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Dockworkers Across 22 Countries Plan Global Port Strike Against Arms Exports for Gaza
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Dockworkers in 22 countries plan strikes at over 100 ports on Friday, Oct. 30, 2026. Actions could disrupt more than 40% of Mediterranean shipping and over $2 billion in freight.
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Global port strike planned
Dockworkers in 22 countries are preparing to organize strikes and protests on Friday against arms trade and the use of ports to ship weapons as part of a global day of action against the war and genocide in the Gaza Strip. Organizers say the strike could disrupt more than 40% of shipping in the Mediterranean and halt shipments worth more than two billion dollars, while the Unione Sindacale di Base (Federation of States Basic) in Italy said the mobilization expanded to more than 100 ports in 20 countries. The action is backed by more than 25 trade unions at over 100 ports, and the organizers say it is launched by dockworkers' unions in Italy, France, Greece, Türkiye and Morocco.
The Global Solidarity Fleet said it will take coordinated and strategic actions on the waters to support the strike, and the move also received support from 17 Palestinian unions and labor federations. The strike is expected to target major shipping hubs across Europe and beyond, including Hamburg, Valencia, Le Havre, the Green Island, Piraeus, Genoa, and the Tangier Med port in Morocco and Nhava Sheva port in India.
Scope, hubs, and uncertainty
Dockworkers' unions in 22 countries and regions are preparing coordinated strikes and demonstrations on Friday, 30 October, in an international campaign opposing the use of civilian ports to transport weapons and other military supplies to conflict zones. Some unions have announced 24-hour stoppages while others intend to organize shorter walkouts, demonstrations or symbolic protests, and the scale of actual disruption remains uncertain. The strike is expected to target major shipping hubs across Europe and beyond, including Hamburg, Valencia, Le Havre, Algeciras, Piraeus, Genoa, and Tangier Med Port in Morocco and Nhava Sheva Port in India.
It remains unclear how many workers will participate or how severe the disruptions could be, while a spokesman for the Italian port of Genoa said the impact on the port is likely to be limited. A spokesman for the Italian port of Genoa said the impact on the port is likely to be limited.
Demands and potential effects
The Global Solidarity Fleet said it would take coordinated and strategic action at sea to support the strike, and Reuters said ferries will remain docked in Greek ports on Friday as Greek port workers' unions, engineers, and seafarers join the strike. Marine News Magazine said a spokesman for Italy's Genoa port expected only limited impact, while Piraeus warned of disruption to ferry services for the Greek islands, and it quoted dockworkers at Greece's largest port, Piraeus, saying, "We will send our own message of peace from Piraeus, and we will show our solidarity with the peoples suffering from war,". Dockworkers at Greece's largest port, Piraeus, said, "We will send our own message of peace from Piraeus, and we will show our solidarity with the peoples suffering from war,".
Mother Jones reported that dockworkers’ demands, according to a statement released in May, include "an immediate end to the genocide of the Palestinian people and recognition of an independent Palestinian state," and it also quoted the unions writing, "Ports must not be used for the transport of arms, ammunition, military equipment or troops destined for war zones,". The campaign is framed as a refusal to participate in warfare and genocide, and it is backed by support including the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel.