Montreal, August 18, 2022 - Below is a letter to Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hon. Mélanie Joly, urging her to take action and condemn Israel's latest attack on six leading Palestinian NGOs, whose offices were raided and shut down early this morning. Click here to download the PDF version. 

Montreal, August 8, 2022 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is demanding that the Canadian government holds Israeli officials accountable for its unprovoked and aggressive war against Gaza this weekend, which killed at least 44 Palestinians. Canada has not commented on Israel’s actions except to support Israel’s right to security, ignoring Israel’s pattern of deliberately targeting civilians in airstrikes – in what clearly amount to war crimes. CJPME urges Canada to end Israel’s impunity and deter future violence, including by ending military trade with Israel.

Montreal, June 7, 2022 — Israeli practices of occupation and discrimination against Palestinians are the “root causes” of last year’s violence, according to the first report by the United Nation’s Commission of Inquiry on Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory. The UN inquiry found that although both Israel and Palestinian authorities are responsible for human rights violations, Israel nonetheless holds far greater responsibility due to the asymmetrical nature of the occupation and other mechanisms of oppression. Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) urges the Canadian government to publicly welcome the findings of the inquiry and take steps to address the root causes of violence in Palestine.

Montreal, May 13, 2022  — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is calling on the Canadian government to condemn Israel over today’s attack on the funeral procession for Shireen Abu Akleh, an Al Jazeera journalist who was murdered by Israeli forces this week. During a funeral procession through occupied East Jerusalem today, Israeli forces invaded a hospital ground and attacked worshippers and pallbearers using batons and stun grenades, nearly causing the casket to fall to the ground. CJPME argues that Israel’s willingness to attack funeral mourners further demonstrates the need for an independent and international investigation that can hold Israeli officials accountable.

Montreal, May 4, 2022 - Below is a letter from CJPME to Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly challenging Canada's insufficient response to Israeli attacks on the Al-Aqsa mosque during Ramadan. The letter urges Joly to condemn the attacks, noting: "It is not too late to take a principle stand against Israeli attacks, so that these egregious acts are not repeated in the future." Click here to download a PDF of the letter.

Montreal, May 3, 2022 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) welcomes the debate within the Conservative Party of Canada over its position on Palestine and Israel, as demonstrated in recent remarks by party leadership candidate Patrick Brown. In an interview, Brown spoke out about Israeli violence against Palestinians, urged the party to take a more balanced foreign policy, and pledged that he would not move the embassy to Jerusalem. CJPME encourages all party candidates to reconsider existing party positions on this issue, and to push for a more responsible and human-rights focused foreign policy.

Montreal, April 20, 2022  — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is urging the Canadian government to condemn Israeli violence following a series of repeated raids on the Al-Aqsa mosque over the weekend. On Friday alone, Israeli forces injured at least 153 Palestinians, and videos have emerged showing the use of brutal violence against journalists and medics.  Yet in her response to the incident, Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly failed to directly criticize Israeli actions. More than 5,000 Canadians have written to Prime Minister Trudeau, urging him to respond by condemning Israeli violence and suspending military trade.

Montreal, April 13, 2022  — A new report published today by Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) raises serious human rights concerns posed by Canada’s arms exports to Israel. The report, titled Arming Apartheid: Canada’s Arms Exports to Israel, finds that Canada’s arms exports to Israel have been accelerating in recent years – reaching a 30-year high in 2020.  A significant percentage of Canada's arms exports to Israel are categorized as explosives and related components, and could include bombs, torpedoes, rockets, missiles, or other explosive devices. The report argues that Israel’s occupation, violence against civilians, and discriminatory policies – recently named as "apartheid" by Amnesty International – present a situation of extreme risk in which Canada’s arms exports could be implicated in violations of human rights and international law.

March 16, 2003 - US activist Rachel Corrie killed by Israeli bulldozer in Gaza

“This trial is an attempt to hold accountable not only those who failed to protect Rachel’s life but also the flawed system of military investigations which is neither impartial nor thorough. Under international law, Israel is obligated to take all feasible precautions to spare civilians from the dangers of military operations. The Israeli military flagrantly violated this principle in the killing of Rachel Corrie and it must be held accountable.” - Hussein Abu Hussein, Amnesty International

On this day in 2003, Rachel Corrie, a 23-year-old American student, was crushed and killed by an Israeli bulldozer while trying to prevent Israeli forces from demolishing a Palestinian home in Gaza. The cause of her death was immediately ruled out as an accident by Israeli authorities, who declined to undertake a full investigation. However, activists on the scene claimed that the incident was deliberate, and that Corrie was targeted for her solidarity work.

Corrie’s parents filed a civil lawsuit against Israeli authorities, charging them with negligence including the failure to conduct a credible investigation. This action was encouraged by the US State Department, which agreed that Israel’s investigation lacked transparency, but refused to launch its own inquiry. After an extended legal battle, the family’s lawsuit was rejected by the Israeli Supreme Court, which determined that the Israeli military cannot be held responsible for actions taken in a “closed military zone.”

Rachel Corrie’s continues to inspire activists in Palestine and around the world, as a symbol of non-violent resistance against Israeli impunity.

Read More:

The Rachel Corrie Foundation

Rachel Corrie's family loses wrongful death appeal in Israel's supreme court - Guardian

Montreal, November 9, 2021  — Legislators from Europe and North America came together recently to discuss the alarming recent threats to Palestinian civil society by the Israeli government, as well as initiatives that governments can take to ensure that public funding is not contributing to Israeli violations of human rights.