In a public interview last April in Toronto, famed Israeli author David Grossman (r.) lamented to CBC’s Michael Enright: “Israel is a fortress, but not yet a home”. A Palestinian Canadian, whose parents were expelled from Mandate Palestine in 1948, suggests that Jews in Israel can only feel at “home” when Israel acknowledges the refugees’ tragedy it created in 1947/48 and accepts equality. Read more… (more…)
Ahmed Alnaouq (l.) is CTIP’s correspondent in Gaza. He and Rana Shubair (r.) are active in a small NGO which helps young Palestinians in Gaza to electronically “leap over” the punishing Israeli blockade to contact the outside world. Ahmed appeals to Canadians for help – both financial and editorial – so they can share their stories with you. Read his appeal…
In diplomacy, words matter. After saying for years that Canada was an “ally” of Israel, that terminology was quietly dropped last month. We now say Canada is a “friend of Israel, and a friend to the Palestinian people”. That sounds balanced. CTIP’s research department has discovered some of the ways Canada puts that apparently “balanced” statement into practice. Read more…
While in Gaza recently, I spent a half a day doing an English class with about 20 young Palestinian women enrolled in a secretarial science course offered by the Near East Council of Churches – DSPR/Gaza. It was a great opportunity for me to have an informal and frank talk about their lives and hopes for the future. After the class, I got a poignant letter of thanks from their teacher. You might be interested in what she said… (more…)
For weeks, Prime Minister Trudeau maintained silence on the rising number of deaths of unarmed Palestinian protesters in Gaza despite increasing calls for him to say something. On May 16, he finally spoke out calling for an independent investigation. Immediately, he was attacked by the Israel lobby which wants to avoid an investigation and instead just blame Hamas. It’s now a political tug of war. Read more. (more…)
Canada Talks Israel/Palestine 