– FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE –

Montreal, March 10, 2025 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is encouraging incoming Prime Minister Mark Carney to pivot away from Justin Trudeau’s approach to Israel’s genocide in Gaza, and reorient Canadian policy around support for human rights and international law. Although CJPME’s initial assessment of Carney on this issue has not been positive, CJPME believes that Carney has an opportunity to take concrete and immediate steps to end Canada’s complicity in Israeli atrocities and ensure that our foreign policy consistently applies international law everywhere -- whether the United States likes it or not.

“Mark Carney is in a unique position to be able to immediately hit reset on Canada’s approach to Gaza, and finally impose measures to hold Israeli leaders accountable,” said Alex Paterson, Senior Director of Strategy and Parliamentary Affairs at CJPME. “Carney can immediately instruct his Ministers to impose a full arms embargo on Israel, end our participation in the complicit F-35 program, and impose meaningful sanctions on Israeli leaders accused of war crimes and acts of genocide. Carney will possess that power as soon as he takes office this week; the question is, does he have the moral courage to use it?”

Carney is taking over the Prime Minister’s office at a moment of intense threats and uncertainty facing the Palestinian people. Israel has renewed its genocidal siege on Gaza, using starvation as a weapon of war as part of its “Hell Plan,” and cutting off all remaining electricity. Meanwhile, Israel has forcibly displaced over 40,000 refugees in the West Bank and is taking steps to annex settlements near East Jerusalem. At the same time, Israel’s government and opposition leaders have welcomed US President Trump’s proposals to take over Gaza and forcibly expel the entire population, which would amount to blatant ethnic cleansing. Canada has not condemned these genocidal plans, but has only issued a mild warning about forcible displacement.

 “Carney is talking tough about dealing with the US, but his position on Palestine will show you whether this is just an act or not,” said Paterson. CJPME notes that Carney has expressed opposition to Trump’s plan for Gaza, but has not yet promised any policy measures to stop it from happening. “For years, Trudeau has stood in lockstep with the US in supporting Israel’s oppression of the Palestinian people, and has even continued to export arms to Israel amid a genocide. Will Carney actually stand up to Trump on Palestine, or will he maintain Canada’s complicity?”

During the Liberal leadership race, Carney largely steered clear of engaging with the substantive questions on Palestine by sticking to talking points about the two-state solution. CJPME has conducted a full analysis of Carney on the issue of Palestine and Israel, and largely found him to be a mystery box with no substantive record. CJPME believes that this may indicate that he is not interested in this issue and is more likely to maintain the status quo, while his few statements during the Gaza genocide suggest that he leans in a pro-Israel direction.

About CJPME – Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is a non-profit and secular organization bringing together men and women of all backgrounds who labour to see justice and peace take root again in the Middle East. Its mission is to empower decision-makers to view all sides with fairness and to promote the equitable and sustainable development of the region.

For more information, please contact Michael Bueckert, Acting President of CJPME: 613-315-7947 or [email protected].
Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East www.cjpme.org

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