As the war with Iran continues and the death toll rises, many of us are trying to make sense of the contradictions it has exposed, and trying to carry many truths at once – against both imperialism towards Iran and domestic authoritarianism within it. If Trump thought decapitating the Iranian state was going to be as easy as his operation in Venezuela, he’s mistaken. As CPT Colombia reminds us, the Americas are now at a crossroads: “either build multilateral solutions rooted in democracy and international law, or accept permanent militarisation of the hemisphere under the boot of US imperialism.” That crossroads is now global.
Over the past week, the role of the Kurds of Iran and Iraq has been discussed by news anchors and columnists. As the war’s belligerents discuss the possibility of ground invasion, pundits have been assessing the chances of a Kurdish front in Rojhelat, Iranian Kurdistan. Western coverage has flattened the diverse positions of Kurdish actors into a single strategic variable in US and Israeli planning. CPT Iraqi Kurdistan has been reporting on the impact of this war in the region. Between 28 February and 8 March, the team recorded 196 strikes by Iran and its affiliated groups in the region, aimed at US targets, Iranian Kurdish refugee camps, and Kurdish opposition headquarters. As usual, civilians have been paying the price.
In Palestine, as the war broke out, our team in Al-Khalil evacuated the office. The incoming bombardment aimed at Israeli targets affects them too. The West Bank lives under an undeclared curfew and, under cover of war, the atrocities of the Occupation escalate. Towns and villages are under siege by settlers, with no-one allowed in or out. “Since the start of this war,” the team tells us, “six Palestinians have been killed by settlers in the West Bank, and the Israeli government continues to expand settlements in the area.”
What does the future hold when the law cannot stop a genocide or prevent unprovoked war? What are the implications of such a brazen culture of impunity? It doesn’t stay confined in “war zones”. In the Eastern Mediterranean borderlands, Europe has long treated migrants as a category of people outside the law. Migrants have been recast through the lens of security, allowing for mass arrest and the tacit social acceptance of lethal violence. CPT Aegean Migrant Solidarity sends a warning: the logic driving Mediterranean patrol boats is becoming more shameless in ICE-occupied Minnesota.
Back in Colombia, our team reminds us of historic gains made against the odds. Our struggles have built new possibilities for communities. As neighboring states fall to authoritarian governance, they insist that now, more than ever, these advances need our protection.
