Nadine Yousif
BBC News, Toronto
Prime Minister Mark Carney said Canada plans to endorse the Palestine state in September, becoming the third G7 to announce such an announcement in recent days.
Carney said the move depends on democratic reforms, including elections held by Palestinian authorities without Hamas next year.
His remarks come the day after Britain announced it would recognize the Palestinian state in September, and France announced similar plans unless Israel agreed to a ceasefire and other conditions.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry rejected Canada’s announcement, calling it a “reward to Hamas.” Most countries – 147 of the 193 member states of the United Nations – formally recognize a Palestinian state.
Carney said Canada will formally recognize the situation in Palestine at the upcoming UN General Assembly.
He cites the expansion of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, the deterioration of humanitarian situation in Gaza and the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel as the reason for the huge shift in Canada’s foreign policy.
“The human suffering level of Gaza people is unbearable and deteriorates rapidly,” Carney told reporters on Wednesday.
He said the recognition of the Palestinian state would depend on the commitment of Palestinian power to fundamentally reform its governance and demilitarize the territory.
Carney said Canada has long been committed to a two-state solution as part of the negotiation peace process, but added: “This approach is no longer feasible”.
“Before our eyes, the prospects of the Palestinian state are being eroded,” he said.
Carney said in a press conference that he had a conversation with Palestinian authorities president Mahmoud Abbas earlier on Wednesday.
The Palestinian Authority controls parts of the West Bank through the Fatah party led by Abbas, while Hamas operates Gaza. Elections have not been held in either territory since 2006.
Carney’s announcement was criticized by the Israeli Foreign Ministry.
It said in an article on X that Canada’s plan “damaged efforts to cease fire in Gaza and damaged the framework for the release of hostages”.
Canadian conservatives also expressed doubts about Carney’s announcement.
“After the terrorist atrocities of October 7, recognizing a Palestinian state has sent a false message to the world,” the opposition said in a statement.
The Prime Minister has been under pressure to resolve the Palestinian state since Britain and France (close allies in Canada) have made their own statements in recent days.
Nearly 200 former Canadian ambassadors and diplomats signed a letter on Tuesday calling on Carney to recognize the state of Palestine.
Canadian principles, “Every day is abandoned due to mass displacement, unselected bombing and starvation of Palestinian civilians in Gaza and violent attacks on extreme settlers in the West Bank,” said the report.
When asked if he was influenced by announcements from Britain and France, or if he had consulted U.S. President Donald Trump, Carney replied that Canada had made its own foreign policy decision.
If France and Britain do formally recognize Palestine’s national status, then the strong American allies will be the only permanent member of the UN Security Council who does not.
The Israeli military launched a campaign in Gaza on October 7, 2023 in response to Hamas-led attacks in southern Israel, in which about 1,200 people were killed and another 251 were taken hostage.
After that, more than 60,000 people have been killed in Gaza, with 154 of them dead due to malnutrition, according to data from the Hamas-Operation Health Department in the region.
