Honourable senators, on June 11, 2025, a group of nine humanitarian organizations briefed senators on the plight of children in Ukraine and Gaza, and they pointed to the vast discrepancy in Canada’s response to the two crises. They urged senators to do more to draw attention to atrocities in Palestine and to encourage the Canadian government to take stronger action in support of Palestinian children.

Accordingly, a group of senators will be issuing a public statement this afternoon to express our concern about the extreme humanitarian crisis in Palestine, the disregard for international law by the State of Israel and the legal risk that Canada faces in failing to act in the face of crimes against humanity.

The facts on the ground are horrific. According to UNICEF, more than 50,000 Palestinian children have been killed or injured by Israeli forces since October 2023. A study by Oxfam concludes that more women and children have been killed in Gaza by the Israeli military over the past year than the equivalent period of any other conflict over the last 20 years. Specifically, 80% of Gaza’s infrastructure has been destroyed.

Since the January 2024 International Court of Justice, or ICJ, statement on the plausibility of the claim of genocide by Israel in Gaza, Israel’s assault on the occupied territory has only become more deadly. By any measure, Israel has not complied with the ICJ’s order that Israel’s court must take measures to prevent genocidal acts and incitement to genocide and to ensure humanitarian aid reaches Gaza.

For that matter, Canada and many of its allies have so far failed in their responsibility to act in the face of gross violations of international humanitarian law. We applaud Canada’s recent statements condemning Israel for the denial of humanitarian assistance to Gaza, as well as the imposition of sanctions against two Israeli ministers and our vote in the UN on the protection of civilians.

However, these actions are not enough. The statement calls on Canada to do more, specifically to protect and fund humanitarian relief in Gaza, impose a two-way arms embargo in Israel, end Canadian involvement in illegal Israeli settlements, address anti‑Palestinian racism, protect freedom of expression in Palestine, recognize the State of Palestine and review the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement, or CIFTA.

These actions constitute a minimalist set of responses to a crisis that is existential for Palestinians and corrosive to any sense of justice and humanity. For Canada, there’s the added risk of reputational damage at a time when we are loudly trumpeting the importance of international rules-based order and our commitment to uphold it.

If anyone else is interested in signing on, please contact my office. Thank you.