FARRAKHAN ON U.S.-ISRAEL POLITICS

In this 2011 clip, Louis Farrakhan, leader of the Nation of Islam, criticism of Democrats’ and Republicans’ support for Israel is ever more relevant as the world continues to criticise the United States aiding Israel’s military onslaught of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.

Farrakhan’s words evoke a decades-long reality: The US is the biggest enabler of the Israeli occupation and atrocities.

For example, in 2016, the Obama administration finalised a $38 billion military aid agreement to Israel to be disbursed over 10 years, the largest such package in US history.

Continued…….. In 2017, the Trump administration acknowledged Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, moving the US embassy and risking international condemnation, the Biden administration did not reverse.

Both parties on Capitol Hill routinely pass pro-Israel bills by nearly unanimous votes. Recently, the US Congress approved a bill defining anti-Semitism for anti-discrimination laws to criminalise educational programming, activities and other purposes.

Simultaneously, calls for conditioning aid or sanctions over Israel’s human rights abuses have also not gained traction. Despite mounting reports by groups such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch accusing Israel of apartheid, Biden opposed international probes, including those by the International Criminal Court. 

As Israel’s military onslaught prompts global outrage and the total death toll may exceed 186,000, according to the Lancet journal, cracks are starting to form in this consensus, especially amongst the US population. However, in Washington, the silence remains unbroken and monolithic.

Video credit: @fakebatmanclub (X)

Sources

https://globalaffairs.org/research/public-opinion-survey/americans-grow-more-divided-us-support-israel

https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2023/10/27/analysis-is-the-us-approach-to-gaza-damaging-ties-with-its-arab-allies

https://www.reuters.com/article/world/us-israel-sign-38-billion-military-aid-package-idUSKCN11K2CI/

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/06/world/middleeast/trump-jerusalem-israel-capital.html

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/1/20/us-secretary-of-state-blinken-us-embassy-to-remain-in-jerusalem

https://responsiblestatecraft.org/house-passes-ukraine-aid-bill/

https://www.c-span.org/congress/?chamber=house&date=2021-05-13

https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/research/2022/02/qa-israels-apartheid-against-palestinians-cruel-system-of-domination-and-crime-against-humanity/

https://www.hrw.org/report/2021/04/27/threshold-crossed/israeli-authorities-and-crimes-apartheid-and-persecution

https://www.adl.org/resources/press-release/louis-farrakhan-puts-his-anti-semitism-full-display-deepens-conspiracy

https://www.arabnews.com/node/2585868/middle-east

https://youtu.be/GHJ9dgtx6Sw?si=ZswpHzJmzVPCWiXi&t=4208

This week's proverb speaks to the power of historical memory and self determination. While the Alliance of Sahel States, comprising Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, is a newly formed bloc, it draws strength from a much older foundation - the shared struggles and pan-African aspirations that long predate colonial borders.

Rather than inventing something new, the AES is reconnecting to the deep roots of pre-colonial unity. It also channels colonial-era and post-independence resistance. From the empires and kingdoms of the Sahel to the revolutionary legacies of Modibo Keïta and Thomas Sankara, these nations are reconnecting to roots of a buried inheritance and with it, the power to withstand the storms of neo-colonial pressure.

Continued.......By expelling French troops, adopting a shared currency project and abolishing internal borders, as well as envisioning a single pan-African federation with one citizenship and a federal government, the AES is not planting something new, it’s unearthing what imperialism tried to bury.  If these roots are rediscovered by the rest of the continent, not even the most violent winds of imperialism can uproot them.

BURKINA FASO NATIONALISES FIVE MINING ASSETS

On 27 August 2024, Burkina Faso announced that it would nationalise two gold mines, Boungou and Wahgnion, following a legal dispute between London-listed Endeavour Mining and a local company, Lilium Mining.

On 11 June 2025, the government declared that the nationalisation process was complete. The state-owned Burkina Faso Mining Participation Company (SOPAMIB) officially owns and controls the two mines as well as three mining licenses previously held by Endeavour and Lilium Mining.

Continued……Burkina Faso President Ibrahim Traoré has expressed interest in revoking more foreign mining permits and granting the state greater control over the mining sector.

Burkina Faso is a member of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), a Pan-African anti-imperialist confederation that was established on 6 July 2024 and includes neighbouring Mali and Niger. All three countries have revised their mining codes. Mali is involved in an ongoing legal battle against Canadian-based company Barrick Gold, and its assertion of resource sovereignty led to the resignation of Terry Holohan, CEO of Australian company Resolute Mining. In 2024, Niger nationalised two major mines, Imouraren and Somaïr, formerly owned by French public company Orano.

Sources

https://africanminingmarket.com/burkina-faso-completes-nationalisation-of-5-gold-mining-assets/22421/

https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/burkina-faso-completes-nationalisation-five-gold-mining-assets-2025-06-12/

https://africa.businessinsider.com/local/markets/junta-led-burkina-faso-nationalises-five-gold-mining-assets/mmp89dd

https://www.rml.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/030225-Management-Changes.pdf

https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/mali-court-adjourns-hearing-whether-put-barricks-gold-mines-under-provisional-2025-06-02/

https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/french-company-orano-loses-control-of-uranium-mine-to-niger-admin/3414093

https://fr.africanews.com/2024/06/21/niger-orano-perd-son-permis-dexploitation-sur-le-site-dimouraren//

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7E6uzdGASVM

From the first ships that docked on African shores in the 15th century, the African continent has been the breeding ground for imperialism.

The global capitalist system was built by exploiting our resources and people, with Europeans first seeking out gold in Africa. Europeans then began kidnapping and enslaving Africans, evolving into the systematic looting of land, minerals, and labour through military force to protect their ‘profits.’ Today, this system still operates, but it hides behind the polished language of ‘investment,’ ‘loans,’ and ‘development aid.’

Continued……. Let's be clear: Africa is wealthy. According to the UN Environment Programme, our continent is home to 30 per cent of the world's mineral reserves, 8 per cent of the world's natural gas and 12 per cent of the world's oil reserves. Africa also holds 40 per cent of the world's gold reserves and up to 90 per cent of its chromium and platinum. The largest reserves of cobalt, diamonds, platinum and uranium in the world are also in Africa. Plus, Africa is home to 65 per cent of the world’s arable land.

Western-backed financial institutions like the International Monetary Fund and World Bank impose structural adjustment programmes that gut public services and kill local industries. Our people suffer due to foreign debt that puts our governments’ budgets in the red, causing unemployment and expensive infrastructure projects that don’t benefit us.

Further, comprador African leaders allow multinational corporations to extract raw materials at a fraction of their value.

Every time Africa has tried to break free through Pan-Africanism, socialism or resource nationalisation, the West has blocked us.

But in the past few years, people-backed coups d’état in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger have ousted Western-aligned leaders, expelled French troops, and formed the Alliance of Sahel States (AES). This anti-imperialist confederation is working to create a federal, Pan-African state that would eventually lead to a single governance for the whole continent.

Meme credit: @africanlivesmatter1 (IG)

Sources

https://www.unep.org/regions/africa/our-work-africa#:~:text=Africa%20is%20home%20to%20some%2030%20percent,uranium%20in%20the%20world%20are%20in%20Africa.