Canada must demand a ceasefire in Gaza to prevent further bloodshed: CJPME

Montreal, October 7, 2023 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is urging the Canadian government to support calls for a ceasefire and a negotiated resolution following today’s escalation of violence between Hamas and Israel. Hamas launched an unprecedented surprise attack on Israel early this morning (“Operation Al-Aqsa Flood”), firing 5,000 rockets and using ground fighters to capture areas in Israel, killing at least 40 people and injuring hundreds. In response, Israel appears to be using this crisis as a pretext to escalate its devastating violence on the people of the occupied and besieged Gaza Strip, with retaliatory airstrikes already killing more than 198 and injuring at least 1000. CJPME calls on the international community to address the root cause of this escalation by demanding an end to Israel’s blockade and apartheid policies, which have made a violent response inevitable. Continue reading

 

Products from Occupied Palestine Must be Properly Labelled: CJPME Submission to CFIA

Montreal, October 5, 2023 — Products originating in the occupied Palestinian territories (OPT) must be properly labelled as such, argued Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) in a submission to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA). CJPME submitted its opinion as part of the CFIA’s public consultation into the labelling of “food products from contested territories,” which was launched to resolve the problem of ‘Product of Israel’ labels on goods from illegal Israeli settlements. CJPME argues that any future labels must clearly indicate that such goods are from territories which are occupied, and distinguish between trade with the occupying power and the occupied population Continue reading

 

Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement bolsters Israel’s West Bank annexation attempts: CJPME report

Montreal, September 27, 2023 — A new report by Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) warns that Canada’s trade policy with Israel operates as if Israel had already annexed the occupied Palestinian territories (OPT), bolstering Israel’s attempts to annex the territory. Titled “Annexing Palestine Through Trade,” the report shows that through the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement (CIFTA), Canada has been treating all trade with the OPT as if it were “Israeli,” thus violating international law and rewarding Israel’s illegal settlement activity. CJPME’s report demonstrates that CIFTA’s benefits to Palestinians are grossly outweighed by its harms, and urges that the trade deal be suspended until Israel complies with international law. Continue reading

 

Survey: Canadians view Israel as apartheid, not a vibrant democracy

Montreal, September 6, 2023 — “Apartheid” is the most popular choice for how Canadians say that they view Israel, according to a new survey of Canadian public opinion conducted by EKOS Research Associates and sponsored by Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME). Similarly, the survey found that only a small minority of Canadians view Israel as a “vibrant democracy.” CJPME believes that these findings pose a disturbing challenge to Canada’s warm relationship with Israel, which is premised on the claim that Canada and Israel share “democratic values.” Continue reading

 

Canada’s Request for ICJ to Drop Advisory Opinion on Israeli Annexation is Outrageous: CJPME

Montreal, August 15, 2023 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is alarmed to learn that the Canadian government has asked the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to drop an advisory opinion on the illegality of Israel’s occupation and annexation. Last December, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) voted 87-26 to request that the ICJ render an advisory opinion on the legal consequences of Israel’s “prolonged occupation, settlement and annexation” of Palestinian territory, with Canada voting in the minority against the resolution. In a letter dated July 14, 2023, which was obtained by CJPME, Canada has now formally asked the ICJ to “decline the request” from the UNGA. Continue reading

 

Quebeckers oppose Quebec trade office in Apartheid Israel

Montreal, August 14, 2023 — Quebeckers are expressing their outrage over a recent announcement that the Quebec government will be opening a trade office in Israel, despite credible accusations that the Israeli government is imposing a regime of apartheid on Palestinians. Quebec Minister of International Relations and La Francophonie, Martine Biron, made the announcement on August 3 that Quebec would be opening an office in Tel Aviv to build trade relations with Israel, and that it would cost half a million dollars in its first year. Montreal-based Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is urging the Quebec government to reverse its decision to open a trade office, which suggests that the province is indifferent to Israel’s abysmal human rights record. Continue reading

 

Quebec office in Tel Aviv undermines Palestinian self-determination

Montreal, August 3, 2023 - CJPME Statement: Today’s announcement that Quebec will establish an office in Tel Aviv is deeply out of touch with events on the ground and significantly undermines Quebec’s stated support for Palestinian self-determination. Continue reading

 

CJPME welcomes Trudeau comment that Netanyahu visit “not on the table,” but urges wider boycott

Montreal, July 21, 2023 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) welcomes a recent comment from Prime Minister Trudeau that an invitation for Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu is “not on the table right now.” The comments came one day after the postponement of a planned phone call between Trudeau and Netanyahu, which has not yet been rescheduled. CJPME reiterates its call for Canadian politicians to stand up for Palestinian human rights by boycotting Israel’s dangerous and extremist government, and urges Trudeau to cancel his upcoming call with Netanyahu. Continue reading

 

CJPME: Israel’s Attack on Jenin Refugee Camp Amounts to Collective Punishment, a War Crime

Montreal, July 6, 2023 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is calling on Canada to implement a series of concrete measures in response to Israel’s devastating and vindictive acts of collective punishment against the Jenin refugee camp earlier this week. Scenes from the camp following Israel’s violent invasion and siege suggest that Israel’s intent was to destroy the civilian public infrastructure of the camp on a colossal scale. CJPME warns that Israel’s withdrawal from the camp therefore does not signify the end of the crisis for residents, as a humanitarian catastrophe remains. CJPME notes that under the Rome Statute, “extensive destruction and appropriation of property, not justified by military necessity and carried out unlawfully and wantonly,” is a grave breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention, and thus amounts to a war crime.  Continue reading

 

CJPME Congratulates Anglican and Evangelical Lutheran Churches for Adopting Resolution on Palestine and Israel

Montreal, July 6, 2023 - CJPME has sent a letter to the Anglican Church of Canada (ACC) and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC) to congratulate them for adopting a principled resolution in support of Palestinian human rights. Read the letter text below, or click here to download a PDF. Continue reading