"This land is not simply a place where 2 million Palestinians live. It is land on which Israel is explicitly forbidden from settling parts of their population. All settlements and outposts are considered illegal under international law."
March 08, 2024
To:
Sabrina Jonas, Reporter, CBC News
Isaac Olson, Reporter, CBC News
Nancy Waugh, Managing Editor, CBC News
Dear Sabrina Jonas and Isaac Olson,
I am writing on behalf of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East to express concern regarding a recent article titled “Quebec court temporarily bans protests near several Jewish institutions as groups clash,” published on March 6 on CBC News.
You write that the real estate event that was being protested marketed property “in the West Bank, where over two million Palestinians live under Israel’s military occupation, according to the United Nations.” This land is not simply a place where 2 million Palestinians live. It is land on which Israel is explicitly forbidden from settling parts of their population. All settlements and outposts are considered illegal under international law. The occupying power, Israel, is not legally permitted to transfer its population to the area it occupies, the West Bank. To maintain journalistic standards of accuracy, I recommend that you clearly refer to Israeli settlements as illegal.
While I appreciated Sarah Boivin’s testimony regarding the rally on Tuesday evening and her hope that the distinction between Zionism and Judaism becomes more clear, I’d hope that Palestinians were also contacted to comment. In the case that they were contacted but did not respond or did not make the deadline, this should be made clear to the readers.
Thank you for making these edits promptly.
Rose Mardikian,
Media Analyst, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East