News / Dockers and transport workers refuse to handle military cargo for Israel

Dockers and transport workers in Europe are attempting to slow shipments of equipment destined for use in Israel’s war effort by refusing to handle military cargo for the port of Haifa, as the country steps up its assault on Gaza and on Iran.

The move comes just weeks after the Iran-backed Houthi rebels shifted focus away from ships simply transiting the Red Sea towards those calling at Haifa, the port seen as a key gateway for furnishing the Israeli war effort.

But for dockers, the decision to down tools on certain shipments raises a host of logistical questions, not least of which is how they are determining which shipments contain military and which general cargo.

As this story went to press, the European Transport Workers Federation (ETF) had not supplied answers to questions by The Loadstar on this, and how long the action would be in place.

However, an ETF statement noted that: “No one should be penalised for standing up against violence. We strongly oppose the criminalisation of transport workers, including dockers, who refuse to be complicit in war. Their courage must be defended, not repressed.”

All this month, members of a number of European trade unions have been acting to halt the flow of weaponry to Israel, workers across the continent acting in concert to ensure no military cargo gets through.

On 4 June, dockers in Marseille refused to load a Haifa-destined vessel, with colleagues in Genoa confirming that when the same vessel called at the Italian port they would board it, check for weapons and, if any were found, block it from leaving port.

The union representing the French workers, the General Confederation of Labour (CGT), said it had been alerted to the presence of weapons in the shipments by “several networks”, and said: “The port of Marseille-Fos must not be used to supply the Israeli army.

“The dockworkers and port staff of the Gulf of Fos will not take part in the ongoing genocide orchestrated by the Israeli government. We stand for peace among people. We condemn all these armed conflicts that bring death, misery, and the displacement of populations.”

And the ETF has sought to call out any action being taken against workers, noting: “Lawful protests and the refusal to transport military equipment are legitimate expressions of conscience that deserve protection.”

For logistics operators and container lines, workers’ refusal to handle certain cargo adds to a gamut of considerations the war in the Middle East is forcing them to contend with, especially with continuing uncertainty on the Israel-Iran situation.

As this story was being published, the threat of escalation appeared to be dying down, but question marks linger over whether future attacks on Iran could prompt its leadership to seek to close the Strait of Hormuz.

One forwarder told The Loadstar they thought this was a “low-probability but high-impact risk”, appearing confident that the government in Tehran would not  take such a decision, given its own economic dependence on the waterway.

They added: “A complete closure of the strait would be an extreme scenario. While it is not impossible, it would likely trigger significant military and diplomatic responses. Historically, even during periods of heightened tension, the strait has never been fully closed.”