In the spirit of the Global Sumud Flotilla, various organizations, participants, and supporters of the flotilla have declared today a day of action against arms deliveries. German imperialism is internationally one of the leading suppliers of war weapons to various despots and colonial rulers, demonstrating day by day its remarkable talent for consistently being on the wrong side of history.
Turkey and Israel are at the top of the list of countries supplied by Germany with weapons used to carry out their crimes. These arms shipments, accompanied by deep economic and even political ties, make the German state a direct accomplice—both in the genocide in Gaza and in the countless crimes against the Kurdish people.
Germany benefits from the suffering in Gaza
The war machinery of the Israeli state, which has been used since its founding to annihilate the Palestinian people and fully conquer Palestine, is largely produced or financed abroad. Alongside the United States, Germany is the second-largest supplier of various weapons systems to Israel. The delivered arms range from assault rifle ammunition to drone components to submarines. That these weapons are used for the gradual occupation of the West Bank, countless massacres in the Gaza Strip, and attacks on areas in Syria, Lebanon, Iran, Yemen, and Qatar has never concerned the German state. Even when Israel openly began its genocide in Gaza before the eyes of the world and continued it ever more brutally, the weapons deliveries did not stop. Friedrich Merz’s statement that no more weapons would be delivered to Israel that could be used in Gaza is, in itself, a step in the right direction. However, it remains questionable whether these words will be followed by action. In the period following this announcement, confirmed weapons deliveries to Israel still took place. Furthermore, it remains unclear which weapons systems are no longer to be delivered. Merz’s wording here is exceptionally vague and leaves numerous loopholes, allowing the German state to continue profiting from apartheid, occupation, and genocide.
We demand the complete and immediate halt of all weapons deliveries to Israel! Anything less can only be seen as support for genocide.
the German-Turkish coalition goes back over a hundred years
The military of Turkish fascism is also eagerly supplied with weapons. Already during World War I and the Nazi era, the political and military relationships between German and Turkish rulers were excellent. For example, a photo was circulated showing a military aircraft where the swastika was painted over with a crescent. Atatürk copied methods for committing massacres directly from the Nazi regime and, for the Dersim massacre in 1937–38, purchased German poison gas from the Nazis in order to create a “final solution” in the fight against the resistant Kurdish-Alevi population. Around 70,000 to 80,000 people were killed. In 1988, Iraqi President Saddam Hussein sought to punish the Kurdish people for their staunch resistance and was supplied by the FRG with mustard gas to carry out massacres in Halabja and other smaller locations.
When the FRG annexed the GDR, it donated a large portion of the National People’s Army (NVA) weapons to Turkey. This included anti-tank weapons, trucks, at least 300 infantry fighting vehicles, around 300,000 Kalashnikov assault rifles, and several million rounds of ammunition. Although Turkey was required to publicly promise not to use these weapons in Kurdistan, it naturally did so anyway. This open and very predictable breach of the agreement had no consequences whatsoever. A similarly “consistent” approach can be expected with the supposed halt of arms deliveries to Israel. Turkey continued to rely on military support from Berlin. The most well-known arms deal negotiated since then was the piecemeal delivery of about 354 Leopard tanks (397 had already been delivered during the Cold War). These tanks made international headlines when they rolled into the Kurdish city of Afrin during an illegal Turkish offensive, accompanied by jihadist militias, to massacre the local population and establish a colonial reign of terror in the self-governed city.
Israel and Turkey also regularly supply each other with weapons. The delivery of Delilah air-to-surface missiles to Turkey and the modernization of Turkish tanks and aircraft by the Israeli state are just a few examples. Erdoğan may publicly present himself as a strong opponent of Israel and a true friend of the Palestinian people, but as long as the cooperation between the two states continues, these are nothing but empty words meant to save face before the public. We must not fall for such games played by colonial regimes under any circumstances.
The oppressors stand united—let us, the oppressed, do the same! Let us unite the anti-imperialist, anti-colonial struggles—from Palestine to Kurdistan, from the Congo to Latin America. The Global Sumud Flotilla is an impressive outcome of precisely this mindset. The oppressed are coming together internationally to help their siblings and to stand up to the Israeli state. We warmly welcome this initiative and hope it will mark the beginning of many more actions of this kind. Let us stand together for an end to all weapons deliveries and the construction of a new world!
El pueblo unido jamás será vencido!
Peoples Bridge, 11th September 2025
