You have not mentioned the illegality of the occupation of Palestinian Territories (Gaza, West Bank and East Jerusalem). You posted this article on Feb 17, and made no mention of the ICJ hearings held on Feb 19-26 which Canada made a no-show at, but stood by their July 2023 submission supporting Israel by requesting that the court not render an Advisory Opinion. The legal arguments made by Canada are weak and transparent in their support of Israel, the UK and the U.S. We may consider those countries our allies, but our allies are wrong.
Months and months from now, the ICJ will respond to last week’s hearings, and years from now they’ll rule on South Africa’s case against Israel for genocide. Must you wait until then to take a considered view? Dare you estimate how many Palestinians will die between now and then?
While your article appears like you have been considered and fair, I have to say that in my view it is neither, or otherwise you are simply unaware of many important realities, history and legal facts. Which is it?
So what can you do? Here are some ideas:
1. Identify and speak of Israel as illegally occupying Gaza, West Bank and East Jerusalem. Call for Canadian sanctions on them (of all kinds, not just arms) for breaking all relevant UN resolutions and international law.
2. Acknowledge that under international law, an occupying country does NOT have the right of self defence on occupied territories. And acknowledge that the occupied people have the right of armed resistance in the occupied territories. Israel only has the right to self defence in Israel, not in Gaza, West Bank or East Jerusalem under international law.
3. Start enforcing real consequences on a country that cannot stop itself from its aggression on the Palestinian people that has been ongoing long before Israel was even established. This means Sam ruins of all kinds available, as has already been called for in the UN.
4. Identify Israel as a terrorist state due to their use of collective punishment on a the civilian population to force their government to do what Israel wants them to do. This is the very definition of terrorism.
5. Identify Israel as an apartheid state. Two tiers of rights for peoples based on ethnicity and religion is apartheid.
6. Call for a permanent cease fire, not just pauses.
7. Call for the release of hostages: Palestinian hostages, not just Israeli ones I.e. the thousands of Palestinian hostages in Israeli prisons before and after Oct 7th including women and children held for « administrative detention » indefinitely, without ever being charged or told why they have been detained.
8. Acknowledge that the millions of people in Gaza that are unable to flee to safety anywhere are also hostages: they have been locked in their prison since 2007, at the mercy of the ruthless IDF and under a blockade of food, water, electricity, fuel, with Israeli controls on all goods and people in and out of their prison.
I think that your attempt to have a balanced politik approach is not good enough. Your conscience should not be eased. Consider the gravity of the situation, and see its parallel to WW2. Nobody wanted to acknowledge the reality of the threat of Hitler before WW2…Britain didn’t want to become involved. In the end they had to, because it was clear he would had to be stopped. Today, it’s Israel who needs to be stopped.
I am well aware that the U.S. and UK are with Israel. They created Israel. Israel is fighting their wars, keeping their control over the Middle East which was the plan since WW1: historical documents are clear on that. But Canada is not them.
What are we if we cower behind a bully?
Have you considered the penalties Canadians may pay in reparations in the future due to complicity in Genocide and war crimes? Germans are still paying reparations to Israel. Wil
That be our future? Will Canadians be forced to carry the shame of a genocide for decades the way Germans do today?
The U.S. is wrong. The UK is wrong. Canada is wrong. Israel’s assaults on Palestinians, continuous since even before Israel formed (by Zionists and the British army) are wrong.
You are not listening to your people: we know what Israel is doing is wrong: the facts are well documented and becoming more well known despite the smoke screen of propaganda and complicity of mainstream media. You’re not doing enough.
Indeed, well said. The decision of an arms export embargo must not be premised on the technical consideration of having met a humanitarion catastrophy threshold, but a moral impunction that we shall not encourage an ally with trade of weapons when they are acting unilaterally and belligerantly in violation of international norms. It makes us complicit as a nation in war crimes. I have called several members of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs on GAC to drive this common sense into them. Hope Canada acknowledges the seriousness its arms exports to Israel.
You have not mentioned the illegality of the occupation of Palestinian Territories (Gaza, West Bank and East Jerusalem). You posted this article on Feb 17, and made no mention of the ICJ hearings held on Feb 19-26 which Canada made a no-show at, but stood by their July 2023 submission supporting Israel by requesting that the court not render an Advisory Opinion. The legal arguments made by Canada are weak and transparent in their support of Israel, the UK and the U.S. We may consider those countries our allies, but our allies are wrong.
Months and months from now, the ICJ will respond to last week’s hearings, and years from now they’ll rule on South Africa’s case against Israel for genocide. Must you wait until then to take a considered view? Dare you estimate how many Palestinians will die between now and then?
While your article appears like you have been considered and fair, I have to say that in my view it is neither, or otherwise you are simply unaware of many important realities, history and legal facts. Which is it?
So what can you do? Here are some ideas:
1. Identify and speak of Israel as illegally occupying Gaza, West Bank and East Jerusalem. Call for Canadian sanctions on them (of all kinds, not just arms) for breaking all relevant UN resolutions and international law.
2. Acknowledge that under international law, an occupying country does NOT have the right of self defence on occupied territories. And acknowledge that the occupied people have the right of armed resistance in the occupied territories. Israel only has the right to self defence in Israel, not in Gaza, West Bank or East Jerusalem under international law.
3. Start enforcing real consequences on a country that cannot stop itself from its aggression on the Palestinian people that has been ongoing long before Israel was even established. This means Sam ruins of all kinds available, as has already been called for in the UN.
4. Identify Israel as a terrorist state due to their use of collective punishment on a the civilian population to force their government to do what Israel wants them to do. This is the very definition of terrorism.
5. Identify Israel as an apartheid state. Two tiers of rights for peoples based on ethnicity and religion is apartheid.
6. Call for a permanent cease fire, not just pauses.
7. Call for the release of hostages: Palestinian hostages, not just Israeli ones I.e. the thousands of Palestinian hostages in Israeli prisons before and after Oct 7th including women and children held for « administrative detention » indefinitely, without ever being charged or told why they have been detained.
8. Acknowledge that the millions of people in Gaza that are unable to flee to safety anywhere are also hostages: they have been locked in their prison since 2007, at the mercy of the ruthless IDF and under a blockade of food, water, electricity, fuel, with Israeli controls on all goods and people in and out of their prison.
I think that your attempt to have a balanced politik approach is not good enough. Your conscience should not be eased. Consider the gravity of the situation, and see its parallel to WW2. Nobody wanted to acknowledge the reality of the threat of Hitler before WW2…Britain didn’t want to become involved. In the end they had to, because it was clear he would had to be stopped. Today, it’s Israel who needs to be stopped.
I am well aware that the U.S. and UK are with Israel. They created Israel. Israel is fighting their wars, keeping their control over the Middle East which was the plan since WW1: historical documents are clear on that. But Canada is not them.
What are we if we cower behind a bully?
Have you considered the penalties Canadians may pay in reparations in the future due to complicity in Genocide and war crimes? Germans are still paying reparations to Israel. Wil
That be our future? Will Canadians be forced to carry the shame of a genocide for decades the way Germans do today?
The U.S. is wrong. The UK is wrong. Canada is wrong. Israel’s assaults on Palestinians, continuous since even before Israel formed (by Zionists and the British army) are wrong.
You are not listening to your people: we know what Israel is doing is wrong: the facts are well documented and becoming more well known despite the smoke screen of propaganda and complicity of mainstream media. You’re not doing enough.
If you don’t know what else to do, think harder.
Thank you for your well considered suggestions for concrete action by Canada that could stop the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Indeed, well said. The decision of an arms export embargo must not be premised on the technical consideration of having met a humanitarion catastrophy threshold, but a moral impunction that we shall not encourage an ally with trade of weapons when they are acting unilaterally and belligerantly in violation of international norms. It makes us complicit as a nation in war crimes. I have called several members of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs on GAC to drive this common sense into them. Hope Canada acknowledges the seriousness its arms exports to Israel.