On June 1, over 50 former Canadian diplomats sent an open letter to Prime Minister Trudeau urging him to take a firmer stand on the issue of Israel’s proposed annexation of parts of the Occupied Palestinian Territory. A few days later, they were attacked by B’nai Brith Canada as “hypocritical, prejudiced and biased”. Read more…
(more…)
Holocaust Memorial ceremony in Ottawa on April 21st. Canadian Jews remain traumatized by the memory of the 6 million Jews who were deliberately murdered by Nazis. A recent survey of Canadian Jews by the Environics Institute shows the memory of the horrors of the Holocaust looms large in their attachment to the State of Israel. But it also showed some surprising differences between Canadian Jews and their American counterparts. Read more… (more…)
Up to the beginning of March, a debate had begun in various legislatures in Canada over anti-Semitism and how to fight it. The city councils of Montreal (above), Calgary and Vancouver discussed and declined to adopt a controversial motion which defines anti-Semitism in a way that is aimed to shield Israel from criticism. But those behind the motion have had some successes elsewhere. When the Corona virus crisis abates there is little doubt they will be back to continue their campaign. Why is the motion they are proposing so problematic, and what can be done about it? Read more…
Reverend Steve Berube of St-Paul’s United Church in Riverview, NB. has been in Palestine several times. In 2018, he frequently visited Ofer Prison where Palestinian children are tried in Israeli courts. He also visited hospitals where other children are being treated as a result of injuries inflicted by Israeli police or military forces. In a painful personal letter to Prime Minister Trudeau and Foreign Affairs Minister Champagne, he explains why boycotting Israel has nothing to do with anti-Semitism and everything to do with human rights. Read his letter (reproduced with permission) here. ….
Canada’s Governor General Julie Payette visited the Auschwitz Nazi concentration camp in Poland on the 75th anniversary of its liberation by Soviet forces. She also met with a small number of Holocaust survivors. The memory of the horrors of the Holocaust still haunts Jews around the world, including Canadian Jews. It also continues to fuel the idea of a “Jewish State” and its consequent dispossession and oppression of the Palestinians. “We are the victims of victims”, said Palestinian intellectual and author Edward Said. Read more…. (more…)
Canada Talks Israel/Palestine 