Symbolic statements mean little as Palestinians face starvation and mass displacement, with no end to the crisis in sight
Canada’s warning to Israel over aid to Gaza is worse than meaningless—it is a hollow gesture that masks our complicity in what organizations such as the United Nations and Human Rights Watch warn may amount to genocide.
Canada recently joined 24 other countries in demanding that Israel allow aid into Gaza. Yet the appeal has brought no help to Palestinians facing hunger and violence. According to the United Nations, nearly all of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents now face acute food insecurity.
Much of the aid has been blocked as Israel controls most border crossings and has restricted humanitarian shipments since the war began in October 2023, sparked by a Hamas terrorist attack on southern Israel that killed about 1,200 people and took some 250 hostages.
Critics argue that Israel has long been supported by Western allies such as the United States, France, Britain, Canada and Germany, though France, Britain and Canada have now announced plans to formally recognize Palestinian statehood, signalling a potential realignment in diplomatic support. Recognition would give Palestine formal state status under international law, strengthening its position in negotiations and at the United Nations. Yet these same governments often seem more intent on preserving alliances than on confronting the suffering of Palestinians.
In the British Parliament, Conservative member and former cabinet minister Kit Malthouse gave voice to the outrage many feel as he confronted current Labour Foreign Secretary David Lammy. “I’m just beyond words really at his inaction, and frankly complicity … for what is going on,” Malthouse said. “(Lammy) knows that leading genocide scholars from around the world are ringing the alarm bells … Can he not see that his inaction, and frankly cowardice, is making this country irrelevant? Can he also not see the personal risk to him given our international obligations? That he may end up at the Hague because of his inaction?”
Malthouse’s warning was met with a dismissive reply. Lammy responded, “I understand the fury that the right honourable gentleman feels, but … it demeans his argument when he personalizes it in the way he does. It’s unbecoming and not something the House expects, particularly from … more senior members.”
Lammy’s words reminded me how often leaders have turned away in the face of mass suffering. I have lived through many violent atrocities: Cambodia, East Timor, Uganda, the Congo, Rwanda, the Rohingya, the Uyghurs and others. They were all horrendous, but Gaza is different. Unlike past atrocities, it is broadcast daily into our social media feeds. And with the exception of East Timor and Rwanda, they were not directly enabled by my own country or its closest allies.
Many have asked why I write almost exclusively about Gaza in my commentaries, despite the personal risk. The truth is that while I can push aside the horrors I see to function day to day, when I sit down to write, I can think of nothing else. I am not alone. Gaza has become a central theme in our music, visual art, writing, comedy and film. A friend in France put it best: “Je n’arrive plus à peindre de beaux arbres avec ce qui se passe à Gaza.” (I am no longer able to paint pretty trees because of what is happening in Gaza.)
Though powerful pundits and politicians like David Lammy may wish the Gaza issue would fade away, it will not. Millions of us lament that innocents are being murdered while we remain powerless to stop it. Gaza has changed us profoundly. We will never forget the atrocities that, as groups such as the United Nations and Human Rights Watch argue, may amount to crimes against humanity on our watch.
It offers little solace to honour the memories of those who have died. We owe far more to the people of Palestine and to all who suffer in this ongoing crisis.
Gerry Chidiac specializes in languages and genocide studies and works with at-risk students. He received an award from the Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre for excellence in teaching about the Holocaust.
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