US & Israel Out of Syria
As Labour for Palestine - Canada we offer our solidarity with the people of Syria, and with everyone fighting for genuine liberation in the region. Recent events are fraught with confusion and contradictions. We recognize the rule of a brutal leader has ended to the relief of many Syrians. As the genocide continues in Gaza, we cannot however accept or cheer on regime change driven by, and to the benefit of, the same imperialist powers responsible for mass murder throughout the region and erasure of the Palestinians.
The Syrian people have suffered a great deal. Their future should have always belonged to them, free from foreign military intervention, zionist aggression and unjust economic sanctions. But their fight against the regime was hijacked and deformed into a devastating war lasting 13 years. It was riddled with sectarian violence, mass-murder, a refugee crisis, all of which eventually culminated into Turkish, Zionist and American led bombardment campaigns on sovereign Syrian territories and the further occupation of Syrian lands by Israel.
Syria was one of the last states in the region to support the Palestinian cause, in opposition to Israeli settler-colonialism and the US’s pursuit to control the land and resources of the region. The US, with their NATO and Zionist allies, created the economic and political conditions for what we are seeing today, essentially the destruction of Syria as a state and society. Many fear they will experience the same fate as Libya or Iraq.
Zionist land grabbing and the theft of the Syrian Golan Heights intensified the moment Assad left the country. At least 250 square kilometers of Syrian land has been occupied and much of Syria's strategic military infrastructure and air-capabilities have been obliterated by Zionist attacks over the past few days.
It is telling that the new rulers in Damascus have not condemned Israel’s violation of Syria’s sovereignty and illegal occupation. Announcing their intentions to privatize Syria’s economy and integrate it into the global capitalist system appears to be the priority. This was always what it was about for the West, whose interest in the oil reserves and natural resources is no secret.
Any thought of just peace, prosperity, development and democratization is a mirage if US imperialism and Zionist domination is allowed to continue throughout the region. The root of the struggle is against imperialism and by extension, zionist settler-colonialism and expansionism.
Solidarity means staying vigilant against narratives designed to divide us from the people engaged in liberation struggles. We must stand with those fighting for genuine liberation—not just from tyrants, but primarily from imperialist domination. The future of Syria belongs to the Syrian people – free from foreign agendas and zionist aggression.