Joint Statement with Canadian First Nations Leaders
We are deeply disappointed by the Joint statement, co-signed by Canada on “the situation in Gaza and the West Bank”. This call rewards Hamas for the torture and murder of 1,200 innocent civilians on 7 October 2023 and the kidnapping of civilians. We note that Canada, Britain and France are the same Western powers that bombed Raqqa and Mosul into rubble to eliminate ISIS, yet now invoke humanitarian concern to shield Hamas from the consequences of their own atrocities.
Hamas started this war and Israel has every right to defend itself against terrorists. One wonders what Canadian authorities would do if these Hamas atrocities had targeted Canadian citizens on Canadian soil.
From the outset of the war, Hamas has hijacked international aid, diverting food, fuel, and medical supplies to sell on the black market. The proceeds—estimated at up to half a billion dollars—have effectively been a war subsidy, funding the recruitment and arming of more terrorists.
Under the Fourth Geneva Convention, aid restrictions are entirely lawful when there is a risk that the aid will be diverted to enemy combatants. Every truck that Hamas seizes is a reward for terrorism and an incentive to repeat their strategy. In spite of this, Israel ensured there was enough aid in Gaza to last months, with 25,000 aid trucks entering Gaza during the 42-day ceasefire. Indeed deliveries of aid have re-started and a new mechanism has been put in place to ensure that aid is distributed to the needy, rather than diverted and stolen by Hamas.
Meanwhile Hamas still holds 59 hostages in inhumane conditions underground — starving, torturing, and sometimes murdering them.
The conflict in Gaza could end tomorrow if Hamas laid down its arms and released the hostages. That is the path to peace. Hamas has never accepted Israel’s right to exist - their charter explicitly calls for the destruction of Israel. After Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005, Hamas did not build a state; they built terror tunnels and stockpiled rockets, planning for October 7. To believe that a Palestinian state can be negotiated with a group that rejects the very existence of Israel is a dangerous and naïve fantasy.
Every ceasefire gives Hamas time to regroup and plan the next massacre. That is the unbearable dilemma Israel faces. Unless Hamas is defeated, this war will not end—it will merely pause, until the next October 7. If Western leaders enable this cycle, they will bear responsibility for the bloodshed to come—on both sides.
We are also concerned for the Jewish and Israeli people in Canada. Israel’s Ministry of Diaspora Affairs upgraded its travel alert for Canada to Level 2 due to rising threats against Israelis and Jews, following multiple recent attacks on Jewish institutions and a rise in hostile rhetoric. Israelis in Canada were urged to avoid public displays of Jewish/Israeli identity. There is a connection between the statements of the nation’s leaders and the rise in antisemitic attacks.
We are shaken by the recent murder of two young embassy staff in Washington DC by a Hamas supporter. We believe months of unfounded or libelous accusations and propaganda against Israel clearly contributed to the conditions that led to their murder.
We declare our support for Israel’s right to defend itself and we urge the government to demand Hamas release the hostages and commit to a peaceful future. We urge the government to increase its efforts to protect the Jewish people of Canada.
Dr Sheree Trotter, Director Indigenous Embassy Jerusalem
Hon Alfred Ngaro, Director Indigenous Embassy Jerusalem
Lynda Prince, Envoy North America, Indigenous Embassy Jerusalem, former Tribal (Grand) Chief Carrier Sekani Nation
The Honourable Harry S. LaForme O.C & I.P.C., Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation, Knowledge Keeper
Harvey Yesno, former Chief of Eabametoong First Nation (EFN) and former Grand Chief of Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN)
Reggie David Neeposh, former chief Oujé-Bougoumou Cree Nation, Northern Quebec
