After a motion calling for Canada to recognize a Palestinian state was drastically softened to instead call for a negotiated two-state solution it passed in parliament on Monday.
The New Democratic Party (NDP) motion sponsored by its leader Jagmeet Singh originally called on the government to "officially recognize the State of Palestine and maintain Canada’s recognition of Israel’s right to exist and to live in peace with its neighbours."
The motion was changed after hours of debate to call for Canada to "work with international partners to actively pursue the goal of a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East, including towards the establishment of the state of Palestine as part of a negotiated two state solution, and maintain Canada's position that Israel has a right to exist in peace and security with its neighbors."
After the Liberal Party introduced sweeping amendments approved by the NDP, Conservative Party members demanded that a new debate be held on another day since the changes were so substantial. The Bloc Québécois was also angered by the lack of a French translation of the new version of the motion.
During the initial debate, the Green Party and Bloc Québécois said that they would support the NDP opposition motion, and the Conservative Party said that it would not support the non-binding resolution. The ruling Liberal Party, which was largely represented in the House debate by Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly, was evasive about whether it would support the motion, but indicated that it believed that the pursuit of a Palestinian state had to be coupled with negotiations in the Middle East.
"A two-state solution requires the recognition of two states," said NDP Edmonton Strathcona MP Heather McPherson, who led the push for the motion in the debate.
McPherson said that the Palestinians needed a state, and that recognizing the polity would restart the two-state solution peace process. She said that this was necessary in the face of mass Palestinian casualties and a deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza. McPherson said that the motion was a framework for peace and justice for both Israeli and Palestinians, and that the end of an occupation in the West Bank would lead to long term security for Israel.
Calls to refund the controversial UN org.
The NDP MP blamed the current dynamic on Israel, claiming that while Canadians were horrified by Hamas's October 7 Massacre, they also rejected how "Netanyahu's extremist government responded." McPherson said that the Levant was moving away from two-states, blaming Netanyahu for not accepting a the solution and allowing the building of settlements in the West Bank.
Joly said that the Palestinians needed a state, and supported urgent humanitarian ceasefire needed, but said that a hostage deal was needed and to be conjoined with negotiated peace in the Middle East.
"We can't change foreign policy based on an opposition motion," said Joly.
Wellington—Halton Hills and Conservative Shadow Foreign Minister Michael Chong said declaring a two state solution did not create one. Conservative Thornhill MP Melissa Lantsman accused the government of being held captive by the NDP, and said that the "motion is about rewarding Hamas for a massacre."
McPherson said that if a Palestinian state was recognized, then the International Criminal Court would have jurisdiction over both Israel and Hamas.
The NDP motion called to support prosecution of crimes and violations of international law in the Levant, in cooperation with the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the International Criminal Court (ICC). This referenced to the ICJ's January 26 measures in response to South Africa's genocide accusations against Israel, but the new version separated the two ideas. The late evening amendments also reiterated the Jewish state's right to defend itself, but said in doing so Israel must respect International Humanitarian law.
McPherson said that the Canadian government was losing credibility by hindering South Africa's legal actions, and was allowing the international order by not calling for an immediate ceasefire. Joly said that the government advocated for a humanitarian ceasefire to allow for the entry of aid. Lantsman said that a true ceasefire motion would call for Hamas to surrender and release hostages, thereby ending the war. The original NDP motion called for an immediate ceasefire and the release of Hamas's hostages, but the amendment said that the terrorist organization must also lay down its arms.
The amended motion still called for the restoration of funding of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), but included more stringent language on investigations into the agency and measures for its governance.
Joly said in the debate that Canada had resumed funding of UNRWA while working to reform the agency, which has been accused of harboring extremists and employing terrorists. Chong said that there were other options for supplying Gazans with aid than supporting an organization with alleged ties to terrorist organizations.
Joly also assured the plenum that the government was not issuing permits for military equipment, and had not done so since October 7. McPherson called to stop arms trade with Israel, and accused "extremists ministers" in Netanyahu's government for encouraging human rights abuses such as National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Givr arming "extremist settlers."
Minimal changes were made to the NDP motion's calls to "Suspend all trade in military goods and technology with Israel and increase efforts to stop the illegal trade of arms, including to Hamas," instead altering the beginning to ask the government to "cease the furth authorization and transfer of arms export to Israel to ensure compliance with Canada's arms export regime."
The original motion advocated for the government to sanction certain Israelis and boycott of defense trade with Jerusalem, but language was lightened.
"Ban extremist settlers from Canada, impose sanctions on Israeli officials who incite genocide, and maintain sanctions on Hamas leaders," was changed to "sanction extremist settlers and mantain sanctions on Hamas leaders."
McPherson accused Israel of war crimes such as torturing hospital staff. The motion claimed that Gaza was "the most dangerous place in the world to be a child." The NDP consequently sought for Canada to demand unhindered humanitarian access to Gaza and more Palestinians the ability to come to Canada on temporary visas.
Chong said that Hamas had started the war, and bore responsibility for its continuance, and reminded the House of the atrocities committed by the terrorist organization. The Conservative blasted the "antisemitic approach" in which the Jewish state was singled out for condemnation. Liberal Party MP Chandra Arya compared the Israeli government to Hamas, and claimed that the IDF was engaging in genocidal action. NDP MP Leah Gazan claimed that Israel was engaging in ethnic cleansing and compared her family's experiences with the Holocaust to what she said was genocide in Gaza.
"I can't discriminate between who's suffering was worse, was it the Holocaust, or what we are seeing again," said Gazan, the daughter of a Holocaust survivor.
Joly said that the government was concerned about a planned IDF invasion of the Hamas stronghold of Rafah, and said that Canadians had lost family in both Israel and Gaza, and at home both Jewish and Muslim Canadians had suffered hate, in the form of rising antisemitism and Islamophobia.
Liberal Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill MP Leah Taylor Roy questioned how the motion would end suffering and not just cause more division. Tensions rose when McPherson alleged that Roy was in favor of the killing of children.
On Monday, the Israeli ambassador to Canada denounced the motion hours before the debate.
“The one-sided recognition of a Palestinian state rewards Hamas – a listed terrorist organization by the Government of Canada – for its sadistic attack on October 7 which was perpetrated with the intention of annihilating the State of Israel. Empowering terrorists will only evoke more bloodshed and jeopardize any peaceful resolution to the conflict," Israeli Ambassador to Canada Iddo Moed said in a statement.
Defense Minister Benny Gantz said on Monday that he spoke with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau ahead of the vote and cautioned him that unilateral action "is counter-productive to the mutual goal of long-term regional security and stability and would ultimately reward terrorism."
The United Jewish Appeal Federation of Greater Toronto said that the text was disturbing, calling for an arms embargo on Israel and affirming funding of UNRWA disputing its dubious involvement in the conflict
The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) was angered by the passage of the amended motion. CIJA President and CEO Shimon Koffler Fogel said that while the motion did not call for recognition of a Palestinian state, Trudeau demonstrated a failure of leadership and that he was beholden to political fringes. Ahead of the vote, CIJA launched a letter campaign to MPs warning that "This motion will not bring peace and stability now, not for Israel and not for the Palestinians."
Singh pushed his own letter campaign to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Saturday.
"For five months, we have watched the horror unfold in Gaza and in Israel. We grieve with two people utterly traumatized by violence, death, and terror. And we are outraged by Canada’s failure to take actions to try to stop it," said the campaign letter.