A-Infos (en) France, OCL CA #359 - Editorial - War is an Ogre (ca, de, fr, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

However strong the condemnation of Israeli-American aggression in Iran 
may be, let us remember that beneath the guise of "anti-imperialism" 
against the "Great Satan," a regime of misery for the people, in the 
hands of bloodthirsty corrupt officials, has remained in power for 47 
years in that country.
Let us recall Iraq, supposedly possessing weapons of mass and chemical 
destruction; Afghanistan, supposedly harboring the terrorists who 
attacked the Twin Towers in New York; and then the intervention in Libya 
to oust a dictator. This time in Iran, while mediation was taking place 
in the Sultanate of Oman and a compromise was emerging on Iranian 
nuclear policy, D. Trump, under pressure from Israel, changed course. 
Along with his associate B. Netanyahu, they denounce Tehran's advanced 
nuclear program and its capacity to strike America with long-range 
ballistic missiles. These arguments were immediately refuted by both the 
IAEA[1]and by American officials themselves.

Ukraine, Syria, Gaza, Sudan, the Sahel... everywhere hangs the stench of 
death and the shadow of imperialism. Today, Iran's aggression and the 
intervention in Lebanon bring us closer to the risk of a more global 
war, the economic repercussions of which are already being felt. After 
all, for capitalists, for exploiters, war is simply a continuation of 
their policies, using different weapons.

For decades, imperialist powers and their "allies" have fiercely 
contested the resources, markets, and logistical routes that define 
their spheres of influence, in order to weaken their friend, rival, or 
enemy. The attack against Iran and its theocratic elites is merely a 
pawn advanced by Washington and Tel Aviv in this bloody global chess game.

With this attack, Donald Trump is indirectly targeting China and its 
vital need for hydrocarbons. For Benjamin Netanyahu, it is a "necessity" 
to maintain his hegemony over the Middle East. He is destroying the last 
obstacle to the Zionists' obsessive goal: "Greater Israel."

France is not at war but on a "defensive" mission, we are constantly 
told. And if Paris and other European capitals have rushed to join the 
belligerent duo, it is so as not to be left behind and to be able to 
defend their own interests in the region. European imperialism, after 
the Greenland debacle and despite its divisions, hastened to establish a 
united presence in the region. Around Cyprus, we are told, but not far 
from Israel. The French naval air arm, with the aircraft carrier Charles 
de Gaulle, is reinforcing the 5,000 French soldiers already stationed in 
the Gulf. The interests to be defended are numerous and varied: banks, 
luxury goods, construction, hotels, and tourism... These 
petro-monarchies are no longer "A desert, Bedouins, and camels" for 
tourists. They are industrial hubs (fertilizers, pharmaceuticals, 
textiles, etc.) where many proletarian slaves from Asia are forced to 
work, financial centers overflowing with petrodollars, but also 
countries implicated in wars and massacres in Yemen, Sudan, and elsewhere.

The imperialist bourgeoisie seems divided. The most cynical faction, 
bolstered by its grandeur and power, is led by the Washington-based 
businessman and his Israeli crony. The other, rival faction, more 
hypocritical, waits patiently. Van der Leyen, representing Europe, 
"condemns Iran's unjustified attacks" without any reference to 
Israeli-American aggression. E. Macron "...cannot approve of the 
intervention that tramples on international law" but does not condemn 
it, because "history never mourns the executioners." He forgets the 
people under bombs. The German Chancellor declared after the attack, 
"This is not the time to lecture partners and allies." Let us remember 
that all these people endorsed the destruction of Gaza after October 7, 
2023, on the grounds of "Israel's right to defend itself." A right to 
expand, one might think. Once again, only Spain dared to "demand" a 
cessation of hostilities. While some have trampled upon the UN and 
international bodies, others are busy trying to maintain the illusion of 
democracy, law, and justice-as proclaimed by imperialist powers in the 
aftermath of World War II. These are principles that have always been 
shifting and serving the interests of dominant imperialism.

Rights and principles that Israel has trampled upon since its 
colonization of Palestine in 1948, without facing any repercussions from 
the very laws that established them. This hypocrisy was recently upheld 
by a large majority (excluding China and Russia) in the March 2026 UN 
vote. This vote "condemns in the strongest possible terms" the "heinous" 
Iranian strikes against the Gulf states. The imperialist aggression is 
forgotten, as is the fact that these countries host military bases used 
to wage this war, which should be deemed illegal under their own laws. 
Democracy... law... etc., a smokescreen for public opinion, because 
imperialist countries, alone or in packs, primarily defend their 
national interests. Illusions that distract populations, the 
proletariat, from their class objectives in order to better enlist them 
in this war.

Despite the difficulties of this period and our fragmentation, it is 
through our resistance to the State, its police and military, through 
our many daily struggles, and thanks to our solidarity, that we will be 
able to develop a class consciousness. This autonomous collective force, 
freed from the ideological shackles of the bourgeoisie and its 
auxiliaries, will allow us to change this world, our lives. It is by 
fighting here against our bourgeoisie that we will continue the revolt 
of the Iranians, the resistance of the Palestinians in Gaza or the West 
Bank...

OCL Caen 23/03/2026

Note

Notes
[1]International Atomic Energy Agency. Created in 1957, it comprises 180 
members and a council of 35 members. Through its controls, it strives to 
guarantee the peaceful use of nuclear materials.

http://oclibertaire.lautre.net/spip.php?article4674
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