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A deafening chorus of honking vehicles and port employees chanting “you are not welcome” welcomed an Israeli-owned container ship when it arrived in Livorno this week.

For two days, the protesting port laborers refused to back down, refusing to unload and reload the vessel’s freight in a act of defiant solidarity for the people of Gaza and the Global Sumud flotilla striving to bring humanitarian assistance to the besieged territory. The protest was a triumph and the ship, bound for the US and Canada, left the port.

Nationwide Port Protests Expand

From Genoa, Trieste and Ravenna in the northern region, to southern harbors in the south, in the past few weeks dock laborers throughout the country have succeeded in obstructing ships believed to be carrying weapons for the Israeli military, as resistance to the country’s war in Gaza grows stronger.

The workers’ resolve to block weapons and stifle trade has been a crucial component of the pro-Palestinian uprising in the nation as demands mounts on Prime Minister Meloni’s conservative administration to adopt a firmer position against Israel.

“Israel is carrying out an extermination of civilians in Gaza – by taking lives, by depriving them of food,” said a dockworker, Luca Simoni. “We cannot remain indifferent. We have historically been a port of welcome, not one of conflict. We will continue protesting until this hostilities ends.”

National Walkout Increases Tension

On the end of the week, thousands demonstrated after Cgil organized the latest nationwide walkout in less than two weeks, closing schools, disrupting transport and creating delays on public transport and in healthcare. There were also impromptu demonstrations on midweek after Israeli forces intercepted the flotilla and detained numerous participants, including the well-known activist the environmental advocate.

The incident in the Tuscan port was the initial instance an vessel from Israel transporting commercial goods had been blocked.

Public Opinion and Government Response

Latest polls show significant support among Italians – including a considerable portion of voters of the governing alliance – for the establishment of a Palestinian state and in support of the flotilla aid mission.

The Prime Minister has spoken against the deaths caused by Israel of Palestinians in the past few months, casting it as a “excessive” reaction to Hamas’s 7 October 2023 attacks, and has expressed willingness to the country recognizing a Palestinian state, albeit with caveats. But she continues trying to walk a fine line between being one of the strongest supporters of Israel in the EU and a ally of Middle Eastern countries, all the while following the line of the US president, Donald Trump.

Still, she is mindful of public opinion, especially with the country in the midst of multiple local votes, and has sought to exploit the protests and aid mission to criticize her political rivals.

The Prime Minister has described the convoy as “dangerous and irresponsible” and, despite the aid effort involving hundreds of activists from various nations, she said it was only aimed at “creating problems” for her government. She criticized Friday’s general strike, claiming Italians of undertaking “a long weekend masquerading as a political uprising” while claiming the strike was organized for political reasons and provided little help to Gaza.

“The Meloni government can only remain in power with someone to blame,” claimed a union leader, who heads the Livorno unit of Cgil. “There is also a great contradiction between what Meloni claims and what she does,” he continued. “She speaks of being a great patriot, a religious person and a mother, but she has not undertaken any official steps to halt the killing of civilian families.”

Government Standing Despite Unrest

But despite the widespread popular feeling reflected by the series of solidarity demonstrations, Meloni’s Brothers of Italy party remains ahead in surveys, at around 30%, and she has led an unusually steady national administration since coming to power in October 2022.

“From one perspective, there is the majority of the population in supporting Palestinians which desires an end to the war,” said Lorenzo Pregliasco, a founder of YouTrend. “But you won’t observe the impact of this when it comes to vote.”

The analyst mentioned recent regional votes in the central area where Meloni’s coalition secured a second mandate. The same outcome is anticipated in elections in other regions.

Pregliasco said there was “a real risk of the [Gaza] movement having an overly strong of a partisan association, which would alienate individuals who are horrified with the war but who are not pro-Palestinian militants”.

Expert Insights

A political scientist at an American university and the University of Bologna, said the explanation why the effects of the demonstrations were not being reflected in elections was because barely half of Italian voters go to the polls.

“And the ones who vote, vote for the right,” she said, explaining that Meloni could easily leverage the unrest to disarm rivals.

She said any grassroots activism of citizens was vulnerable to being infiltrated by antagonists, and alleged that this had been happening in order to “discredit and suppress” the solidarity campaign.

Healthcare Community Join

Susanna Romitelli in the capital, has attended several demonstrations in the Italian capital and participated in the rally near Piazza Vittorio on the strike day.

“Last night, there was an initiative held in medical facilities during which we remembered the many healthcare workers who died in the conflict zone while providing aid,” she said. “It was a very touching moment and we will keep organizing. You may not observe it in political polls yet, but I think this government is becoming deeply concerned of the people.”