Canada silent on Israel genocide court case, Liberal MPs split over what to do
Liberal members of Parliament are divided about the position Canada should take on South Africa's push to have Israel prosecuted for genocide for its war in Gaza, as the Trudeau government stays mum.
The International Court of Justice will start hearing a case Thursday in which South Africa argues that Israel's widespread bombardment of Gaza and siege on the Palestinians living there "are genocidal in character."
South Africa argued in its filing that Israel has expressed a "clear intent to destroy Palestinians in Gaza as a group" and says statements by Israeli officials are evidence of a genocidal intent. The application asks the top United Nations court to order Israel to halt its attacks.
Israel has responded "with disgust" to the allegations, saying they are groundless.
The Canadian government has not expressed a position on the case and Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly's office did not have an immediate response Wednesday when asked whether Canada will take a stance.
Canada has generally avoided bringing Israel to international tribunals, arguing those would undermine attempts to get Israelis and Palestinians to directly negotiate a lasting peace.
Ottawa raised that argument last July when it asked the ICJ to not proceed with providing an advisory opinion on the legality of Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories, despite the UN General Assembly passing a motion calling for the legal opinion.
The U.S. has dismissed South Africa's case as a "meritless" distraction, but France has said it will back whatever decision the court takes.
Liberal MP Salma Zahid wants her government to support South Africa's application, arguing that Canada must "give meaning" to its calls for all parties to respect international law.
She noted there are humanitarian agencies which say Israel's conduct is limiting access in Gaza to the necessities of life, and has caused mass displacement of Palestinians living there.
"These accusations deserve to be heard in the proper legal forum," Zahid wrote.
Liberal MPs Marco Mendicino and Anthony Housefather both argued the court application is "baseless and unconscionable" because Israel is trying to prevent Hamas militants from repeating their gruesome attack last October.
The latest conflict in Gaza began Oct. 7, when Hamas fighters breached border fences in southern Israel and raided multiple communities, killing 1,200 people and taking dozens of people hostage, including children.
Israel responded to the Oct. 7 attack with immediate force, including relentless rocket attacks, and cutting off the Gaza Strip from supplies including food, medicine and electricity. Israel's assault in Gaza has killed more than 23,200 Palestinians, roughly 1 per cent of the territory's population, according to the Health Ministry in Hamas-run Gaza. About two-thirds of the dead are women and children. The death toll does not distinguish between combatants and civilians.
Hamas freed more than 100 hostages during a temporary ceasefire at the end of November, which ended when Israel accused Hamas of firing a rocket and violating its agreement to release all the female hostages. Israel says it believes more than 100 hostages are still being held by Hamas in Gaza.
Mendicino and Housefather point to the viewpoint by retired Supreme Court justice Rosalie Abella, who wrote in a Globe and Mail op-ed this week that "this case represents an outrageous and cynical abuse of the principles underlying the international legal order that was set up after the Second World War."
Abella denounced "the perverse situation" where Hamas wants to commit genocide against Israel who is now defending itself against militant attacks as well as genocide allegations.
NDP foreign-affairs critic Heather McPherson wrote to Joly on Tuesday asking her "not to intervene in opposition to this case, and to support the decision of the court." She noted that was the position France has taken.
South Africa's high commissioner in Ottawa, Rieaz Shaik, is encouraging Canada to back the case, but said he had not met with Liberal MPs since his country filed its application on Dec. 29.
"South Africa has heard the unbearable cries of anguish of the innocent, from the killing fields of Gaza and broader Palestine," he told a virtual news conference midday Wednesday.
"We must act to bring this brutal, systematic and organized killing of Palestinian civilians (to) an immediate and urgent end. To do not to do so is to engage our shared humanity and to violate our deeply held values."
The Palestinian ambassador to Canada, Mona Abuamara, said the case could "break this victim syndrome that Israel is enforcing on everyone" in which she argues Israel evades international law by justifying its actions on security threats it faces. She believes Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories leads to an endless cycle of violence.
"What is happening in Gaza and West Bank including Jerusalem are not random, impromptu actions but systematic, incremental steps that fulfil an overall goal of creating a land without people," she said.
"Palestinian people are being dehumanized every single day, and that dehumanization has started long before Oct. 7," Abuamara said.
Guests at the panel noted that South Africa's submission "unequivocally condemns all violations of international law by all parties, including the direct targeting of Israeli civilians and other nationals and hostage-taking by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 10, 2024.
-- With files from The Associated Press
IN DEPTH
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
'Democracy requires constant vigilance' Trudeau testifies at inquiry into foreign election interference in Canada
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau testified Wednesday before the national public inquiry into foreign interference in Canada's electoral processes, following a day of testimony from top cabinet ministers about allegations of meddling in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections. Recap all the prime minister had to say.
As Poilievre sides with Smith on trans restrictions, former Conservative candidate says he's 'playing with fire'
Siding with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on her proposed restrictions on transgender youth, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre confirmed Wednesday that he is against trans and non-binary minors using puberty blockers.
Supports for passengers, farmers, artists: 7 bills from MPs and Senators to watch in 2024
When parliamentarians return to Ottawa in a few weeks to kick off the 2024 sitting, there are a few bills from MPs and senators that will be worth keeping an eye on, from a 'gutted' proposal to offer a carbon tax break to farmers, to an initiative aimed at improving Canada's DNA data bank.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
NEW This Canadian scientist combines passion for history, archeology and genetics to solve ancient and modern-day DNA puzzles
Turi King takes pride in her work solving ancient and modern-day DNA puzzles – including a centuries-old mystery involving an infamous British king.
Bathroom break nearly derails $22-million project at city council meeting
A brief break during Wednesday's city council meeting in Saskatoon nearly cost the city dearly.
Israeli strikes in central Gaza kill at least 11 as the U.S. pushes a ceasefire plan
Palestinian health officials said Israeli strikes killed 11 people overnight into Monday, including a woman and three children, in central Gaza.
Do this once a month and extend your life by up to 10 years. No gym required
Research shows that art experiences, whether as a maker or a beholder, transform our biology by rewiring our brains and triggering the release of neurochemicals, hormones and endorphins.
Mexico elects Claudia Sheinbaum as its first woman president
Mexico's projected presidential winner Claudia Sheinbaum will become the first woman president in the country's 200-year history.
Expect the cost of your airfare to continue to rise, an aviation trade group and industry heads warn
The cost of your next flight is likely to go up. That's the word from the International Air Transport Association, which held its annual meeting Monday in Dubai.
Oilers advance to Stanley Cup final by beating Stars in Game 6
The Edmonton Oilers rode their special teams and goaltender to victory on Sunday, beating the Dallas Stars 2-1 to win the National Hockey League's Western Conference and earn a berth in the Stanley Cup final against the Florida Panthers.
Toyota apologizes for cheating on vehicle testing and halts production of three models
Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda apologized Monday for massive cheating on certification tests for seven vehicle models as the automaker suspended production of three of them.
Mackenzie Hughes 'gutted' after falling short at RBC Canadian Open
Mackenzie Hughes had the dream scenario of winning the RBC Canadian Open in his hometown within reach but then it all slipped away.
Local Spotlight
107-year-old luxury rail car ready for visitors after major restoration
Car 14 is a luxury passenger car that once made regular runs from London to Port Stanley starting in 1917.
U of W Two-Spirit Archives aim to preserve history of a community 'erased' from heritage
A hefty donation by a renowned local activist to the University of Winnipeg has created what is believed to be the most comprehensive two-spirit archives in all of Canada.
'It really has brought a lot of joy': Family of baby foxes moves into Manitoba woman's yard
Leanne Van Bergen discovered a skulk of 10 baby foxes, and two mothers, had made themselves at home on her property in Beausejour.
81-year-old Waterloo, Ont. woman with paralysis, amputated leg lives out dream of riding horse again
An 81-year-old Waterloo, Ont. woman thought she’d never ride a horse again after a brain bleed led to severe physical complications.
Video shows driver in Toronto frantically getting out of car being pushed by truck
A CP24 camera caught the moment a driver frantically got out of her car as it was being dragged by a truck on Avenue Road Wednesday afternoon.
Prince Edward Island celebrates first-ever International Day of Potato
Prince Edward Island is celebrating its first-ever International Day of Potato on Thursday.
'Bigger and better and stronger than ever': Covered Bridge Chips president sets sights for late 2025 rebuild after fire
The president of Covered Bridge Chips in New Brunswick is hoping to have his factory rebuilt for late 2025 following a devastating fire last year.
Winnipeg high school helps lead ducks that nested in courtyard to water
Students and staff at Winnipeg’s Westwood Collegiate had a unique problem to solve this month; how do you lead ducks to water from the school’s courtyard when 12 of them can’t fly yet?
Questions and concerns remain after space junk lands in Saskatchewan
Debby Lorinczy remembers her father as an amazing person and as a man who also made an amazing discovery.