John,

Almost 14,000 of you joined us in urging the Trudeau government to vote against a blatantly anti-Israel resolution at the UN General Assembly. This resolution sought to advance a deeply flawed International Court of Justice (ICJ) advisory opinion that unfairly targets Israel.

The resolution not only undermines Israel’s security but also promotes harmful initiatives like BDS.

While there were concerns that Canada might vote in favour of the motion, as France eventually did, our collective action helped ensure that Canada abstained.

However, abstention is not a victory. Canada should have voted "no" as it committed to do on November 9, 2023, when the government stated: “Canada reiterates the importance of a fair-minded approach at the United Nations and will continue to vote ‘no’ on resolutions that do not address the complexities of the issues or the actions and responsibilities of all parties, including the destructive role of terrorist organizations like Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and Hezbollah.”

As Canada’s Ambassador to the UN Bob Rae pointed out, this resolution failed to recognize the horrific events of October 7 or condemn Hamas. By abstaining, Canada’s response fell short of its own stated policy and did not stand with Israel as promised.

That’s why we’ve issued a public statement holding the government accountable for its failure to stand with Israel. You can find the statement on our social media here and below. Read our press release here.

The fight to ensure unambiguous, strong support for the Jewish state and the Jewish people remains our collective focus and, with your help and support, we will continue to press on all fronts to achieve that objective.

Thank you for standing with us.

CIJA

“Today, Canada failed to stand with its democratic ally by abstaining on a highly biased United Nations General Assembly vote targeting Israel.

“Despite pledging to oppose resolutions that single out Israel and ignore terror groups like Hamas and Hezbollah, Canada broke its promise and put political expediency before principle. This abstention effectively rewards Hamas' genocidal agenda.

“The Trudeau government has lost its moral compass and has not only abandoned its declared ally, Israel, but has also, once again, undermined the legitimacy of the International Court of Justice, an institution Canada claims to value.”

-- Shimon Koffler Fogel, President and CEO, Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs