Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) deplores Canada’s half-hearted response to Israel’s cruel decision to abandon the ceasefire deal in Gaza and again use starvation as a weapon against Palestinians. Since the beginning of the staged ceasefire process, Israel has repeatedly violated the agreement by failing to allow tents, motorhomes, and other key materials into Gaza. On March 2nd, Netanyahu refused to move to the next stage of the ceasefire deal and once again blocked the entry of food, medicine and humanitarian aid into Gaza. This is part of a concerted effort – known as Israel’s “Hell Plan” and supported by US President Trump – to starve Palestinians into accepting a new watered-down agreement that does not guarantee Israel’s military withdrawal.
“Canada’s virtual silence in the face of mass starvation and ethnic cleansing has normalized these grave crimes, allowing Netanyahu to weaponize food as a way to bully Palestinians to get whatever he wants,” said Alex Paterson, CJPME’s Senior Director of Strategy and Parliamentary Affairs. “After learning that he can starve Palestinians to death and still depend on the support of the West, Netanyahu is returning to his genocidal campaign, eroding any gains that have been made during the ceasefire so far. Canada bears responsibility for this situation just as much as the United States,” added Paterson.
Canada has long backed Israel’s illegal use of collective punishment against Palestinian civilians for political ends, including the 18-year illegal blockade on Gaza since the last democratic elections when Hamas swept to power. Neither Prime Minister Trudeau nor Foreign Minister Joly have condemned Netanyahu’s most recent “Hell Plan,” with the only statement posted on the Foreign Affairs Twitter account saying that “Canada is concerned by Israel’s decision to halt aid to Gaza.”
“Trudeau has chosen to stand up against Trump when it comes to defending itself and Ukraine, but refuses to meaningfully defend Palestinians from the same annexationist threats. In his mind, Palestinians apparently don’t qualify for the same rights as Ukrainians, Israelis, and Canadians. This reflects a racist double standard in how both Trump and Trudeau alike view who truly belongs in the international community with inalienable human rights,” added Paterson.
Israel’s use of starvation as a weapon is a blatant violation of the provisional measures ordered by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to prevent genocide in Gaza. At the same time, the International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former defence minister Gallant, in part for committing the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare. The ICC found it reasonable to conclude that “both individuals intentionally and knowingly deprived the civilian population in Gaza of objects indispensable to their survival, including food, water, and medicine and medical supplies, as well as fuel and electricity.” Evoking the language of the crime of genocide, the ICC noted that this deprivation “created conditions of life calculated to bring about the destruction of part of the civilian population in Gaza, which resulted in the death of civilians, including children due to malnutrition and dehydration.”
The Trudeau government has so far evaded the question of whether it would enforce the ICC arrest warrants if Netanyahu came to Canadian soil, and has not publicly condemned the Trump administration’s sanctions against the ICC.
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