Either we stand against wars, or we will suffer their consequences!
A call for an anti-war and anti-military base march on Tuesday, October 15, at 19:00 in Agora Square.
Crete serves as a strategic hub in a region plagued by widespread crises—wars, civilian casualties, and refugee migrations—from South Africa to the Eastern Mediterranean, and from Palestine and Syria to Ukraine and the Dnieper. As a result, more functions in the city of Chania are becoming militarized to meet the growing demands of the NATO base. New aircraft carrier arrivals and base expansions are being announced, while military technology conferences in Souda are presented as high-society events, offering entertainment for the city’s military recruits. In line with the NATO parliamentary assembly, a visit by NATO parliamentarians to the Souda base is scheduled for October 15, alongside a discussion at the Centre for Mediterranean Architecture involving military and port authorities. The topic of this meeting is ‘maritime security,’ which seems to relate to NATO’s ongoing operations against refugee movements and its strategic interests in regions like the Red Sea.
It is particularly concerning that an event featuring military officers is being hosted at the Centre for Mediterranean Architecture under the auspices of the municipal authority—a venue meant for entirely different research purposes. The use of the CAM as a military dayroom and conference space for NATO personnel, who operate without any democratic oversight, reflects a disturbing environment where militarists and repressive institutions increasingly take on political roles that are not rightfully theirs. It is tragic that discussions on ‘security’ are being led by military institutions with a long history of repression and violence in the region, including major crimes such as deadly pushbacks and the refusal to rescue refugees, resulting in countless lives lost in the Aegean.
It is important to remember that one of the participants in these conferences, the Chania Port Authority, shares responsibility for the heinous crime of refusing to rescue a refugee boat during the Pylos incident. With an increasing number of refugee boats arriving in Crete amidst significant migration waves—reminiscent of those following Israel’s invasion of Lebanon—the demand for ‘Rescue, not Murder’ must once again take center stage.
As capitalist and nationalist antagonisms continue to manifest through war and profit-seeking by states and transnational arms industries, entire cities are reduced to rubble, civilians are systematically murdered, and ethnic cleansing operations create massive refugee crises.
Arms clients and armies indiscriminately deplete their war materials in populated areas, as recently seen in Ukraine, Palestine, Syria, Afghanistan, Libya, Lebanon, Ethiopia, Myanmar, Yemen, and Sudan. Today, nationalism fuels civil wars and expansionist conflicts—such as Israel’s current actions in Gaza—exploited by competing coalitions like NATO or the so-called ‘BRICS’ countries to impose their bourgeois interests through mass extermination. This is painfully exemplified by the ongoing atrocities in Gaza, where tens of thousands have been killed by the Israeli army, and over a million people are left deprived, without access to basic necessities.
The greatest responsibility for this human carnage lies primarily with Western war industries and developed nations in the so-called northern hemisphere, which view the Global South as a field for exploiting cheap labor and resources in collusion with local regimes.
Following devastating conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, Sudan, Yemen, and Syria—where various factions, including ISIS and international forces, have contributed to widespread bloodshed—the human slave trade is now resurging. Trafficking networks, stretching from North Africa to Yemen, often operate in collaboration with European authorities. Refugees fleeing war are either killed in the Mediterranean or exploited as cheap labor in Europe. These are the material interests that ‘security’ discussions among elites in Chania are designed to protect.
Crete—particularly Chania with its Souda base—has become a key geographical center serving NATO’s militaristic ambitions in tandem with Greek capitalism. Chania is increasingly being transformed into a logistical hub for military infrastructure, essentially a parking lot and recreational area for war operations. During quieter moments, one can hear the wail of sirens and the constant roar of warplanes overhead, evoking echoes of conflicts like Lebanon in ’82 or the more recent wars in Iraq and Libya. The city could become even more ‘entertaining’ should international nuclear exchanges erupt between bases and naval forces across the Aegean.
As our leaders force us to choose between alliances of oppressors, it is crucial to rethink how we can effectively resist wars and nationalism.
War-mongering murderers and their conferences are not welcome in Chania.
Freedom for Palestinians!
Withdraw Israeli forces from Gaza, the West Bank, and Lebanon.
Immediate ceasefire from all parties involved.
ANTI-WAR/ANTI-MILITARY BASE PROTEST
Agora Square on Tuesday, October 15 at 19:00.
