Today, across more than a hundred Italian cities—from Rome to Milan, Turin to Naples—tens of thousands marched to demand justice and solidarity with Gaza. United in protest against Israel’s interception of the Global Sumud Flotilla, a convoy of over forty vessels carrying 500 international activists—including Greta Thunberg, parliamentarians, and lawyers—bearing urgently needed medicines and food.

Israel’s seizure of nearly all ships and detention of roughly 450 passengers is not only a political act but a grave violation of international humanitarian principles.

The Gaza conflict must be judged by Just War Theory’s strict criteria. This war fails to meet the essential conditions of right intention, last resort, and proportionality. The devastating impact on civilians—whose only “offense” is living under occupation—cannot be justified by any declared military objective. The blockade and bombardment inflict systematic suffering, violating the moral imperative to protect non-combatants and forbidding the use of collective punishment or other “evil means.” To call this war just is to reject any ethical foundation of just conduct in war.

By the same token, the interception and blockage of humanitarian aid beaches international humanitarian law and ethical norms. The Geneva Conventions and customary law guarantee civilians in conflict zones the right to rapid and unimpeded relief. The San Remo Manual mandates that blockades permit humanitarian exemptions and be conducted impartially. Israel’s blanket blockade and seizure of a peaceful flotilla carrying essential supplies violate these legal obligations, denying civilians life-saving aid and amounting to unlawful collective punishment under Article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention. Using starvation and deprivation as tools of war is a moral and legal outrage.

We must be unequivocal: attacks on synagogues or any acts motivated by antisemitism are utterly unacceptable. Such violence distracts from the core human justice issues at stake and must be condemned in the strongest terms. Our struggle is not against any identity but for universal human dignity and rights, and against the totalitarian axis undermining a globally just social order.

The moment to take a visible stand for justice is now. The Gaza war is unjust by the standards of Just War Theory. The blockade and interruption of humanitarian aid are illegal and immoral under international law and ethical principles. Silence in the face of these violations is complicity.

We stand with the displaced, the starving, and the oppressed. Raising the Palestinian flag is not a call for vengeance but an emblem of hope and resistance against injustice. We demand open seas, open ports, and open consciences. The time to show our colours is now.

#Gaza #InternationalLaw #JustWar #Solidarity #Leadership