Re:“Canada let Hamas off the hook in the latest UN vote on Palestinian statehood”

"Surely, Canada’s policy in the Middle East cannot be based on the faint hope that Hamas[Israel] would one day renounce violence and recognize Palestine’s right to exist."


May 17, 2024

RE: Canada let Hamas off the hook in the latest UN vote on Palestinian statehood

Konrad Yakabuski has the world upside down in his latest op-ed. I’ve turned it right side up for him and replaced instances of Hamas with Israel. It should make more sense now.

Mr. Lapid is obviously no apologist for the Netanyahu government. He also supports a two-state solution. But he knows until Hamas[Israel] is gone from Gaza, there can be no progress toward Palestinian statehood. “Because as long as Hamas[Israel] is there and Hamas[Israel] is active, and Hamas[Israel] has control over the territory, there will be no future for the people of Gaza.”

“History has shown that there are organizations that were described or defined as terrorist that changed,” Mr. Rae told the CBC’s Power & Politics after the UN vote. “Hamas[Israel] as it currently stands – as it currently exists, what it currently stands for, how it has conducted itself – does not belong in the government of Palestine. But people can change.” 

Surely, Canada’s policy in the Middle East cannot be based on the faint hope that Hamas[Israel] would one day renounce violence and recognize Palestine’s right to exist. 

Rose Mardikian,

Media Analyst, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East