. In fact, an exact copy of the 
Mirage 5 was built by Israel at the very beginning of the 1970s, with 
the discreet support of Dassault. We clearly see, in view of relations 
between France and Israel, that the request for a military embargo 
against Israel is not enough. It is obvious that this is only a very 
partial solution, insufficient and easy to circumvent for manufacturers 
in the arms sector.

Despite Sébastien Lecornu's declarations in February: "objectively, 
there are no arms relations with Israel", before admitting that "a few 
licenses" for exports to the Hebrew State have indeed been granted since 
October 13, 2023, but used defensively, for "Iron Dome missiles". An 
assertion repeated verbatim on March 20 by government spokesperson 
Prisca Thévenot: "we only deliver weapons as part of defensive 
components for the Iron Dome." However, this is far from being the 
reality, as revealed by photographs sent to Disclose and its partner, 
the local investigative media Mars-actu. Indeed and in complete 
discretion, France authorized, at the end of October 2023, the delivery 
to Israel of at least 100,000 pieces of cartridges for machine guns 
likely to be used against civilians in Gaza. Photos taken by an employee 
on October 23, 2023, show a shipment of weapons intended for Israel. 
Boxes stored in a hangar belonging to Eurolinks, a Marseille company 
specializing in the manufacture of military equipment. On a slip taped 
to a cardboard box surrounded by cellophane, we can read the inscription 
in English "10,000 links M27 pour des munitions de 5.56 
millimeters[10,000 links M27 for 5.56 mm Ammo]". This equipment is in 
fact small metal parts used to connect machine gun bullets together.

Sébastien Lecornu had to respond to accusations from the media Disclose, 
which asserted that "France secretly equips machine guns used by the 
Israeli army". According to him, France would only equip the Hebrew 
State with "defensive" equipment or intended for "re-export". To confuse 
the issue and regulations, simply go through a third country or say that 
it is for export! So many vague and contradictory comments which are not 
likely to dispel the opacity maintained around French policy in terms of 
arms transfers to a State ready to attack the city of Rafah, in the 
south of the Palestinian enclave, where 1.5 million civilians hoped to 
find a last refuge.

Already in 2015, the Netherlands had blocked Eurolinks parts equipping 
30 mm ammunition transiting through Amsterdam. Probable motive, 
according to the Armament Observatory: the equipment was intended for 
the United Arab Emirates, engaged in the war against the Houthi rebels 
in Yemen but possibly re-exportable!

The French military-industrial complex linked to the IDF
The SIPRI (Stockholm International Peace Research Institute) report 
published in March 2024 ranks France as the second largest arms exporter 
in the world, putting it ahead of Russia. With its nine major industrial 
groups, it is 30% of total production which is exported, and these 
companies achieve 30 billion euros in turnover per year on average. They 
made 27 billion euros in orders in 2022 compared to 11.3 billion in 
2021. Armaments is a morbid sector in full expansion. Airbus, Safran, 
Dassault, KNDS, Thales, Amefo, PGM Précision, around these large groups 
of European and global scale, there are 4,000 small and medium-sized 
enterprises (SMEs), mid-sized companies (ETI) and startups which 
represent around 210,000 direct and indirect jobs (as many as the 
automobile production sector).

The Dassault group has been owned since 1929 by the family of the same 
name. Its subsidiary Dassault Aviation, specializing in aeronautics, is 
also a 26% shareholder in Thalès. Its main areas of activity are 
aeronautics, fighter aircraft, computer software, Rafale aircraft, 
Mirage aircraft and nEUROn combat drones. Software developed by Dassault 
Systèmes is used by many Israeli arms manufacturers (Rafael, Elbit 
Systems, IAI). Dassault Systèmes is even established in occupied 
Palestine, in the territories of 1948: a company headquarters is in 
Ra'anana, a city built on the ruins of the Palestinian village of 
Tabsur. Laurent Dassault claims to invest millions in Israel. In 2017, 
he declared: "I am the Dassault who returned to Israel, the one from the 
family who goes there to invest, with the support of the group, the most 
pro-Israeli.» Dassault Aviation is cooperating with IAI (Israel 
Aerospace Industries) on a program to modernize military aircraft 
intended for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions.

MBDA, founded in 2001, is the merger of the European companies Matra 
Défense (France), BAE Dynamics (England), Alenia Marconi Systems 
(England and Italy), in 2006, the German LFK was bought by the group and 
became MBDA Deutschland. MBDA is the European leader in the design and 
production of missiles. MBDA's three shareholders collaborate with the 
Israeli war machine. In addition to Airbus, BAE Systems and Leonardo are 
both involved in the manufacturing of the American F35 military plane, 
used deadly in Gaza.

Safran is a group created in 2005 by the merger between Snecma (National 
company for the study and construction of aviation engines) and Sagem 
(General electrical and mechanical applications company). Safran 
specializes in the design and production of aircraft, helicopter and 
rocket engines, aeronautical and defense equipment. In 2010, Safran and 
Elbit Systems (Elbit Systems is the largest Israeli arms company) 
announced the creation of a joint venture aimed at tackling the tactical 
drone market, which was to be 50/50 owned and based in France on the 
Eragny and Montluçon sites. Since then, no additional information on 
this joint venture has been released. Is it still active? Safran 
supplies electronic components integrated into the Israeli Arrow 3 
anti-missile system. In 2022, Safran announces that the Israeli 
government has "renewed its confidence" in it by placing a major order 
including flight test telemetry receivers as well as recorders radio 
frequency and analog signal recorders.

Thales is an electronics group specializing in aerospace, defense, 
security and transport. The group resulted from the merger between the 
branches specializing in military activities of the companies Alcatel, 
Dassault Électronique and Thomson-CSF, which were grouped under the name 
Thales in 2000. Its areas of activity are radars, drones, aeronautics 
and space, cybersecurity, radiocommunications, digital systems, GM 200 
and GM 400 radars, Watchkeeper WK450 drones, STARStreak missiles. Thales 
UK creates a joint venture with Elbit systems: UAV Tactical Systems 
(U-TacS). She designed the Watchkeeper WK450, a drone used to monitor 
and bomb Gaza. The Watchkeeper continues to be sold and exported today, 
and U-TacS still held export licenses to Israel in 2021, which allow 
Thales, via England, to deliver drone spare parts to its partner Elbit. 
IAI's Heron drones have been used in Gaza since Operation Cast Lead, and 
continue to be used today. In July 2023, Thales bought the Israeli 
cybersecurity company Imperva for $3.6 billion. Thales already had three 
sites in Israel, in the fields of medical, transport and digital security.

Amefo, founded in 1948, is a medium-sized company located in 
Saône-et-Loire. Since 2004, Amefo has worked in collaboration with the 
Israeli company Plasan, which specializes in military armored vehicles. 
Since October 7, Plasan has actively contributed to the operations of 
the Israeli army: the group has notably offered the army its stock of 
Sandcat Tigris armored vehicles, and provided a vehicle maintenance team 
directly to the areas of operation. near Gaza and on the Lebanese border.

PGM Précision is a company created in 1993, located in Haute-Savoie near 
Annecy. It mainly manufactures precision rifles which equip special 
forces and intervention units in several countries. Since the 1990s, PGM 
Précision has equipped the Israeli armed forces, notably Yamam, the 
special anti-terrorist unit of the Israeli border police. The PGM338, 
PGM Hecate and PGM Ultima Ratio rifles allow snipers to hit targets at 
ranges of 500 to 1500 meters, in urban areas, often with the use of a 
silencer.

And nuclear power too
The Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) has worked closely since 2007 with 
the Israeli Atomic Energy Commission (IAEC), which contributed to the 
creation of the Jules Horowitz research reactor (RJH), currently under 
construction on the CEA site in Cadarache (Bouches-du-Rhône). The work 
should have been completed in 2014. In 2024, it is still not completed, 
and the project continues to swallow up billions of euros of public 
money. Officially, cooperation between France and Israel in terms of 
nuclear technology would only concern the civil domain. However, with 
nuclear power, civilian technology is easily convertible into military 
technology.

The mobilization against the war in Gaza continues
On the occasion of May 1 and May 15, Nakba Day, members of the General 
Palestinian Federation of Trade Unions in Gaza call on workers around 
the world to assert their solidarity with Palestine by disrupting trade 
and economic flows to denounce the Israeli military occupation, the 
exploitation of Palestinian workers, the unspeakable atrocities - the 
incessant genocidal bombings by Israel, the starvation policies, the 
forced displacements and the confiscation of land. These atrocities come 
on top of years of brutal siege and military occupation. Israel's 
genocidal war against the Gaza Strip is nothing other than a 
continuation of the 1948 Nakba.

Nadia M.

To join the campaign, be kept informed, provide information: 
stoparmingisraelfrance@proton.me or

https://padlet.com/stoparmingisraelfrance/ressources

http://oclibertaire.lautre.net/spip.php?article4163
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