ISRAEL’S ASSAULT ON GAZA

For our last blog post before a short summer break, we look at some important recent developments regarding Israel’s ongoing assault on Gaza. And we preview some future posts.

28 Western foreign ministers and EU condemn Israeli actions, demand immediate Gaza ceasefire and aid delivery

The foreign ministers of Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the European Union Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management today issued the following statement:

We, the signatories listed below, come together with a simple, urgent message: the war in Gaza must end now.

(Cyprus, Greece, and Malta signed on after Canada released the statement.)

The joint statement also stated:

We condemn the drip feeding of aid and the inhumane killing of civilians, including children, seeking to meet their most basic needs of water and food…. Israel must comply with its obligations under international humanitarian law.

The statement called on Israel to:

• Immediately lift restrictions on the flow of aid
• Urgently enable the UN and humanitarian NGOs to do their work safely and effectively

Describing “permanent forced displacement a violation of international humanitarian law”, the 28 signatory countries also described proposals to remove the Palestinian population into a [so-called] ‘humanitarian city’ as

completely unacceptable.

The statement also condemned Israeli actions in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) that are designed to “divide a future Palestinian state in two” as

a flagrant breach of international law.

The 28 foreign ministers ended the statement with:

We are prepared to take further action to support an immediate ceasefire and a political pathway to security and peace for Israelis, Palestinians and the entire region.

Ceasefire.ca comments:

In their 19 May 2025 joint statement, the leaders of Canada, the UK, and France promised “concrete actions” if Israel did not cease its renewed military offensive and lift its aid restrictions. These countries then went on to sanction two far-right Israeli Cabinet Ministers for inflaming violence in the West Bank.

Over 100 aid agencies call for Gaza ceasefire, warn of starvation risks

The 21 July statement by 28 foreign ministers was followed a day later by a statement signed by more than 100 aid agencies and human rights groups calling for governments to take action as hunger spreads in Gaza.

The statement read in part:

As the Israeli government’s siege starves the people of Gaza, aid workers are now joining the same food lines, risking being shot just to feed their families.

See also this interview with a Canadian nurse working in Gaza for Doctors Without Borders:

French President Macron announces timeline for recognition of Palestinian state

President Emmanuel Macron announced on X on 24 July 2025 that his country would recognize a Palestinian state at the United Nations General Assembly in September.

A few hours later Prime Minister Carney issued a news statement calling Israel’s denial of humanitarian aid

a violation of international law.

Earlier in the day, Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand indicated that, unlike her American counterpart, she would attend a two-state solution conference in New York City, now scheduled for 28-29 July, where she will meet with her French counterparts to discuss Macron’s decision.

Co-hosted by Saudi Arabia and France, the participants will work to outline a framework for a Palestinian state.

Jewish genocide scholar decries Israel’s genocidal conduct

My inescapable conclusion has become that Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people. – Dr. Omer Bartov, professor of Holocaust and genocide studies

In a searing indictment of Israeli conduct in Gaza, Dr. Bartov outlines his reasons for designating this conduct “genocidal.” He also explains why continued denial of this designation by certain (mainly Western) states and some experts will cause “unmitigated damage” not only to the people of Gaza and Israel but also to the system of international law established in the wake of the horrors of the Holocaust, designed to prevent such atrocities from happening ever again, writing:

It is a threat to the very foundations of the moral order on which we all depend.

For more expert analysis, see Why the reluctance to recognize Israel’s genocide in Gaza? (Kenneth Roth, theguardian.com, 24 July 2025). Roth writes:

The case for genocide is compelling, but some governments and members of the public resist acknowledging it. The reason lies in not only Israel’s history as a haven for the Jewish victims of genocide but also an unduly narrow understanding of the meaning of the term, by both the public and the international court of justice (ICJ).

Ministerial complicity in war crimes?

On the potential for Western cabinet ministers to face personal accountability for complicity in war crimes, see British ministers are betting they won’t face justice for complicity over Gaza. It’s a big risk to take (Owen Jones, theguardian.com, 23 July 2025).

In March 2024, Sydney law firm Birchgrove Legal referred Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Foreign Minister Penny Wong, opposition leader Peter Dutton, and others to the ICC as accessories to genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity, citing the defunding of UNRWA, the provision of military aid, and “unequivocal political support” for Israel’s actions during the Gaza war.

On 15 July, the ICC indicated that it had added this complicity claim against the Australian PM and others to its Palestine investigation.

A systematic, comprehensive and concrete response by states is needed.

On the need for concrete action, not just words, see The Guardian view on starvation in Gaza: it will take more than words to halt Israel’s genocide, which carries the underbanner:

Condemnation is rightly growing. But until concrete action is taken, western allies will remain complicit with these horrifying crimes.

The editorial applauds Britain’s sanctioning of far-right ministers, reinstatement of funding to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), and suspension of many arms exports — actions which Canada has also taken.

However, in the view of the Guardian editorialists,

these measures came too late, and they are still much too little.

They also cite comments by Kaja Kallas, the foreign policy chief of the EU — Israel’s biggest trading partner — to the effect that “all options [are] on the table”, but then note that

the EU has yet to agree on action.

Calling for a systematic, comprehensive, and concrete response by states, the Guardian editorial concludes:

If not now, when?… History will not ask whether these governments did anything to stop genocide by an ally, but whether they did all they could.

Whither Canada?

While Canada has taken some welcome steps in response to Israeli war crimes in Gaza, it is manifestly clear that our government has not done anywhere near what it could to live up to its international legal obligations in the face of the systematic destruction of Palestinian life in Gaza.

For more on Canada’s legal obligations, see the public meeting hosted by the Ottawa Forum on Israel Palestine where RI President Peggy Mason addressed this issue. Entitled Canada and Gaza: what are our moral and legal obligations? How can we get our government to do more? a video of the panel discussion and audience questions is available HERE. )

RI President Peggy Mason comments:

The situation is too dire to wait any longer. Unilateral steps by Canada now — including immediate recognition of the Palestinian state and the imposition of sanctions on Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, Israeli Defense Minister Katz and the Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff General Eyal Zamir — will signal not only Canada’s seriousness but will immediately put pressure for concrete action by the 27 other Western allies who joined with Canada in the 21 July statement.

We call on the Government of Canada to immediately recognize the state of Palestine and to forthwith impose sanctions on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz and the Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff General Eyal Zamir.

And, after the RI summer break:

THE LANDMARK ICJ RULING ON THE OBLIGATIONS OF STATES IN RESPECT OF CLIMATE CHANGE

This is a victory for our planet, for climate justice and for the power of young people to make a difference…. – UN Secretary-General António Guterres in a video message

Our next blog post will examine the landmark advisory opinion issued on 23 July 2025 by the International Court of Justice on the obligations of States in respect of climate change.

For a sneak peek, see the UN Press Release, entitled World Court says countries are legally obligated to curb emissions, protect climate (news.un.org, 2025).

THE FUTURE OF UN CONFLICT MANAGEMENT

As part of our ongoing Rideau Institute Common Security Project, we will also examine the dilemmas facing UN conflict management and the role that multilateral bodies still can — and must — play.

Photo credit: Wikimedia images/Jaber Jehad Badwan (Gaza); Peter Larson/OFIP (Unitarian Church Ottawa)

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