Israel’s devastating war on Gaza and the routine violence faced by Palestinians under military occupation have produced a catastrophic human toll, leading the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to order Israel to change its actions to prevent the “real and imminent risk” of genocide. The UN Human Rights Council and independent UN experts have called on all states to cease the sale and transfer of weapons to Israel immediately, or else risk complicity in war crimes or acts of genocide.

Although Parliament voted in March 2024 in support of ending arms transfers to Israel, Canada’s actions to date have been limited and insufficient, allowing weapons to continue to flow to Israel. Canada cannot continue to export arms to Israel and maintain a close working relationship with the Israeli military so long as it is involved in egregious violations of international humanitarian law. Canada must use its diplomatic and economic leverage vis-a-vis Israel’s defense and security establishment to bring an immediate end to the violence.

Montreal, February 10, 2024 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is incensed to learn that Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly has been deliberately misleading the Canadian public in claiming that Canada hasn’t sent weapons to Israel since Oct. 7, whereas new information reveals the opposite. On Feb. 7, Joly testified in a Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee Meeting that there were “no weapons sent [to Israel] under my watch in recent years, and none since Oct. 7.”  She continued, “We have sent non-lethal equipment including night vision goggles and protective gear.”  Nevertheless, earlier today, The Maple released information obtained through an ATIP request that indicated that the government had indeed approved permits for an extraordinary amount of military exports, which appear to include components of offensive weapons, to Israel.

For many years, the Canadian government has opposed all efforts by Palestinians to seek justice or relief in international forums. Canada’s diplomatic record is significantly tarnished by its one-sided support for Israel, which shields Israel from criticism and upholds impunity for violations of human rights international law. In this Position Paper, CJPME outlines a strategy for Canada that emphasizes the equitable application of international law and the need for accountability.

In this position paper, CJPME outlines the problem of Canada's accelerating arms exports to Israel at a time when Israeli practices are increasingly recognized as amounting to apartheid.

Photo credit: Hersi Osman / Association of Palestinian Arab Canadians.

This analysis explores the problem of Canada's arms exports to Israel, given that the latter stands accused of significant human rights abuses and of maintaining a regime of apartheid against Palestinians. The analysis examines Canada’s exports of military goods to Israel, including the current values and historical trends, and the potential risk that these exports may contribute to a deteriorating situation for human rights and international law. This analysis also reveals that there is precedent in recent Canadian history for restricting sales to Israel over concerns about human rights and military aggression.

Issued April 13, 2022

Montreal, January 24, 2018 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) urges the Canadian government to follow the example of the German government vis-à-vis relations with Saudi Arabia.  On January 19^th, the German government announced that it will be suspending all arms sales to Saudi Arabia, due to the Saudi documented human rights violations in Yemen. CJPME applauds Germany’s principled position, and calls on the Canadian government to likewise suspend all arms sales to the Saudis.

Montreal, October 17, 2017 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is proud to join Amnesty International and nine other civil society organizations* in critiquing the federal government’s proposed arms control legislation encapsulated in Bill C-47. Bill C-47 is a bill intended to enable Canada to accede to the international Arms Trade Treaty (ATT).  However, CJPME and its NGO partners consider C-47 to be highly flawed, such that Canada would not be fully compliant with the Treaty with the passage of C-47.  CJPME and its partners have issued a joint document highlighting their top 10 concerns with bill C-47.

CJPME Factsheet, published May 28, 2017: This factsheet explains what the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), and the Bill C-47 are. It addresses the reasons for Canada to sign the ATT, and why Bill C-47 is insufficient in controlling Canada’s arms sales to countries that fail to respect human rights, such as Saudi Arabia.