Open Letter to Prime Minister Carney on Gaza Crisis

We write as a concerned group of 412 Canadians, including academics, lawyers, former crisis and retired ambassadors (including to the United Nations), ministers and public servants, UN human rights experts, and civil society, labor and faith leaders, all deeply concerned with the catastrophic human rights and humanitarian in Gaza, now into its twentieth month.

Just Peace Advocates was pleased to endorse, with Jonathan Kuttab, co-founder of Just Peace Advocates and board member signing.

Israel’s actions in Gaza are broadly understood by international law experts and leading human rights organizations as constituting genocide. We write with the demand and expectation that Canada must do everything in its power to stop these atrocities and support efforts to bring those responsible to account. This is what our signatures on the 1948 Genocide Convention and the 1998 Rome Statute establishing the International Criminal Court request.

We call for decisive action with respect to five priority recommendations:

• Work actively towards an immediate, permanent ceasefire and the release of all Israeli and Palestinian captives.
• Insist on full humanitarian access to Gaza and demand that the Israeli ban on the UN Relief and Works Agency be completely lifted.
• Publicly support the role of and fully comply with international courts in holding to account those who violate international law.
• Pursue all possible domestic measures, including immediately withdrawing from the free trade agreement between Canada and Israel, imposing sanctions on Israeli leaders, initiating investigations under the Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act, enforcing a full and comprehensive two-way arms embargo, and stripping charitable status from organizations found to be complicit in crimes under international law.
• Without further delay, join the 149 states which recognize the State of Palestine and support all efforts for Palestine to be admitted as a full member of the United Nations.

We write with urgency as Prime Minister Carney will host the G7 Summit from June 15-17, which presents a crucial opportunity for concerted action by seven of the world’s most influential and powerful governments that must be seized.

Link to letter in English .

Link to letter in French .

Link to list of endorsements .

The text of the letter, in English and French, and the list of endorsements, follows.

ENGLISH VERSION

June 9, 2025

The Right Honorable Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada

80 Wellington Street, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0A2

Dear Prime Minister,

We write this Open Letter to you as a group of 412 professors of law and lawyers with backgrounds in international law and human rights; academics with demonstrated expertise in international relations, justice and human rights; civil society, faith and labor movement leaders; and former and retired ministers, diplomats and public servants who have worked over many decades to advance Canada’s global interests. We write because of the catastrophic human rights and humanitarian crisis in Gaza, now into its twentieth month, which is broadly understood by international law experts and leading human rights organizations as constituting genocide.

Waiting, vacillating, remaining silent and failing or, worse, refusing to act in the face of mounting and incontrovertible evidence of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity can no longer be options for Canada. But it is not enough to simply speak out. Canada must do everything in its power to stop these atrocities and support efforts to bring those responsible to account. This is what our signatures on the 1948 Genocide Convention and the 1998 Rome Statute establishing the International Criminal Court request.

We offer five priority recommendations for action, which are described in more detail at the end of this letter. We urge you to take up these suggestions both unilaterally and jointly with partners, including at the upcoming G7 Summit.

• Work actively towards an immediate, permanent ceasefire and the release of all Israeli and Palestinian captives.
• Insist on full humanitarian access to Gaza in a manner in keeping with core humanitarian principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality and independence, and demand that the Israeli ban on the UN Relief and Works Agency be completely lifted.
• Publicly support the role of and fully comply with international courts in holding to account those who violate international law in the Occupied Palestinian Territory including Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem, and Israel.
• Pursue all possible domestic measures, including immediately withdrawing from the free trade agreement between Canada and Israel, imposing sanctions on Israeli leaders and other individuals suspected of involvement in atrocity crimes, initiating investigations into charges of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity under the Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act (including any Canadians or dual nationals involved in such crimes) with the aim of prosecuting offenders in Canada or other jurisdictions, enforcing a full and comprehensive two-way arms embargo, and stripping charity status from organizations found to be complicit in crimes under international law.
• Without further delay, join the 149 states which recognize the State of Palestine and support all efforts for Palestine to be admitted as a full member of the United Nations.

Emergency

We write with a sense of unprecedented urgency, which only deepens as the situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, particularly Gaza, worsens hourly.

First and foremost, there is urgency because the situation on the ground in Gaza has become unimaginably dire. Adequate words to accurately describe the level and scale of death, suffering and destruction escape us. Even such a term as apocalyptic seems insufficient. Over 54,000 Gazans have been killed since Israel’s military operations began, amounting to a staggering 2.4% of the population. We write that figure, knowing that it underrepresents those killed and that it will rise daily. The true number of deaths is certainly higher, given that there are many bodies that have yet to be recovered from underneath the rubble of buildings that have collapsed under bombardment. Countless others are dying from malnutrition and infectious diseases. An estimated 70% of the deaths have been women and children. [1] The numbers of children who have been killed – often all of the children in a single family at the same time – shatters the collective heart of humanity.

What has transpired in Gaza over the past twenty months is an abhorrent situation of unspeakable death and devastation that should not and cannot be allowed to continue for a single day, in fact a single minute, longer. That the situation has been allowed to reach such depths of suffering is a despicably shameful disgrace borne by the entire international community, including Canada. It is the inevitable result of months of inaction and wholesale impunity.

We are in full agreement with the detailed analysis and conclusions reached by UN human rights experts, [2] respected human rights organizations, [3] and numerous legal academics [4] that genocide is taking place in Gaza. It shouldn’t have come to this. We remind you that there exists a clear and unambiguous legal obligation on parties to the Genocide Convention , which obviously includes Canada, to prevent genocide where there is a risk of it being committed. It cannot be said with any semblance of rationality that no such risk has existed for the last twenty months.

In point of fact, on 26 January 2024, the International Court of Justice found that the right of the Palestinian people in Gaza under the Genocide Convention not to be subjected to acts of genocide is plausibly at stake and that there exists a “real and imminent risk” of genocide in Gaza. [5] This is enough to have triggered the obligation of all signatories to the Genocide Convention – including Canada – to take positive measures to prevent genocide in Gaza. In addition, the Court ordered the Israeli government to “take immediate and effective measures to enable the provision of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance to address the adverse conditions of life faced by Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.” [6]

Since that ruling over sixteen months ago, and in violation of two further binding provisional measures orders of the ICJ, [7] Israel has taken measures to exponentially worsen conditions in Gaza. Israel’s decision to completely block humanitarian access to Gaza since March 2, 2025, and more recently to bypass UN and established humanitarian agencies and instead deliver a meagre level of aid through the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a so-called ‘humanitarian’ foundation lacking humanity, independence, impartiality and neutrality, has been widely condemned, including by your government. In the words of UN Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs, Tom Fletcher, these so-called “humanitarian” measures adopted by Israel are a “cynical sideshow”, “a deliberate distraction”, and “a fig leaf for further violence and displacement.” [8] Of note, dozens of Palestinians have been killed and hundreds injured attempting to collect food aid from the GHF to date. [9]

We write with the full knowledge that one year ago – 10 June 2024 – the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 2735 (proposed by the United States) which demanded “an immediate, full and complete ceasefire”, the return of Israeli and Palestinian captives, the return of Palestinian civilians to their homes and neighborhoods throughout Gaza and the safe delivery of humanitarian assistance at scale throughout the Strip. The Resolution also rejected “any attempt at demographic change in the Gaza Strip, including any actions that reduce the territory of Gaza.”

We write with added urgency given that you are hosting the G7 Summit in Kananaskis in five days’ time. We anticipate that the situation in Gaza, broader issues related to Israel and Palestine, and wider tensions and openings regarding geopolitical and security challenges in the Middle East, will feature in your discussions. It is a crucial opportunity for concerted action from seven of the world’s most influential governments and economies. It is an opportunity that must be seized.

We welcomed the joint statement that was issued by three of the seven G7 leaders, namely French President Emmanuel Macron, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and yourself, on May 19, 2025 [10] and commend the red lines that were drawn. In particular we note that you have committed to “further concrete actions” if the Israeli government continues with its renewed military offensive and fails to lift its restrictions on humanitarian aid in Gaza. You have indicated that you will not “hesitate to take further action, including targeted sanctions” if Israel does not halt the expansion of illegal settlements in the West Bank. The time for such actions is now. Despite extensive and credible documentation of ongoing international crimes, Canada still refuses to act. What more evidence could possibly be needed?

Indeed, you have not yet taken any such action, despite the fact that the renewed military offensive and restrictions on humanitarian aid which you decried nearly three weeks ago have not abated. Similarly we have seen no response from Canada to the recent decision by Israel’s security cabinet to establish 22 new illegal settlements in the West Bank, the most extensive move of its kind since the Oslo Accords and which Israel’s Defense Minister, Israel Katz, explicitly acknowledges is “a strategic move that prevents the establishment of a Palestinian state that would endanger Israel.” [11]

Prime Minister Carney, it is clearly time for the more concrete action that has been promised by Canada. It is our expectation that as the summit host, and working with President Macron and Prime Minister Starmer, you will generate wider G7 action along these lines.

International Courts and International Law

We have closely followed the investigation launched by the International Criminal Court with respect to the situation in the State of Palestine. As you are aware, in May 2024 the Court’s Prosecutor sought arrest warrants against three Hamas and two Israeli leaders, on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity related to the October 7th attack and the military offensive that followed. The three Hamas leaders have all subsequently been killed and the proceedings against them have been discontinued or withdrawn. Arrest warrants were issued against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant in November 2024 and remain outstanding. [12] The Court’s investigations continue and there is every possibility that further arrest warrants may be sought.

Many of us endorsed an Open Letter to your predecessor, Justin Trudeau, from 375 academics, lawyers, civil society and faith leaders and former ministers and diplomats in May 2024, calling on the Canadian government to support the ICC’s ongoing work with respect to Palestine. [13] That remains a key imperative, as a means of tackling the decades of impunity that have shielded those responsible for serious crimes under international law in Palestine and in Israel from accountability.

To date we have been disappointed by what would best be termed ambivalent and reluctant support from the Canadian government for the ICC. Your government must not only support the ICC’s investigation in words, but in deeds, for instance by allocating investigators to assist the Court’s probe into atrocities in Palestine, as it did in the context of the Ukraine investigation. We likewise implore your government to not only clearly state that it would enforce the existing ICC arrest warrants but that it would support the issuance of additional warrants, including in relation to atrocities committed in the West Bank.

We draw your attention as well to the Advisory Opinion issued by the International Court of Justice in July 2024, in which the Court found that “Israel’s presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory is unlawful.” [14] The Court noted that all states – ie including Canada and all members of the G7 – are “under an obligation not to render aid or assistance in maintaining the situation created by Israel’s illegal presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.” [15] The Court affirmed that all States were therefore under a duty “to distinguish in their dealings with Israel between the territory of the State of Israel and the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967”. [16] In this regard, the Court affirmed that such a duty encompasses, inter alia :

• “the obligation to abstain from treaty relations with Israel in all cases in which it purports to act on behalf of the Occupied Palestinian Territory or a part thereof on matters concerning the Occupied Palestinian Territory or a part of its territory;
• to abstain from entering into economic or trade dealings with Israel concerning the Occupied Palestinian Territory or parts thereof which may enter into its unlawful presence in the territory;
• to abstain, in the establishment and maintenance of diplomatic missions in Israel, from any recognition of its illegal presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory; and
• to take steps to prevent trade or investment relations that assist in the maintenance of the illegal situation created by Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.” [17]

As the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, the ICJ’s authoritative determination of international law, as above, is binding on all States, regardless of whether such determination appears in the form of an Advisory Opinion of the Court. This is so given the Court’s determinations above all rest upon Israel’s violations of peremptory norms of international law, derogation from which is not permitted.

Many of us were involved in letters to and/or meetings with the former prime minister and relevant ministers over the course of 2024, laying out recommendations for action that Canada is legally required to take in response to the 2024 Advisory Opinion, including in relation to illegal settlements in the West Bank, which are war crimes; but very little has been done, and the minimal steps that have been taken, such as sanctions against a negligible number of individual settlers in the West Bank, have clearly proven ineffective. [18]

In our view Canada has fallen far short of complying with the clear international legal obligation to refrain from providing “aid or assistance” to Israel in continuing its illegal presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and its commission of other internationally wrongful acts, including core international crimes, in the territory.

Recommendations

Legally and morally, it is incumbent on Canada, and therefore upon your government, to pursue all possible action to end, prevent, investigate and punish genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza, the West Bank, East Jerusalem and in Israel. We note that under the Genocide Convention Canada has an express obligation to prevent and punish genocide. As well, the Convention is widely recognized to give rise to erga omnes obligations, which all states have a legal interest in enforcing. No state can or should remain passive in the face of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide. We urge you to prioritize Canadian action in five areas.

1) Ceasefire and Release of Captives

The most immediate step that must be taken in Gaza is a full, unconditional ceasefire, starting with a complete halt to Israel’s renewed ground offensive. That must include release of all captives illegally held by Hamas and by Israel. Your government has expressed opposition to the renewed offensive and insisted that it be halted, and has frequently called for a ceasefire. Working with G7 and other partners, there must now be consequences for the consistent failure and refusal to comply with those demands.

2) Humanitarian access

The blockade on humanitarian access to Gaza since early March has given rise to catastrophic conditions on the ground which UN officials have described as a famine; a famine that is not a result of environmental conditions or crop failure, but entirely instigated by Israeli government policy, decisions and action. Your government must insist that the Israeli ban on the UN Relief and Works Agency be lifted, and that aid be allowed into Gaza at the scale that is required and in conformity with the binding orders of the International Court of Justice issued in South Africa v. Israel , as well as widely recognized humanitarian principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality and independence. Again, working with other governments, there must be consequences for Israel’s refusal to live up to this most basic of humanitarian imperatives. Canada must not work with, recognize or in any way support the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which in no ways adheres to those humanitarian principles and instead supports Israel’s military strategies and intentions regarding Gaza.

3) Support for international courts

Canada has a long and proud tradition of supporting the important role of international courts in upholding international law. Support for these institutions is vital at this time. Both the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court are actively engaged in cases involving allegations and charges of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity in Israel and Palestine. Those two courts have faced criticism and hostile challenges from a number of governments, particularly Israel and the United States. Canada can do much more to demonstrate the substance of our support for international courts. That should include developing a plan of action for ensuring Canada: a) complies with the ICJ’s 2024 Advisory Opinion regarding the illegality of Israel’s continued presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory; b) intervenes in support of South Africa’s case at the ICJ under the Genocide Convention in the way Canada has done in other cases ( ie Gambia v. Myanmar); (c) makes a clear public statement confirming Canada’s commitment to enforcing arrest warrants issued by the ICC; and d) works with other governments to refer concerns about the expansion of illegal settlements in the West Bank to the ICC Prosecutor.

4) Pursue all possible measures within Canada

In addition to taking international action there are many steps that Canada can and must take domestically. In fact, we are legally obliged to do so. The Genocide Convention outlaws not only genocide but “complicity in genocide.” The Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act lays out the legal framework for charges related to genocide, crimes against humanity or war crimes to be brought against both Canadians and non-Canadians before Canadian courts. Among other measures we call on your government to:

• build on the sanctions that have been imposed against Hamas, other Palestinian armed groups and leaders associated with those groups, as well as sanctions imposed against extremist settlers, by imposing sanctions against key Israeli government officials suspected of responsibility for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Minister of Defense Israel Katz, Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir, and Minister of Finance Bezalel Smotrich;
• enforce a full, two-way arms ban between Canada and Israel, including all Canadian arms, parts or components and ‘dual-use’ objects transferred to Israel via the United States or any other third country;
• withdraw from the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement, particularly given that the agreement is unlawful for being in violation of two peremptory norms of international law, namely the prohibition on the acquisition of territory through the threat or use of force and the obligation to respect a people’s right to self-determination (see the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties , article 53), and the fact that the agreement includes goods and services originating from illegal West Bank settlements and fails to distinguish between Israeli territory and the occupied Palestinian territory;
• request the RCMP to launch investigations into allegations that Canadian citizens and organizations incorporated in and based in Canada have committed, or aided and abetted the commission of genocide, war crimes or crimes against humanity in Israel or Palestine, including while serving with the Israel Defense Forces, with the specific aim of prosecuting alleged perpetrators; and
• appoint an independent expert to investigate and ensure that any organization with Canadian charitable status that has provided financial or other support for genocide, crimes against humanity or war crimes is stripped of that status.

5) Recognize the State of Palestine

Finally, Prime Minister, we urge you to recognize the State of Palestine, which should be granted full membership within the United Nations. There is wide support for doing so, with 149 States having already done so (148 of the 193 member states of the UN, plus one nonmember Observer State, the Holy See).[19] The Canadian government has previously expressed an intention to do so eventually, but has indicated it is premature.[20] That cannot stand, particularly as the Israeli government pursues such courses of action as genocide in Gaza and the expansion of illegal settlements in the West Bank, which are (by Israel’s own admission) intended to undermine the territorial integrity and political independence of Palestine. As noted by the International Court of Justice in its 2024 Advisory Opinion, the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination in their State is in the nature of a peremptory norm of international law, derogation from which is not permitted, and is therefore not a matter of negotiation. Canada’s position is patronizing and contravenes the fundamental right of Palestinians to self-determination. Canada can and should wait no longer.

We also remind you that on 18 September 2024, the United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly (124-14-45) adopted Resolution ES-10/24, which not only welcomed the July 2024 Advisory Opinion of the International Court of Justice, but also gave Israel a firm deadline of 12 months to completely end its illegal occupation of the Palestinian Territory. We urge you to join with other like-minded states in the world who – in the event that Israel does not obey the clear directions of the Court, the United Nations and the international community – will consider the necessary consequences of that defiance.

Prime Minister, there is no question as to which side of history Canada belongs. Because of Canada’s proclaimed “shared values” and close relationship with Israel, Ottawa must spare no effort to bring the genocide in Gaza, and the war crimes and crimes against humanity in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, to an immediate end. Upholding international law is the only avenue through which not only peace, justice and human rights, but the durable, long-term security of Israelis and Palestinians alike will be achieved.

[1] Al Jazeera, Nearly 70 percent of deaths in Gaza are women and children: UN, November 8, 2024, https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/11/8/nearly-70-percent-of-deaths-in-gaza-are-women-and-children-un .

[2] UN General Assembly, Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, Francesca Albanese, Anatomy of a Genocide, UN Document A/HRC/55/73, July 1, 2024, https://docs.un.org/en/A/HRC/55/73 ; UN General Assembly, Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, Francesca Albanese, Genocide as Colonial Erasure, UN Document A/79/384, October 1, 2024, https://docs.un.org/en/A/79/384 .

[3] Amnesty International, Israel/Occupied Palestinian Territory: ‘You Feel Like You Are Subhuman’: Israel’s Genocide Against Palestinians in Gaza, December 5, 2024, https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde15/8668/2024/en/ ; Human Rights Watch, Extermination and Acts of Genocide: Israel Deliberately Depriving Palestinians in Gaza of Water, December 19, 2024, https://www.hrw.org/report/2024/12/19/extermination-and-acts-genocide/israel-deliberately-depriving-palestinians-gaza .

[4] UK Judges’ and Lawyers’ Open Letter Concerning the Occupied Palestinian Territory – May 2025, https://lawyersletter.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Gaza-letter-26May25.pdf .

[5] “In the Court’s view the facts and circumstances mentioned above are sufficient to conclude that at least some of the rights claimed by South Africa and for which it is seeking protection are plausible. This is the case

with respect to the right of the Palestinians in Gaza to be protected from acts of genocide and related prohibited acts identified in Article III…”, “…the Court considers that there is urgency, in the sense that there is a real and imminent risk that irreparable harm will be caused to the rights found by the Court to be plausible.” Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in the Gaza Strip (South Africa v Israel), Request for the Indication of Provisional Measures, Order of 26 January 2024, paragraph 54, https://www.icj-cij.org/sites/default/files/case-related/192/192-20240126-ord-01-00-en.pdf .

[6]  Ibid. , paragraph 86(4).

[7] Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in the Gaza Strip (South Africa v Israel), Request for the Modification of the Order of 26 January 2024 Indicating Provisional Measures, Order of 28 March, 2024, https://www.icj-cij.org/sites/default/files/case-related/192/192-20240328-ord-01-00-en.pdf ; Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in the Gaza Strip (South Africa v Israel), Request for the Modification of the Order of 28 March 2024, Order of 24 May 2024, https://www.icj-cij.org/sites/default/files/case-related/192/192-20240524-ord-01-00-en.pdf .    

[8] Mr. Tom Fletcher, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator – Briefing to the Security Council on the humanitarian situation and the protection of aid workers in Gaza, May 13, 2025, https://reliefweb.int/report/occupied-palestinian-territory/mr-tom-fletcher-under-secretary-general-humanitarian-affairs-and-emergency-relief-coordinator-briefing-security-council-humanitarian-situation-and-protection-aid-workers-gaza-13-may-2025-enarhe .

[9] CBC News, US-backed Gaza aid group halts distribution as 18 killed in Israeli strike on school shelter, June 4, 2025, https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/gaza-israel-aid-1.7551741 . 

[10] Joint statement from the leaders of Canada, the United Kingdom and France on the situation in Gaza and the West Bank, May 19, 2025, https://www.pm.gc.ca/en/news/statements/2025/05/19/joint-statement-leaders-canada-united-kingdom-and-france-situation .

[11] Lorenzo Tondo, Israel confirms plans to create 22 new settlements in occupied West Bank, The Guardian, May 29, 2025, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/may/29/israel-new-settlements-occupied-west-bank-palestinian-state .

[12] International Criminal Court, Situation in the State of Palestine, https://www.icc-cpi.int/palestine .

[13] A call for Canadian support for the ICC’s work with respect to Palestine/Israel, May 29, 2024, https://www.alexneve.ca/blog/a-call-for-canadian-support-for-the-iccs-palestineisrael-case .

[14] “The Court considers that the violations by Israel of the prohibition of the acquisition of territory by force and of the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination have a direct impact on the legality of the continued presence of Israel, as an occupying Power, in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. The sustained abuse by Israel of its position as an occupying Power, through annexation and an assertion of permanent control over the Occupied Palestinian Territory and continued frustration of the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, violates fundamental principles of international law and renders Israel’s presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory unlawful.” International Court of Justice, Advisory Opinion, Legal Consequences Arising from the Policies and Practices of Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory Including East Jerusalem, July 19, 2024, paragraph 261, https://www.icj-cij.org/sites/default/files/case-related/186/186-20240719-adv-01-00-en.pdf .

[15]  Ibid ., paragraph 279.

[16]  Ibid ., paragraph 278.

[17]  Ibid.

[18] Letters to the Canadian government, April, June and August 2024: Illegal West Bank settlements are war crimes, https://www.alexneve.ca/blog/2024warcrimeletters .

[19] Al Jazeera, Mapping which countries recognize Palestine in 2025, April 10, 2025, https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/4/10/mapping-which-countries-recognise-palestine-in-2025 .

[20] “Canada is prepared to recognize a Palestinian state at the time most conducive to lasting peace, not necessarily as the last step along the path to achieving the two-state solution.” Government of Canada, Canadian policy on key issues in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, https://www.international.gc.ca/world-monde/international_relations-relations_internationales/mena-moan/israeli-palestinian_policy-politique_israelo-palestinian.aspx?lang=eng , accessed May 29, 2025; Raffy Boudjikanian, Canadian government speaking with allies about Palestinian statehood recognition, official tells MPs, CBC News, November 8, 2024, https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canadian-government-speaking-with-allies-about-palestinian-statehood-recognition-official-tells-mps-1.7377712 .

FRENCH VERSION

June 9, 2025

The Right Honourable Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada

80 Wellington Street Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0A2

Mr. Prime Minister,

We are writing this open letter to you as a group of 412 law professors and lawyers specializing in international law and human rights; academics with proven expertise in international relations, justice, and human rights; civil society, religious, and labor leaders; and retired former ministers, diplomats, and civil servants who have worked for many decades to advance Canada’s global interests. We are writing it because of the catastrophic humanitarian and human rights crisis in Gaza, now in its twentieth month and widely considered by international law experts and leading human rights organizations to constitute genocide.

Waiting, hesitating, remaining silent and abstaining, or worse, refusing to act in the face of mounting and compelling evidence of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity can no longer be options for Canada. But speaking out is not enough. Canada must do everything in its power to end these atrocities and support efforts to hold those responsible accountable. This is what our signatures to the 1948 Genocide Convention and the 1998 Rome Statute establishing the International Criminal Court demand.

We propose five priority recommendations for action, which are described in more detail at the end of this letter. We urge you to act on these suggestions, both unilaterally and jointly with your partners, including at the upcoming G7 summit.

• Work actively for an immediate and permanent ceasefire and the release of all Israeli and Palestinian captives.
• Insist on full access for humanitarian aid to Gaza, in accordance with the fundamental humanitarian principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality and independence, and demand the complete lifting of the ban imposed by Israel on the United Nations Relief and Works Agency.
• Publicly support and fully comply with the role of international tribunals in holding accountable those who violate international law in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem, as well as in Israel.
• Take all possible domestic measures, including immediately withdrawing from the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement, imposing sanctions on Israeli leaders and others suspected of involvement in atrocity crimes, launching investigations into allegations of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity under the Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act (including any Canadian or dual national implicated in such crimes ) with the aim of prosecuting offenders in Canada or another jurisdiction, implementing a total and complete arms embargo in both directions, and stripping charitable status from organizations found complicit in crimes under international law.
• Without further delay, join the 149 states that recognize the State of Palestine as a state and support all efforts to have Palestine admitted as a full member of the United Nations.

The emergency

We write to you with an unprecedented sense of urgency, which only increases as the situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, particularly in Gaza, worsens by the hour.

First, there is urgency because the situation on the ground in Gaza has become unimaginably dire. Adequate words to accurately describe the level and scale of death, suffering, and destruction elude us. Even a term like “apocalyptic” seems insufficient. More than 54,000 Gazans have been killed since the beginning of Israeli military operations, representing a staggering 2.4 percent of the population. We write this figure knowing that it is an underestimate and will rise daily. The true death toll is almost certainly higher, given that many bodies have yet to be recovered from under the rubble of buildings that collapsed under the bombardment. Countless others are dying of malnutrition and infectious diseases. An estimated 70 percent of the dead are women and children. [1]   The number of children killed – often all the children of a family at the same time – breaks the collective heart of humanity.

What has happened in Gaza over the past 20 months is a heinous situation of unspeakable death and devastation that should not and cannot be allowed to continue for a single day, indeed a single minute, longer. That the situation has been allowed to reach this level of suffering is an ignoble shame for the entire international community, including Canada. It is the inevitable result of months of inaction and complete impunity.

We fully agree with the detailed analysis and conclusions reached by United Nations human rights experts, [2] respected human rights organizations , [3] and numerous academic lawyers, [4] namely that genocide is taking place in Gaza. It should not have come to this. We remind you that there is a clear and unambiguous legal obligation on parties to the Genocide Convention , of which Canada is obviously a party, to prevent genocide when there is a risk of its being committed. It cannot be said with any semblance of rationality that such a risk has not existed over the past 20 months.

Indeed, on January 26, 2024, the International Court of Justice held that the right of the Palestinian people of Gaza under the Genocide Convention not to be subjected to acts of genocide is plausibly at stake and that there is a “real and imminent risk” of genocide in Gaza. [5]   This is sufficient to trigger the obligation for all signatories to the Genocide Convention —including Canada—to take positive steps to prevent genocide in Gaza. In addition, the Court ordered the Israeli government to “take effective measures without delay to enable the provision of urgently required basic services and humanitarian assistance to alleviate the difficult living conditions to which the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip are subjected.” [6]

Since that decision more than sixteen months ago, and in violation of two other binding interim measures orders from the ICJ, [7] Israel has taken steps that have exponentially worsened conditions in Gaza. Israel’s decision to completely block humanitarian access to Gaza since March 2, 2025, and more recently, to bypass UN and other established humanitarian agencies to instead provide a meager level of aid through the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a so-called humanitarian foundation devoid of humanity, independence, impartiality, and neutrality, has been widely condemned, including by your government. According to Tom Fletcher, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, these so-called “humanitarian” measures adopted by Israel are a “cynical spectacle,” “a deliberate distraction,” and “a fig leaf for further violence and displacement.” [8] It should be noted that dozens of Palestinians have been killed and hundreds more injured while attempting to collect GHF food aid to date. [9]

We write with full knowledge that one year ago—on June 10, 2024—the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 2735 (proposed by the United States), which demanded “an immediate, total, and complete ceasefire” and the return of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners, the return of Palestinian civilians to their homes and neighborhoods throughout the Gaza Strip, and the safe delivery of large-scale humanitarian aid throughout the Strip. The resolution also rejects “any attempt at demographic or territorial change in the Gaza Strip, including any act aimed at reducing the territory of Gaza.”

We write to you with added urgency as you will be hosting the G7 summit in Kananaskis in five days. We expect the situation in Gaza, broader issues related to Israel and Palestine, and broader tensions and openings regarding geopolitical and security challenges in the Middle East to be part of your discussions. This is a crucial opportunity for concerted action by seven of the world’s most influential governments and economies. It is an opportunity that must be seized.

We welcomed the joint statement issued by three of the seven G7 leaders, namely French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and yourself, on May 19, 2025, [10] and we welcome the red lines that were drawn. We note in particular that you committed to taking “further concrete measures” if the Israeli government continues its renewed military offensive and does not lift its restrictions on humanitarian aid to Gaza. You indicated that you will not hesitate “to take further action, including targeted sanctions” if Israel does not halt the expansion of illegal settlements in the West Bank. The time for such action is now. Despite extensive and credible documentation of ongoing international crimes, Canada still refuses to act. What more proof is needed?

Indeed, you have yet to take any action in this regard, despite the fact that the new military offensive and restrictions on humanitarian aid that you denounced nearly three weeks ago have not abated. Similarly, we have seen no response from Canada to the recent decision by the Israeli security cabinet to establish 22 new illegal settlements in the West Bank, the most significant such step since the Oslo Accords and which Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz explicitly acknowledges as “a strategic measure that prevents the creation of a Palestinian state that would endanger Israel.” [11]   Prime Minister Carney, it is clearly time to take the concrete steps that have been promised by Canada. We expect that, as host of the summit, and in collaboration with President Macron and Prime Minister Starmer, you will inspire broader G7 action in this direction.

International Courts and International Law

We have been closely following the investigation launched by the International Criminal Court into the situation in the State of Palestine. As you know, in May 2024, the Court’s Prosecutor sought arrest warrants for three Hamas leaders and two Israeli leaders on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity related to the October 7 attack and the subsequent military offensive. All three Hamas leaders were subsequently killed, and the proceedings against them were either dropped or withdrawn. Arrest warrants were issued for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant in November 2024 and have yet to be executed. [12] The Court’s investigations are ongoing, and it is entirely possible that further arrest warrants may be sought.

In May 2024, many of us supported an open letter to your predecessor Justin Trudeau from 375 academics, legal experts, civil society representatives, faith leaders, former ministers, and diplomats, calling on the Canadian government to support the ongoing work of the ICC regarding Palestine. [13]   This remains a key imperative to address the decades of impunity that have shielded those responsible for serious crimes under international law in Palestine and Israel from accountability.

So far, we have been disappointed by what can only be described as ambivalent and reluctant support from the Canadian government for the ICC. Your government must support the ICC investigation not only in words, but also in deeds, for example, by assigning investigators to assist the Court’s investigation into atrocities in Palestine, as it did with the Ukraine investigation. We also implore your government to not only clearly state that it will implement existing ICC arrest warrants, but also to support the issuance of additional warrants, particularly with respect to atrocities in the West Bank.

We also draw your attention to the Advisory Opinion issued by the International Court of Justice in July 2024, in which the Court concluded that “Israel’s presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory is unlawful.” [14]   The Court further noted that all States – including Canada and all members of the G7 – are “under an obligation not to render aid or assistance in maintaining the situation created by [Israel’s unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory].” [15] The Court affirmed that all States therefore have a duty “to distinguish, in their dealings with Israel, between the territory of the State of Israel and the territories occupied since 1967.” [16] In this regard, the Court affirmed that this duty includes, inter alia:

• the obligation not to maintain treaty relations with Israel in any case where it claims to act on behalf of the Occupied Palestinian Territory or any part thereof on matters concerning the said Territory;
• not to maintain, with respect to the Occupied Palestinian Territory or parts thereof, economic or commercial relations with Israel which would be likely to strengthen the latter’s illicit presence in that territory;
• they must refrain, in establishing and maintaining diplomatic missions in Israel, from recognizing in any way its illicit presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory; and
• to take measures to prevent trade or investment that assists in maintaining the illicit situation created by Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.” [17]

As the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, the ICJ’s precedent-setting and authoritative determination of international law is binding on all States, whether or not that determination appears in the form of an advisory opinion of the Court. This is because the Court’s decisions are based primarily on Israel’s violations of peremptory norms of international law, from which no derogation is permitted.

Several of us were involved in sending letters to the former Prime Minister and relevant ministers, and in meetings with them throughout 2024, making recommendations on measures that Canada is legally obliged to take in response to the 2024 Advisory Opinion, including with respect to illegal settlements in the West Bank, which constitute war crimes; but very little has been done, and the minimal measures that have been taken, such as sanctions against individual settlers in the West Bank, have clearly proven ineffective. [18]

In our view, Canada has fallen far short of its clear international legal obligation not to provide “aid or assistance” to Israel to continue its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and to commit other internationally wrongful acts, including core international crimes, in the Territory.

Recommendations

Both morally and legally, it is incumbent upon Canada, and therefore upon your government, to take all possible measures to end, prevent, investigate, and punish genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity in Gaza, the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Israel. We note that under the Genocide Convention , Canada has an express obligation to prevent and punish genocide. Furthermore, the Convention is widely recognized as giving rise to erga omnes obligations , which all states have a legal interest in upholding. No state can or should remain passive in the face of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide. We urge you to prioritize Canadian action in five areas.

1) CEASEFIRE AND RELEASE OF CAPTIVES

The most immediate action in Gaza is a total and unconditional ceasefire, beginning with a complete halt to Israel’s renewed ground offensive. This must include the release of all captives illegally held by Hamas and Israel. Your government has expressed its opposition to the renewed offensive and insisted that it be halted. It has also repeatedly called for a ceasefire and the release of the hostages. Working with the G7 and other partners, there must now be consequences for the continued failure and refusal to comply with these demands.

2) HUMANITARIAN ACCESS

The blockade of humanitarian access to Gaza since early March has created catastrophic conditions on the ground that United Nations officials have described as a famine; a famine that is not the result of environmental conditions or crop failures, but is entirely caused by the policies, decisions, and actions of the Israeli government. Your government must insist that the Israeli embargo on the United Nations Relief and Works Agency be lifted and that aid be allowed into Gaza on the scale required and in accordance with the binding orders of the International Court of Justice in South Africa v. Israel , as well as the widely recognized humanitarian principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality, and independence. Once again, in collaboration with other governments, Israel’s refusal to respect this most basic humanitarian imperative must have consequences. Canada must not work with, recognize, or support the Gaza Humanitarian Aid Foundation in any way, as it does not adhere to these humanitarian principles and instead supports Israel’s military strategies and intentions toward the Gaza Strip.

3) SUPPORT FOR INTERNATIONAL COURTS

Canada has a long and proud tradition of supporting the important role of international tribunals in upholding international law. Support for these institutions is vital at this time. The International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court are both actively engaged in cases involving allegations and accusations of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity in Israel and Palestine. Both courts have been the subject of hostile criticism and challenge from some governments, particularly those of Israel and the United States. Canada can do much more to demonstrate the substance of its support for international tribunals. This should include developing an action plan to ensure that Canada (a) complies with the ICJ’s 2024 advisory opinion concerning the wrongfulness of Israel’s continued presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory; (b) intervene in South Africa’s case before the ICJ under the Genocide Convention as Canada has done in other cases (e.g., Gambia v. Myanmar) ; make a clear public statement confirming Canada’s commitment to executing arrest warrants issued by the PTC; and (d) work with other governments to convey to the ICC Prosecutor concerns about the expansion of illegal settlements in the West Bank.

4) TAKE ALL POSSIBLE MEASURES IN CANADA

In addition to international action, Canada can and must take many steps domestically. In fact, we are legally obligated to do so. The Genocide Convention prohibits not only genocide but also “complicity in genocide.” The Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act sets out the legal framework within which charges related to genocide, crimes against humanity, or war crimes can be brought against Canadians and non-Canadians in Canadian courts. Among other measures, we call on your government to:

• build on the sanctions that have been imposed against Hamas, other Palestinian armed groups and leaders associated with these groups, as well as the sanctions imposed against extremist settlers, by imposing sanctions against key Israeli government officials suspected of responsibility for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Israel Katz, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich;
• implement a comprehensive two-way arms ban between Canada and Israel, including all Canadian arms, parts or components and “dual-use” items transferred to Israel via the United States or any third state;
• withdraw from the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement, particularly given that the agreement is illegal because it violates two peremptory norms of international law, namely the prohibition of the acquisition of territory by the threat or use of force and the obligation to respect the right of a people to self-determination (see the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties , Article 53), and the fact that the agreement includes goods and services from illegal settlements in the West Bank and does not distinguish between Israeli territory and the Occupied Palestinian Territory;
• request the RCMP to initiate investigations into allegations that Canadian citizens and organizations incorporated and based in Canada have committed or aided and abetted the commission of genocide, war crimes or crimes against humanity in Israel or Palestine, including while serving in the Israeli Defense Forces, with the specific aim of prosecuting the alleged perpetrators of the offenses; and
• appoint an independent expert to investigate and ensure that any organization with Canadian charitable status that has provided financial or other support to genocide, crimes against humanity, or war crimes is stripped of that status.

 5) RECOGNITION OF THE STATE OF PALESTINE

Finally, Mr. Prime Minister, we urge you to recognize the State of Palestine, which should be granted full membership in the United Nations. This recognition enjoys widespread support, as 149 states have already done so (148 of the 193 UN member states, plus one non-member observer state, the Holy See). [19]   The Canadian government has already expressed its intention to do so eventually, but has indicated that it is premature. [20]   This cannot continue, especially as the Israeli government pursues actions such as the genocide in Gaza and the expansion of illegal settlements in the West Bank, which are (by Israel’s own admission) designed to undermine the territorial integrity and political independence of Palestine. As the International Court of Justice noted in its 2024 advisory opinion, the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination in their state is a peremptory norm of international law, from which no derogation is permitted, and therefore not subject to negotiation. Canada’s position is condescending and contravenes the fundamental right of Palestinians to self-determination. Canada cannot and must not wait any longer.

We also remind you that on 18 September 2024, the United Nations General Assembly adopted by an overwhelming majority (124-14-45) resolution ES-10/24, which not only welcomed the July 2024 advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice, but also gave Israel a firm deadline of 12 months to completely end its illegal occupation of Palestinian territory. We urge you to join other like-minded states around the world who, should Israel fail to obey the clear directives of the Court, the United Nations, and the international community, will consider the necessary consequences of this defiance.

Mr. Prime Minister, there is no doubt about Canada’s side of history. Because of Canada’s proclaimed “shared values” and its close relationship with Israel, Ottawa must spare no effort to immediately end the genocide in Gaza and the war crimes and crimes against humanity in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Respect for international law is the only path through which not only peace, justice, and human rights, but also the long-term, sustainable security of Israelis and Palestinians will be achieved.

[1] Al Jazeera, Nearly 70 percent of deaths in Gaza are women and children: UN , November 8, 2024, https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/11/8/nearly-70-percent-of-deaths-in-gaza-are-women-and-children-un .

 [2] United Nations General Assembly, Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, Francesca Albanese, Anatomy of a Genocide, Document A/HRC/55/73, 1 July 2024,   https://docs.un.org/fr/A/HRC/55/73 .

[3] Amnesty International, Israel/Occupied Palestinian Territory: ‘You Feel Like You Are Subhuman’: Israel’s Genocide Against Palestinians in Gaza , December 5, 2024; Human Rights Watch, Extermination and Acts of Genocide: Israel Deliberately Depriving Palestinians in Gaza of Water , December 19, 2024, https://www.hrw.org/report/2024/12/19/extermination-and-acts-genocide/israel-deliberately-depriving-palestinians-gaza .

[4] Open letter from UK judges and lawyers regarding the occupied Palestinian territory, 26 May 2025, https://lawyersletter.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Gaza-letter-26May25.pdf .

[5] “The Court is of the view that the facts and circumstances mentioned above are sufficient to conclude that at least some of the rights claimed and sought to be protected by South Africa are plausible. This applies to the right of Palestinians in Gaza to be protected against acts of genocide and related prohibited acts under Article III…” Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in the Gaza Strip (South Africa v. Israel), Request for the Indication of Provisional Measures, Order of 26 January 2024, paragraph 54, https://www.icj-cij.org/sites/default/files/case-related/192/192-20240126-ord-01-00-fr.pdf .

[6]  Ibid. , paragraph 86(4).

[7] Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in the Gaza Strip (South Africa v. Israel), Application for modification of the Order of 26 January 2024 indicating provisional measures, Order of 28 March 2024, https://www.icj-cij.org/sites/default/files/case-related/192/192-20240328-ord-01-00-fr.pdf; Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in the Gaza Strip (South Africa v. Israel), Application for modification of the Order of 28 March 2024, Order of 24 May 2024, https://www.icj-cij.org/sites/default/files/case-related/192/192-20240524-ord-01-00-frc.pdf

[8]  Mr. Tom Fletcher, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator – Briefing to the Security Council on the humanitarian situation and the protection of aid workers in Gaza, May 13, 2025 , https://reliefweb.int/report/occupied-palestinian-territory/mr-tom-fletcher-under-secretary-general-humanitarian-affairs-and-emergency-relief-coordinator-briefing-security-council-humanitarian-situation-and-protection-aid-workers-gaza-13-may-2025-enarhe .

[9] CBC News , US-backed Gaza aid group halts distribution as 18 killed in Israeli strike on school shelter, June 4, 2025, https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/gaza-israel-aid-1.7551741 . 

[10] Joint statement by the leaders of Canada, the United Kingdom and France on the situation in Gaza and the West Bank, May 19, 2025, https://www.pm.gc.ca/en/news/statements/2025/05/19/joint-statement-by-the-leaders-of-canada-the-united-kingdom-and

[11] Lorenzo Tondo , Israel confirms plans to create 22 new settlements in occupied West Bank , The Guardian, May 29, 2025, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/may/29/israel-new-settlements-occupied-west-bank-palestinian-state .

[12] International Criminal Court, Situation in the State of Palestine, https://www.icc-cpi.int/en/palestine

[13] A call for Canadian support for the ICC’s work on Palestine and Israel, May 29, 2024, https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5fc01c8f405d5340f3254abf/t/6657cded6d7aab5e3357a855/1717030381613/Open+Letter+to+PM+Trudeau%2C+29.05.24+FR.pdf

[14] “The Court considers that Israel’s violations of the prohibition on the acquisition of territory by force and of the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination have a direct impact on the lawfulness of Israel’s continued presence, as an occupying Power, in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Israel’s persistent abuse of its position as an occupying Power by annexing and imposing permanent control over the Occupied Palestinian Territory, as well as by continuously depriving the Palestinian people of their right to self-determination, violates fundamental principles of international law and renders Israel’s presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory unlawful. » International Court of Justice, Advisory Opinion, Legal Consequences Arising from the Policies and Practices of Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, 19 July 2024, paragraph 261, https://www.icj-cij.org/sites/default/files/case-related/186/186-20240719-adv-01-00-frc.pdf

[15]  Ibid. , paragraph 279.

[16]  Ibid. , paragraph 278.

[17]  Ibid.

[18] Letters to the Canadian government, April, June and August 2024: Illegal settlements in the West Bank constitute war crimes, https://www.alexneve.ca/blog/2024warcrimeletters .

[19] Al Jazeera, Mapping which countries recognize Palestine in 2025 , April 10, 2025, https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/4/10/mapping-which-countries-recognise-palestine-in-2025 .

[20] “Canada is prepared to recognize a Palestinian state at the most conducive moment for lasting peace, even if it is not the final step toward achieving the two-state solution.” Government of Canada, Canadian Policy on Key Aspects of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, https://www.international.gc.ca/world-monde/international_relations-relations_internationales/mena-moan/israeli-palestinian_policy-politique_israelo-palestinien.aspx?lang=eng , accessed May 29, 2025; Raffy Boudjikanian, Canadian government speaking with allies about Palestinian statehood recognition, official tells MPs , CBC News, November 8, 2024, https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canadian-government-speaking-with-allies-about-palestinian-statehood-recognition-official-tells-mps-1.7377712