Again, just want to give a shout-out to you
@Stucky and
@Haich for updating this thread. I've been incredibly busy with work, and at times, I honestly can't stomach reading some of the unimaginable barbaric cruelty that the IOF are inflicting on the Palestinians, as I have listened to a couple of videos and podcasts.
How Canada Still Arms Israel: with Rachel Small
"Earlier in August the US government announced that General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems Inc. a Quebec-based company is the principal contractor in the sale of 50,000 high explosive mortar cartridges and related equipment to the Israeli military, which is worth $61 million US (or about $83 million in Canadian dollars). This is part of a total of $20 billion US weapon export announced and approved by the US to Israel.
This catches Canada in several lies they have made since October. The lie of sending only “non-lethal” weapons. The lie that the Trudeau government stopped all arms exports to Israel earlier this year. As it turns out they do not need export permits nor approvals to send weapons to the US, which in turn sends them to the Israeli military."
(source)
Sharing the update:
"Canada is starting to move closer to an arms embargo on Israel. On Tuesday, Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly announced that she has taken further action to limit Canadian weapons sales to Israel. She claimed that Canada has suspended about 30 existing permits for weapons to Israel, and that the government is opposed to the deal for 50,000 Quebec-made “highly explosive” mortars to be sent to the Israeli military via the United States.
This is a huge step forward that wouldn’t have been possible without pressure from CJPME, the Arms Embargo Now network, and all our friends in the Palestine solidarity movement – including the tens of thousands of you who supported our campaigns!
As encouraging as it appears, however, Joly’s statement raises several other questions, demonstrating that much more needs to be done to achieve a full arms embargo on Israel. We look at some of the key issues below.
Will Canada block the shipment of mortars through the United States?
One month ago we learned that the United States was planning to obtain 50,000 highly explosive mortars from Quebec-based company General Dynamics and transfer them to the Israeli military, as part of the $20B arms package approved by Congress. In doing so, the arms company is taking advantage of a loophole that allows Canadian-built weapons to go through the US unreported and unregulated, without any human rights assessment.
CJPME, Independent Jewish Voices Canada and World Beyond War initially raised the alarm with a joint statement calling on Minister Joly to block the shipment, and a CJPME campaign prompted over 13,500 emails urging her to do the same. This demand was later echoed by the NDP, the Green Party, and many Canadian humanitarian organizations.
On Tuesday, Joly finally spoke about the deal with General Dynamics, saying “We will not have any form of arms or parts of arms be sent to Gaza. Period.” She added that “The position of the government [on the deal] is clear, and we’re in contact with General Dynamics.” While this is certainly a strong-sounding statement, she did not actually promise that Canada would act to block the sale from going through, or that Canada would prevent the mortars from crossing the border. Expressing opposition is simply not enough: Joly needs to promise that she will not allow this ammunition to reach Gaza. She needs to state which policy mechanism she will use to cancel the sale.
Finally, while Joly appears to be raising the issue of this specific arms deal, we need to see Canada take action against the “US loophole” overall and block the transfer of all weapons to Israel. Joly said that “We will not have any form of arms or parts of arms be sent to Gaza” and that it is “irrelevant” to her whether these are sent directly to Israel or transferred through the US. CJPME and its allies and supporters must force her to be accountable to this principle across the board. For example, Minister Joly must block parts of the F-35 fighter jets and Apache helicopters, both of which are assembled in the US, sold to Israel, and used to kill Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.
Which 30 arms permits to Israel have been suspended?
Since January, Joly claims to have paused the approval of all new arms export permits to Israel. However, as we pointed out, this does nothing to address the hundreds of existing permits that were already approved before the pause came into effect. As of August, nearly $95m of military goods were approved to ship to Israel by the end of 2025.
Joly’s recent decision to suspend about 30 permits may indicate that the government is starting to respond to civil society pressure. However, this certainly represents a small fraction of the existing permits that are still active. Moreover, we don’t know what these permits were for, how the decision was made, or if they will be completely cancelled – and Joly has refused to provide these details. In other words, we need to see a lot more evidence.
Also to note: A suspended permit can be reactivated at any time by the Minister. So Joly’s decision can be overturned in a wink. We must not let this happen.
Canada is playing games with the permit process, picking and choosing at whim which weapons to block and which to approve, while leaving the public in the dark. Ultimately, there is no such thing as “safe” weapons exports when it comes to arming a state that is committing genocide and illegal occupation. We must continue to push for an end to all Canada-Israel military trade, period, through the imposition of a concrete embargo. We have done it for Iran, Russia, and China, and we can certainly also do it for Israel.
What about Canadian arms used in the rest of Palestine?
Joly’s statement was unusually strong in asserting that Canada “will not have any form of arms or parts of arms be sent to Gaza. Period.” For the past year we have been calling on Canada to ensure that Canadian weapons are not being used by Israel to commit genocide.
However, by specifying only “Gaza,” Joly has opened the door to the possibility that Canada is fine with weapons being used in the occupied West Bank, where Israel has launched the largest military invasion in 20 years and is killing Palestinian children at a rate of one child every two days. Moreover, by selling arms to Israel that could be used in the West Bank, Canada is helping Israel maintain its illegal military occupation of Palestine, violating its obligations as described by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in its recent advisory opinion.
Clearly, the risk that Canadian weapons could violate human rights and international law is not limited to Gaza. Canada must cut off all arms exports to Israel, period. This is necessary to ensure that Canada is not contributing to Israel’s illegal occupation, apartheid, or genocide. The bar for limiting arms exports must be lower than cases of genocide.
What’s next with the campaign for a two-way arms embargo on Israel?
Joly’s latest actions appear to be a positive step forward and a result of significant political pressure. Nonetheless, Joly has left open significant loopholes that continue to allow Canadian weapons and military technology to be sent to Israel. For this reason, CJPME has been a central actor in the Arms Embargo Now network for a comprehensive two-way arms embargo. To be effective, this embargo should be imposed by the government using Canada’s Special Economic Measures Act. Over 46 Members of Parliament have already signed the statement in support of our demand. CJPME and its partners will continue to push to ensure that Canada ends its complicity in Israel’s genocide, occupation, and apartheid against the Palestinian people."
While I agree with CJPME and the comments on Instagram, I thought I'd post Mélanie making the statement in case there's anyone who thinks she's sincere:
http://instagr.am/p/C_wL-9mS3yp/
