Canada votes in favour of United Nations General Assembly resolution on “Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and the occupied Syrian Golan”

November 20, 2024

Canada voted in support of this resolution today to signal our deep concerns over the direction in which the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has shifted, and the unrestrained expansion of Israeli settlements and impunity with which extremist settler violence has been treated. Canada remains committed to a two-state solution, including the creation of a Palestinian state, where Palestinians and Israelis live side by side in peace, security, and dignity.

Canada continues to be guided by its historic and unwavering commitment to international law and the need to secure a framework that best guarantees peace and security for both Israelis and Palestinians. Canada has long stated, both publicly and privately, that Israeli settlements are illegal, and not conducive to returning to a peace process.

Let us be clear: Hamas’ horrific terrorist attacks against Israel on October 7, 2023, were heinous and Canada has spoken in favour of Israel’s right to defend itself in response to these attacks. Canada has been equally clear that, in defending itself, Israel must uphold its obligations under international law.

The accelerated expansion of Israeli settlements in the past year, and in the increase in extremist settler violence that continues with impunity have been deeply damaging to the broader goal of a two-state solution.

This is part of a broader trend of concerning developments related to the Israeli settler enterprise, where we have also seen the Government of Israel take several measures that have accelerated and entrenched the growth of Israeli settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Among others, the Israeli Government has announced the approval of thousands of new settlement buildings and it has sought to legalize illegal outposts. More recently, this has been exacerbated by senior government representatives’ calls for the full annexation of West Bank settlements.

Canada has never recognized permanent Israeli control over territories occupied in 1967 and Canada considers Israeli settlements to be in violation of the Fourth Geneva convention.

However, let us be clear: Canada’s position remains that there are too many resolutions on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and we oppose initiatives at the United Nations and in other multilateral forums that unfairly single out Israel for criticism and this needs to be addressed.

In closing, we consider it essential to signal our heightened concern that the continued growth in settlements deeply undermines the prospects for peace between Israelis and Palestinians. This is why Canada has voted to support this resolution today.