NDP MP Charlie Angus calls for sanctions if Israel annexes the Palestinian West Bank
Photo Credit: (New York Times / Google Images)
Written by: Daniel Xie
NDP MP Charlie Angus warned on Twitter today, that if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu orders the illegal annexation of territory in the West Bank, it will violate international law. In response, he suggested that “Canada needs to be ready to impose sanctions to send a message that such brazen abuse of law is not acceptable.”
This call for sanctions against Israel was in response to recent plans by Netanyahu to declare 30 per cent of the West Bank area under Israeli sovereignty. Netanyahu has stated that currently a government discussion on the topic of a demilitarised state should not be expected to occur. Netanyahu’s intention to annex 30 per cent of the West Bank has been criticized as a violation of international law by the editorial board at the New York Times, which also warned that the annexation could set the stage for a new intifada. It would also destabilize Jordan, a country where Palestinians form the majority, and end what security cooperation still exists between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. The Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, has already declared that with the talk of annexation, he is no longer abiding by any agreements signed with Israel and the United States.
Netanyahu’s plans for the annexation of the West Bank also come in the wake of escalating settler colonialism in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak. Following the imposition of the lockdown in the West Bank, Israeli soldiers and settlers have escalated attacks against Palestinians and increased raiding of Palestinian homes; with 100 homes having been raided between March and April. It was even reported that in these raids Israeli soldiers would use trumped-up justification to kidnap children from their families. In addition, field clinics established in the West Bank to treat coronavirus victims have been torn down by Israeli bulldozers and military personnel. Palestinian labourers that are suspected of having the virus are thrown out of Israel even if they are determined to have not been infected.
Within the context of escalating Israeli settler colonialism culminating thus far in Nethanyahu’s plans to annex the West Bank, Charlie Angus’ assessment that sanctions must be imposed in response to the proposed annexation of the West Bank is a correct one. Yet one bound to face massive opposition by the federal government. Under Trudeau, Canada has been complicit in the escalating violence against Palestinians carried out by the Israeli government and by Israeli soldiers. In November 2018, Trudeau took the opportunity on November 7, 2018 during an apology to equate support for BDS with anti-semetism and hate crimes directed against Jews, along with voting against various measures in the UN supporting Palestinian soverignity such as:
A resolution to support the work of the “Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People” that affirms the UN “has a permanent responsibility towards the question of Palestine until the question is resolved in all its aspects”;
The “Peaceful settlement of the question of Palestine” resolution that calls “on Member States not to recognize any changes to the pre-1967 borders, including with regards to Jerusalem”;
“The Syrian Golan” resolution that “Demands once more that Israel withdraw from all the occupied Syrian Golan to the line of 4 June 1967 in implementation of the relevant Security Council resolutions”;
“Permanent sovereignty of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and of the Arab population in the occupied Syrian Golan over their natural resources” resolution;
The resolution that condemns the “Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and the occupied Syrian Golan” and reaffirms the “inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by force”; and
The resolution concerning “Israeli practices affecting the human rights of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem” that expresses “grave concern about the continuing systematic violation of the human rights of the Palestinian people by Israel.”
In addition, Trudeau has continued economic ties with Israel, with Canada sending top merchandise exports to Israel since 2018 valued at $500 million and contributing $1 million annually to a bi-lateral cooperation in industrial research and development with Israel.
With Trudeau’s opposition to the BDS movement and the Liberals in general adhering to a pro-Israeli foreign policy, they would, with likely conservative support, shoot down any effort to impose sanctions on Israel in response for it’s annexation of the West Bank. At the same time, Canada under Trudeau has been seeking to ascend to the position of security council member within the UN. Canada’s ascension to the Security Council has sparked discussion on whether Canada truly deserves to be on the Security Council or not.
The Canada Files has pointed out that despite Canada’s reputation as a peace-loving country and the supposed “moral opposite” of the militaristic and imperialistic USA, reality is in opposition to this narrative. Canada is fully complicit in coups against the left-leaning governments of Bolivia and Venezuela while said complicity is buried by the media, never called out. Rejection of sanctions against Israel in the service of Israeli apartheid would just be another inconvenience to be buried in the media and never called out. All this happens while Canada seeks recognition as part of the Security Council with a bloodstained foreign policy buried by the media.
Opposition to the pro-Israeli apartheid stranglehold in favor of any sanctions must take the form of both massive mobilization in favor of BDS by the populace, online if necessary to adhere to social distancing regulations. In order to demonstrate popular support for sanctions against Israel and opposition to Canada’s ascension to the Security Council with a bloody foreign policy record. They must also take the form of pushing against the dominance of the pro-Israeli stronghold on Canada’s ostensibly progressive social democratic party, the New Democratic Party.
Since the ascension of former federal NDP leader Thomas Mulcair to power, the NDP has shifted decisively to a pro-Israeli foreign policy, even going as far as to expel members from the NDP that have expressed support for Palestine. Meanwhile, under Jagmeet Singh, the NDP response has remained tepid. For their part the provincial wings of the NDP have also suppressed calls to support BDS, with the 2019 provincial convention of the Ontario New Democrats scheduling its convention so that resolutions supporting BDS would never be discussed at all during the convention.
Only a few NDP MPs such as Alexandre Boulerice, Matthew Green, Niki Ashton, and Leah Gazan have spoken out against Canada’s continued ties to Israel, while the party leadership remains tepid on the issue of BDS. Meanwhile the NDP’s Critic for Foreign Affairs, Jack Harris has opposed Liberal attempts to interfere with a potential ICC war crimes investigation against Israel, as well as calling out the annexation plans on Twitter. However, he has failed to follow in Angus’ footsteps and call for sanctions if the annexation begins.
If sanctions were to be imposed on Israel as part of a bill in response to Netanyahu’s plans to annex the West Bank, such a bill would also face opposition from the NDP as well as the Liberals and Conservatives.
In response to any sanctions being introduced against Israel, BDS activists, along with those who support the plight of the Palestinians, must not only demonstrate strong support for sanctions, but also push for the NDP to take a stand for Palestinian rights.
From there, it is important that supporters of BDS continue to hold the NDP leadership’s feet to the fire and push them to embrace a foreign policy which defends Palestinian self-determination and oppose any means to legitimatize Israeli apartheid and settler colonialism in the Middle East.
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