Ottawa, Canada – In a move that sparked a wave of official and human rights criticism, Israeli authorities on Tuesday barred six members of the Canadian parliament from entering the occupied West Bank via the Jordanian border.
This ban came at a time when the MPs were part of a delegation of about 30 people seeking to learn about the situation on the ground in the Palestinian territories.
Official reactions in Ottawa
For her part, Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand expressed her country’s official protest against this measure, describing it as “mistreatment” of Canadian citizens.
Furthermore, the minister confirmed that the Canadian government is following up on the matter seriously with the Israeli side to ensure that the circumstances are clarified.
Especially since the delegation includes representatives of the Canadian people.
Israeli justifications and counter-responses
In contrast, the Israeli ambassador to Canada justified the ban by citing alleged links between the organizer of the trip and a relief organization that Israel classifies as “terrorist”.
However, the organizers of the visit (the “Canadian Muslim Vote” organization) categorically denied these accusations.
She stressed that her funding was entirely legal, and warned that such “baseless” classifications could jeopardize humanitarian work.
In a related context, the Israeli crossings authority stated that the decision was taken “for security reasons” and due to the lack of prior coordination.
However, the National Council of Canadian Muslims described this justification as “deeply troubling”.
He considered it part of a systematic pattern of restricting the entry of independent delegations wishing to examine the situation in the occupied territories.
Political dimensions and general context
It is worth noting that five of the banned MPs belong to the ruling Liberal Party.
The sixth belongs to the New Democratic Party, which adds a sensitive political dimension to the incident.
Therefore, this incident serves to deepen the tension between the two countries.
Especially as it coincides with the repercussions of Canada’s recent recognition of the State of Palestine.
This move was met with strong Israeli objection.
