Jewish and Palestinian activists protested this week inside the Canadian Parliament building in Ottawa, calling for an arms embargo against Israel. Demonstrators held signs and demanded action before being escorted out of the building by police.
The group continued its protest outside, urging the Canadian government to acknowledge its role in supplying weapons to Israel by exporting military equipment and components to the United States, which they claimed ultimately ended up in Israel.
The protests in Canada
The activists also called on Canada to cease importing military goods and technology from Israel. Niall Ricardo, an organizer with the anti-Israel group Independent Jewish Voices Canada, called on lawmakers to act.
“Our politicians cannot remain complacent in these marble halls while Israel continues to burn Palestinians alive in their tents. The fighter jets and attack helicopters wreaking havoc on civilians could not operate without hundreds of Canadian-made components. Canada's ongoing arms exports and diplomatic support make it complicit in these atrocities,” Ricardo said.
Rachel Small, another anti-Israel activist, said that Canada’s claims of halting arms shipments to Israel fail to address the transfer of Canadian weapons through the United States.
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“We are here to ensure they actually cut off the flow,” Small said. “Our demand is clear: Canada must stop arming Israel and impose an immediate arms embargo. Every F-35 fighter jet and Apache helicopter currently bombing Gaza and Lebanon is filled with hundreds of Canadian-made components. As Jews, we are here to say this violence cannot continue in our name. As people of conscience, we say the least Canada can do now is stop arming genocide.”