Montreal, May 20, 2025 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) welcomes the joint statement by Canada, the United Kingdom and France threatening “concrete actions” in response to Israel’s genocide in Gaza. For the first time, the three leaders described Israel’s latest military escalation in Gaza as “wholly disproportionate,” warned that denying aid to Gaza “risks” breaching international law, and pledged that they “will not stand by while the Netanyahu Government pursues these egregious actions.” CJPME urges Prime Minister Mark Carney to follow through with immediate sanctions, noting that the threshold for action has long been surpassed. Continue reading

Montreal, May 15, 2025 - Today marks 77 years since the Nakba, which refers to the expulsion, destruction, and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians associated with the creation of Israel in 1948. While we advocate for the colonization of Palestine to be recognized by our leaders and institutions in Canada as an injustice, we are also witnessing the Nakba continue — and even accelerate — in Israel’s genocide in the occupied Gaza Strip and West Bank. Continue reading

Montreal, May 9, 2025 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is urging the Prime Minister Carney to firmly reject dangerous plans by the United States and Israel to take over the humanitarian aid system in Gaza. All UN agencies and NGO partners have opposed US President Trump’s proposal to shut down the UN system and consolidate control over aid distribution, as it contradicts humanitarian principles and weaponizes aid. CJPME urges Prime Minister Carney to reject any requests from Trump or Netanyahu to fund this cynical aid scheme, and immediately impose long overdue sanctions on Israel’s leadership to halt its genocidal starvation and dispossession policies in Gaza. Continue reading

Montreal, April 9, 2025 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is urging McGill University to reverse its decision to terminate its Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU). CJPME believes that this far-reaching decision would not only undermine students’ freedom of speech and assembly, but would also send a chilling message that students can expect severe consequences for advocating for Palestinian human rights and liberation—antithetical to the values of academic freedom and democratic engagement. Continue reading

Montreal, March 28, 2025 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is outraged to learn that Canada has approved a contract for the export of artillery propellants to the Israeli military via the United States, despite an explicit commitment from Foreign Affairs Minister Joly that she would stop such transfers. CJPME urges Prime Minister Carney to block this transfer of explosive artillery fuel and finally implement a full two-way arms embargo on Israel without any loopholes. Continue reading

Montreal, March 18, 2025 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is celebrating a major victory for media accountability after the National NewsMedia Council (NNC) ruled that the Toronto Sun published inaccurate and misleading claims about pro-Palestinian protesters. CJPME’s Media Accountability Project (MAP) had filed a complaint with the NNC about a column published on October 5, 2024 in which author Brian Lilley had smeared thousands of peaceful protesters as “the equivalent of Nazis” and “terror supporters.” The NCC sided with CJPME in concluding that the Toronto Sun had misrepresented the protests in violation of journalistic standards. Continue reading

Montreal, March 18, 2025 — As Israel renews deadly airstrikes on Gaza, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is once again calling on the Canadian government to cut all ties with the F-35 fighter jet program and implement a full two-way arms embargo on Israel. Two weeks ago, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu refused to move to Stage 2 of the ceasefire deal and instead cut off the entry of food, medicine and humanitarian aid into Gaza as part of its “Hell Plan.” Overnight, Israel escalated its attacks with a series of airstrikes that killed over 400 Palestinians, including children. CJPME urges Canada to respond to Israeli aggression by closing off the remaining loopholes that allow Canadian weapons – including F-35 components – to reach Israel via the United States. Continue reading

– 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. Continue reading

Montreal, March 6, 2025 — 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. Continue reading

Montreal, March 4, 2025 — Liberal leadership candidate Chrystia Freeland has been awarded a failing grade for her dismal record on Palestinian human rights, according to Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME)’s Guide to the Liberal Leadership Candidates. Published today, CJPME’s guide features a comprehensive analysis of where each of the candidates stand on human rights in Palestine based on their voting records, social media, press statements, published interviews, leadership debates, and more. Perceived frontrunner Mark Carney also received poor marks for the lack of information about his views, sharing a grade of “D+” alongside former minister Karina Gould. At the top of the ranking, CJPME awarded Frank Baylis a “B-” as the candidate most likely to drive a positive change in Canada’s foreign policy. Continue reading