'Rewarding terrorism': Jewish Canadians slam 'arms embargo' on Israel

Israeli politicians and Jewish Canadian groups lashed out at Ottawa’s decision to halt arms sales to the Jewish state, with some fearing that it could cause a dangerous domino effect.

The move “sends a dangerous signal to the world that Canada is willing to sideline a democratic ally in favor of appeasing radical elements,” wrote MK Dan Illouz in a letter he sent to Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly.

“Your decision disregards the complex realities on the ground, equating a democratic state with terrorist groups and ignoring the severe threat opted by Hamas,” Illouz explained.

As the head of the Knesset’s Israel-Canada Parliamentary Friendship group, Illouz added that this step “undermines the longstanding friendship and alliance between Canada and Israel.”

He spoke out after Joly told The Toronto Star she planned to uphold a non-binding motion the Canadian Parliament passed on Monday night calling for a halt to arms exports to Israel in light of the Gaza war.

Her statement was confirmed on Tuesday by the Foreign Ministry Parliamentary Secretary Robert Oliphant.

“We will continue to advocate for a ceasefire, we will continue to not sell arms as we have promised and continue to make sure that we bring hostages back to their homes,” Oliphant told the parliament in Ottawa during a question and answer session.

Last week, Canada said it had paused non-lethal military exports to Israel since January and after Monday’s non-binding parliamentary motion on the matter, it has now declared that it would stop all such sales.

The motion passed on Monday night after heated debate in the House, and anger around last-minute amendments. The final version of the motion called on Ottawa to “cease the further authorization and transfer of arms exports to Israel to ensure compliance with Canada’s arms export regime and increase efforts to stop the illegal trade of arms, including to Hamas.”

The Toronto Star also reported that Defense Minister Bill Blair said that the details of the so-called embargo were still not in place, but it was a “going-forward” policy, and there were a number of pre-existing contracts with Israel.

Israel Katz: Canada 'undermines Israel’s right to self-defense'

Israel’s Foreign Minister Israel Katz accused Canada of undermining Israel’s right to self-defense.

Katz, however, told Army Radio, that he had spoken with Joly about the issue last week when she was in Israel, and added that despite this decision, Canada remained a strong friend of Israel. He added that he did not plan to summon the Canadian ambassador.

Opposition leader Yair Lapid posted on X that “Canada’s decision to suspend arms supplies to Israel is wrong, harmful and dangerous. Israel is waging a war against an extreme and cruel terrorist organization and the Canadians simply do not understand what is happening here.”

Its decision to take this step is a testament to the “collapse of Israel’s foreign relations” due to the actions of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s “evil and negligent government.”

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, while asserting Israel’s right to defend itself, has taken an increasingly critical stance over the IDF’s military campaign to destroy Hamas in Gaza, after the terror group attacked the Jewish state on October 7, killing over 1,200 people and seizing another 253 hostages.

Canada is the first major Western ally to so clearly announce a halt to its arms sales to Israel, a move that comes amid growing domestic public pressure among opponents of the war in other countries for their governments to follow suit. Canadian arms sales to Israel represent only a small fraction of such imports but still amount to over Can$20 million.

Canadian arms sales to Israel represent only a small fraction of such imports but still amount to over 20 million Canadian dollars.

One Israeli political source said he feared Canada’s decision could cause a domino effect and that other countries could join. 

United Nations experts issued a call in February for member states to stop selling arms to Israel, warning that they risked violating international law in doing so.

The United States, which is the major arms exporter to Israel, has rebuffed domestic calls to halt such sales. The Biden administration last month did issue a new memorandum requesting all arms recipients to show that the weapons were not being used in violation of international humanitarian law.

Jewish Canadian organizations also weighed in.

“Five months after Jews faced our deadliest day since the Holocaust, when our democratic allies in Israel are fighting for their very existence, against the genocidal terrorists & rapists that started this war, Canada’s Jewish community will never forget our government did this,” United Jewish Appeal Federation of Toronto VP of communications Steve McDonald wrote on X on Tuesday.

The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs wrote on social media that instead of Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly’s confirmation that Canada would not continue to trade arms with Israel, it should be standing alongside Israel as it defends itself “against a Canadian listed terrorist organization that has sworn to destroy the Jewish state.”

Canadian activist and Abraham Global Peace Initiative CEO Avi Benlolo said that Canada was rewarding terrorism and rejecting the notion that it had the right to defend itself following the October 7 massacre.

“While Hamas receives military equipment from Iran and Hezbollah and funding from Qatar, Canada’s adopted (unenforceable) motion requires the nation to cease (even non-lethal) military exports to Israel,” Benlolo wrote in a statement on Tuesday.

B’nai Brith Canada said the motion that preceded Joly’s was one-sided and irresponsible.

“Canada must not stand in the way as Israel works to neutralize the terrorists who are preventing the implementation of a sustainable peace,” said B’nai Brith Canada’s Director of Government Relations David Granovsky on Monday.

Friends of the Simon Wiesenthal Center CEO Michael Levitt said that the ruling Liberal Party had “surrendered control” of foreign policy to the New Democratic Party, which had submitted the opposition motion. On Monday night just before the vote, the Liberal Party had negotiated with the NDP to soften the bill, including the removal of a call for recognition of a Palestinian state.

Independent Jewish Voices Canada praised the motion supporting an “arms embargo” on Canada.

JSpace Canada, which was mentioned several times during the Monday debate as a supporter of the motion, applauded the resolution’s passing but did not mention the clause on arms trade.

Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East claimed that Canada had exported “a record-breaking Can$28.5m. in military goods” in the last three months of 2023 after the Israel-Hamas war broke out in October of that year.

Now “the government has effectively promised to adopt a clear policy to restrict exports, including for already-issued permits, not just a temporary pause on approvals. While imperfect, this is a tangible victory on the road to a Canadian two-way arms embargo with Israel. The NDP must not rest on its laurels and continue to fight Canada’s relationship with the Israeli military-industrial complex,” it said.

Reuters contributed to this report.