7 August: We support the “Campaign against occupation and normalization in Lebanon”

A mobilization will take place in Beirut, with solidarity actions in other countries. The Campaign was launched on 18 July in the Lebanese capital.

By Ali Hammoud

Saturday 18 of July, not Beirut, The Campaign to Confront the Occupation and Normalization in Lebanon held its second conference, that is to say, the official announcement of its creation. The event had a wide participation of political and labor organizations, associations and cooperatives, as well as political and social activists. There was also a significant international presence, with the participation of comrades from the International Socialist League, the Revolutionary Left Current in Syria, as well as independent from Egypt and other countries.

The conference included an extensive internal debate, held behind closed doors, on the political and organizational tasks of the campaign and the mechanisms to strengthen its work in the next phase. The participants were divided into four working committees: the Committee for the Development and Production of Political Discourse, the Coordination and Local Resistance Committee, the International Coordination Committee and the Grassroots Action Committee. Each commission held extensive discussions that concluded with a series of recommendations and conclusions that will form the basis of the campaign's action plan for the next period..

The discussions agreed that the current stage requires a shift from dispersed initiatives to a unified political and organizational framework capable of linking the fight against occupation and normalization with everyday grassroots work., strengthen coordination between different forces and activists, and expand solidarity networks both locally and internationally, in line with the magnitude of the challenges facing Lebanon and the region.

On a practical level, The participants agreed to organize the first mass mobilization of the campaign for the 7 of August, with both a local and international focus. In Lebanon, The campaign called for a demonstration in front of the Government Palace in Beirut, while, at the same time, Solidarity actions will be organized in front of Lebanese embassies and consulates in several countries, with the aim of expanding international solidarity and increasing political pressure against the normalization process and occupation.

The conference concluded with a press conference during which three political statements were made.

First, speaking on behalf of the campaign, reaffirmed its rejection of the normalization process and any form of concession, stressing the need to confront the occupation by all possible means. He also linked the fight for national liberation and liberation from occupation with the need for political change in the face of the current system..

The second speech was given by Egyptian political activist Alaa Abdel Fattah (former political prisoner), who stressed the need to expand solidarity with Lebanon and the Lebanese resistance, describing it as the last front of direct confrontation with the enemy. He pointed out that the continuity of this front requires mobilizing all political resources, popular and materials to support it, as well as moving towards a war economy that guarantees the basic needs of the population and strengthens the conditions for social resistance, allowing people to continue living, resisting and fighting.

The third speech was given by a representative of the International Socialist League, who expressed the position of the organization and the Revolutionary Left Current in Syria. In his speech, underlined the importance of internationalist and militant solidarity with the people of Lebanon, Palestine and Syria facing occupation, stating that the people of the world reject American hegemonic projects and support the resistance that has faced the State of Israel for more than seven decades. He also maintained that the task of the revolutionary forces is to link this struggle with a socialist and emancipatory perspective..

At the end of the conference, the campaign renewed its call to all political forces, labor and youth, as well as activists from all regions, to join their ranks and help build a broader alliance against occupation and normalization. He also confirmed the 7 August as the date of their first street action as part of their fighting program, emphasizing that this is not a temporary battle nor linked to a specific event, but of a prolonged process of organization and struggle against occupation and projects of domination and subjugation.

The participants reaffirmed that facing normalization is an inseparable part of the struggle for liberation, and that building a radical popular movement—capable of unifying the forces of popular resistance and linking the political struggle with the social and class struggle—is the main task of the current stage. They also stressed that the confrontation with the Zionist and imperialist project cannot be separated from the fight for social justice., freedom, democracy and socialism, and that the expansion of international solidarity, along with strengthening organizational presence and action on the ground within Lebanon, will constitute the two fundamental pillars of the campaign's work in the next period.