Honourable senators, I rise today to plainly say what few others appear willing to say: Jews are no longer safe in our country. It’s not that they feel unsafe; they are unsafe, and we, as politicians, are in no small part to blame.

Anti-Semitism and Jew hatred are now expressed openly, shamelessly and without restraint in Canada. It appears in our streets, on our campuses, on social media and even in the rhetoric of certain Western political leaders who — willingly or not — repeat Hamas talking points to attack Israel.

Recently, the Liberal government made the troubling decision to summon the Israeli ambassador not to express solidarity in the face of rising anti-Semitism, but to reprimand Israel after warning shots were fired in the vicinity of a diplomatic delegation that had veered off an agreed-upon path in a combat zone — a luxury not afforded to the more than 1,200 innocent Israelis murdered on October 7 and certainly not afforded to the two Israeli diplomatic staff who were murdered days later in Washington, D.C., by a pro-Hamas militant as they left a cultural event at the Jewish museum.

Meanwhile, here in Canada, Charlotte Kates, the international coordinator of a terrorist group, Samidoun, publicly justified the murder of those two young Israelis and brazenly insinuated that the same should happen here in Canada.

But we’re lecturing Israel.

We hear chants in our streets like “From the river to the sea” and calls for intifada. These are not harmless slogans.

What does our government do? We issue a joint statement with the U.K. and France condemning Israel’s military operation in Gaza. That statement was praised, honourable colleagues, by Hamas. This is now the second time that this terrorist organization has publicly expressed support for Canada’s position.

When a group responsible for the murder of over 1,200 civilians, including eight Canadians, applauds your foreign policy, you are definitely on the wrong side of history and on the wrong path.

Let’s be clear: This war could end tomorrow and millions of Palestinians could be liberated from the tyranny of Hamas if that terrorist group laid down its weapons, released the hostages and abandoned its mission of destruction. That’s the only statement Canada should be issuing and the only statement we should be supporting. Canada needs to stand unequivocally with its ally Israel not only to bring home the hostages, but also to make it clear that Jewish Canadians here in Canada should be safe in their homes and in their country.

Thank you.