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Canada calls for an immediate ceasefire, warns against offensive in Rafah, but exports “military goods” to Israel

By
Brent Patterson
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Photo: In response to the Israeli military bombing of Rafah, an emergency rally was held outside the Prime Minister’s Office in Ottawa on February 12.

On February 14, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau stated: “an immediate humanitarian ceasefire is urgently needed”, “a military operation into Rafah would be catastrophic”, “the International Court of Justice has been clear: Israel must ensure the delivery of basic services and essential humanitarian assistance and must protect civilians” and that “a negotiated political solution is needed to achieve lasting peace and security”.

On December 12, 2023, Canada also voted in favour of a non-binding United Nations General Assembly resolution that called for an “immediate humanitarian ceasefire”.

Peace Brigades International supports the call for an immediate ceasefire.

The December 12, 2023, vote and February 14, 2024, statement by Canada represent a change in position from October 27, 2023, when it abstained on an emergency resolution at the UN General Assembly calling for an “immediate, durable and sustained humanitarian truce leading to a cessation of hostilities” in Gaza.

This may somewhat reflect a shift in public opinion.

In November 2023, an Angus Reid poll showed that 30 per cent of Canadians believed “a full ceasefire should be called immediately”. By February 2024, 49 per cent of Canadians supported the call for an immediate, full ceasefire. Only 18 per cent of Canadians now believe “a ceasefire should not be called at this time”.

Canadian military exports to Israel

While Canada has called for a ceasefire, the concern remains that it has increased its export of military goods to Israel since October 2023.

The Maple has reported: “The Trudeau government authorized at least $28.5 million of new permits for military exports to Israel during the first two months of the state’s brutal war on Gaza, data supplied to The Maple by Global Affairs Canada (GAC) shows.”

That article by Alex Cosh adds: “The total value of the new permits authorized over a two-month period exceeds the 30-year annual record high of $26 million in Canadian military exports to Israel in 2021.”

Furthermore: “The permits appear to have been authorized quickly, with one processed within four days of the application being submitted. In its 2022 report on military exports, GAC said that its target processing time was 10 days for ‘low-risk’ destinations, and 40 days for other destinations. Israel was not listed as a ‘low-risk’ destination in GAC’s most recent military exports report.”

International obligations

Following the International Court of Justice ruling on January 26, legal scholars at the University of Toronto and York University commented: “Because the ICJ found a serious risk of genocide in Gaza, continuing to export arms to Israel would be illegal [under the Export and Import Permits Act where Canada’s ascension to the Arms Trade Treaty is reflected]. It would also be flagrantly inconsistent with Canada’s obligation to prevent genocide, and could expose Canada and Canadian officials to liability for participation in genocide.”

A week prior to the ICJ ruling, Project Ploughshares highlighted: “The gravity of this situation calls for immediate action to ensure Canada is meeting its domestic and international obligations to mitigate the risk of contributing to violations of international law, for example, violations of international humanitarian law (IHL), including possible war crimes, in Gaza. Given the substantial risk that Canadian military goods could contribute to such abuses in Gaza, Canada must immediately halt all transfers of weapons to Israel.”

Assault on Rafah appears imminent

At this hour, The Jerusalem Post reports: “In the ground incursion, the last remaining large area is Rafah, where IDF sources say that a raid is an inevitable reality. ‘It will happen, and all that remains to be decided is the method and force.’”

Aljazeera also now reports: “The United States is preparing to send more bombs and other weapons to Israel even as it pushes for a ceasefire in the war on Gaza and has said it opposes Tel Aviv’s plans for a ground invasion in southern Rafah where more than half the enclave’s displaced population is trapped.”

That article adds: “According to the WSJ, the US has provided roughly 21,000 precision-guided munitions to Israel since the start of the war last October.”

Canada exports about $1 billion in “military goods” to the United States each year.

Because there is not a transparent and full accounting of this transfer of goods, it’s not possible to say if Canadian components are in the bombs and weapons the United States is preparing to send to Israel with the imminent attack on Rafah.

The call to Stop CANSEC

We do know, however, that the makers of the MK-82 500-pound bombs and KMU-572 Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAMs) that turn unguided munitions into precision-guided bombs that could be sent to Israel are General Dynamics and Boeing.

General Dynamics and Boeing are members of the Canadian Association of Defence and Security Industries (CADSI) and plan to market their products at the upcoming CADSI-organized CANSEC arms show this May 29-30 in Ottawa.

Photo: A protest at the CADSI office on February 13 called for an end to weapons shipments to Israel and committed to organize to stop the CANSEC arms show.

We continue to follow this situation.

#Day134

PBI-Colombia accompanies CAJAR lawyer Reynaldo Villalba during the fraud and bribery trial of former president’s lawyer Diego Cadena

By
Brent Patterson
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PBI-Colombia has posted: “We accompanied @ReynaldVillalba of @Ccajar [the José Alvear Restrepo Lawyers’ Collective] in the framework of the proceedings related to the trial being carried out against lawyer Cadena. Guarantees are urgently needed in the climate of defamation and threats.”

Diego Javier Cadena Ramírez was Álvaro Uribe’s lawyer. Uribe was the President of Colombia from 2002 to 2010 and a Senator from 2014 to 2020.

Photo: Lawyer Diego Cadena and former Colombian president Alvaro Uribe.

CAJAR has previously explained that Cadena on behalf of Uribe offered economic and legal benefits to Carlos Enrique Vélez (a paramilitary leader) and pressured and made offers to Juan Guillermo Monsalve (also a member of a paramilitary) so that they would both make false statements against Senator Iván Cepeda in favour of Uribe.

Photo: Senator Ivan Cepeda.

It is our understanding that Cepeda had made the case that Uribe was involved in the formation and support for the Metro Bloc paramilitary and that Cadena’s offers to the two paramilitary leaders was an effort to undermine Cepeda and suggest that he had approached them to make false testimony against Uribe.

Cepeda was acquitted in 2018 of this false charge of witness tampering. Later that year Uribe was implicated in witness tampering and procedural fraud. In August 2020, the Supreme Court of Justice ordered an arrest warrant against Uribe.

In October 2020, PBI-Colombia explained: “As human rights defender and Senator Iván Cepeda Castro’s lawyer, Reynaldo Villalba has accompanied this case against the ex-president since it began.”

Reporting on this past week’s trial, El Colombiano notes: “Reynaldo Villalba represents Senator Iván Cepeda in the process.”

Cadena on trial

This week, El Espectador reported: “The trial against Diego Cadena and his colleague, Juan José Salazar Cruz, accused as co-perpetrators of the crimes of procedural fraud and bribery, began on February 6.”

It adds: “Carlos Enrique Vélez, alias Víctor, claims that Cadena offered him 200 million pesos in exchange for a letter and statements” that “both he and his former boss alias Alberto Guerrero had met with Cepeda in La Picota prison in 2017” to offer false testimony against Uribe that linked him to the creation of the Metro Bloc of the Self-Defense Forces.

Infobae also reported: “Monsalve, in the midst of the face-to-face hearing that was held before the third criminal judge of the Circuit with Knowledge Function of Bogotá, reaffirmed that in February 2018, apparently, Cadena’s visits [to Monsalve in jail] began and with that the pressures.”

And El Pais noted: “Monsalve is a notorious former paramilitary who is imprisoned in La Picota. He is the Supreme Court’s biggest witness against Uribe, as he said that the former president participated in the creation of the Metro Bloc.”

Photo: Former paramilitary leaders Carlos Enrique Vélez and Juan Guillermo Monsalve.

Uribe and paramilitaries

InSight Crime explains: “The former president, his family members, and some of his closest associates have found themselves the subject of journalistic investigations and accusations that they aided and financed illegal right-wing paramilitaries in the 1990s.”

That article adds: “The groups, which ultimately came under the banner of the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC), served as the government’s proxies in a parallel war against the country’s leftist guerrillas and suspected collaborators. While maintaining ties to drug trafficking groups, the paramilitaries committed massacres and terrorized the civilian population, at times displacing entire villages.”

Accompaniment

PBI-Colombia has noted: “Between 2019 and 2020, lawyer Reynaldo Villalba, as the representative of Senator Iván Cepeda in the case against former president Alvaro Uribe Velez, has received threats and harassment. For which bars and lawyers around the world have joined to support the work of this group.”

PBI-Colombia has accompanied CAJAR since 1995.

We continue to follow this.

PBI-Colombia accompanies San José de Apartadó Peace Community and dhColombia at meeting with Canadian Embassy

By
Brent Patterson
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On February 14, PBI-Colombia posted:

“”As peasants, our greatest strength is the land,” says @cdpsanjose [the San José de Apartadó Peace Community] accompanied by @dhColombia [the Association of Human Rights Defenders Network] in a meeting with [the Embassy of] @CanadayColombia and @ONUHumanRights [United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights]. Guarantees are urgently needed against the continuity of threats and attacks against the Community in its defense of #DDHH [human rights] and #MedioAmbiente [environment].”

On the twentieth anniversary of its founding in peaceful resistance to armed conflict in 2017, the Peace Community counted 326 of its members murdered and more than 4,000 human rights violations committed against them.

In January 2021, Yes! magazine reported: “The Peace Community, in addition to suffering [a] new wave of violence [after the peace agreement in 2016], is also under the threat of losing their communal land from a state project of agrarian reform, according to Germán Romero, a lawyer with dhColombia, a nonprofit organization in charge of representing the community in court to seek justice for the violence they have experienced.”

Voices at Risk

While the Global Affairs Canada Voices at Risk voluntary guidelines on supporting human rights defenders (launched in 2016 and updated in 2019) does not specifically mention peasants, campesinos, campesinas or farmers, it does refer to best practices related to “land rights and environmental human rights” defenders (page 30-31).

The guidelines for embassies acknowledge: “Defenders may face heightened risk of violence or repression because of their work, particularly if they are members of vulnerable or disadvantaged groups such as women, Indigenous peoples, LGBTI persons, persons with disabilities and economically marginalized people.”

UN Declaration on the Rights of Peasants

The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and other people working in rural areas was adopted by the UN General Assembly in December 2018.

The resolution in support of the Declaration was approved by 119 votes in favour, 7 votes against and 49 abstentions. Canada was one of those abstentions.

CIVICUS has commented: “The declaration was a long time coming and many campesino communities – who have fought costly battles corporations to protect their lands and lives from harmful mining and infrastructural projects for years – celebrated the commitment to their struggles.”

Accompanied organizations

PBI-Colombia has previously noted: “The Peace Community of San José de Apartadó in the Urabá Antioqueño region was founded in 1997 in the midst of armed violence, forced displacement, and the murder of its leaders.”

It has also explained: “dhColombia’s work focuses on litigation and legal representation in cases of attacks on union leaders, peasant leaders, political opponents, and indigenous communities. dhColombia’s area of work extends to many regions of the country, which have been hit hard by the armed conflict and human rights violations.”

PBI-Colombia has accompanied the Peace Community since 1999 (two years after it was founded) and dhColombia since 2016 (the year it was founded).

We continue to follow this situation and take note that April 17 is the International Day of Peasant Struggles.

Photo: PBI-Colombia accompanies the Peace Community on Good Friday, April 7, 2023.

PBI-Honduras laments a police officer has not been sentenced in the femicide of Keyla Martinez in February 2021

By
Brent Patterson
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Photo: PBI-Honduras accompanied the Committee of Relatives of the Disappeared in Honduras (COFADEH) at the trial of police officer Jarol Perdomo; October 1, 2022.

On February 14, PBI-Honduras posted:

“Three years after the death of Keyla Martinez inside a police station, a sentence is still awaiting. According to her mother, Norma Rodriguez, the Siguatepeque Sentencing Court denied her information about her decision.

From PBI we show concern about the rates of impunity for femicide in Honduras (94%) and remind us of the importance of transparency in legal processes.

If you want to know more about this topic, read the following article.”

On February 8, the PBI-Honduras accompanied Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras (COPINH) also posted: “Yesterday, February 7, #COPINH together with various social organizations we joined the call to continue demanding justice for the murder of Keyla Martínez, who was murdered in police custody in La Esperanza, Intibucá.”

Photo: COPINH coordinator Bertha Zúñiga Cáceres calls for justice for Keyla.

Keyla Martinez, a 26-year-old nursing student, was murdered on February 7, 2021, while in police custody. She had been detained by police around 11:45 pm because of a curfew when returning home after eating with friends on a Saturday evening. There were more than 13 police officers on duty at the police station when she was killed.

On October 1, 2022, PBI-Honduras also posted:

“PBI accompanies Cofadeh [Committee of Relatives of the Disappeared in Honduras] in the trial against policeman Jarol Perdomo, accused of the death of Keyla Martínez. The process had entered a recess since September 29, 2022, due to the pending amparo appeal, filed by the private prosecution, to modify the simple homicide figure to aggravated femicide. Yesterday the parties announced the conclusions of the case.

The lawyer Karol Cárdenas, who is part of the private prosecution in the case, together with the lawyer Dora Oliva, requested that ‘the Public Ministry be urged to open an investigation process against all the police officers who helped Jarol Perdomo, to modify or hide the scene of the crime and they failed in the duty of the officials, because what was appropriate at that time was to put them at the order of the Public Ministry and take care of the scene of the crime.’”

On October 17, 2022, Criterio.hn reported: “[Police officer Jarol Perdomo] was accused by the Public Ministry (MP) of aggravated femicide, but the court of La Esperanza, Intibucá, was responsible for typifying the crime as simple homicide.”

Perdomo was convicted on September 13, 2023, of reckless homicide.

We continue to follow this.

Photo: PBI-Honduras accompanied the National Network of Women Human Rights Defenders (La Red Nacional de Defensoras de DDHH de Honduras) at a memorial to Keyla on the first anniversary of her murder, February 2022.

PBI-Mexico marks World Radio Day and celebrates the work of Indigenous communicators who defend territory

By
Brent Patterson
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PBI-Mexico has posted:

“This February 13th from @PBI_Mexico we celebrate the world radio day that has allowed the right to information and free expression.

We give a recognition to community radios Cholollan Radio, Mi Radio Zacatepec Tlaxcalancingo and Radio Comunitaria Amiltzinko 100.7Fm that use this medium to inform communities and defend their territory. From PBI, we support the indigenous social use of these radios in order to make visible the struggles for the promotion, development and preservation of their languages, their cultures and their knowledge.

#WorldRadioDay”

Photo: Indigenous Nahua communicator Miryam Vargas Teutle is with Cholollan Radio. She is a member of the Peoples Front in Defense of the Earth and Water (FPDTA) in the states of Morelos, Puebla and Tlaxcala (southeast Mexico).

Photo: In December 2021, PBI-Mexico visited Radio Zacatepec, a community radio station under threat for reporting on dangers to the Metlapanapa River.

Photo: Indigenous Náhuatl environmental activist Samir Flores Soberanes, founder of Community Radio Amiltzinko 100.7 FM and a member of the FPDTA, was murdered on February 21, 2019 for his opposition to the PIM megaproject.

We join with PBI-Mexico in highlighting the important work of community radio and Indigenous communicators.

At this time, we are also particularly attentive to the case of Cree/Iroquois/French journalist Brandi Morin who was arrested on January 10, 2024, and charged with criminal obstruction for reporting on a police raid of an Indigenous homeless camp in Edmonton, Alberta (Treaty Six territory) in Canada. She could face two years in jail.

PBI-Guatemala accompanies trial of union member, students, professors who opposed fraudulent election of university rector

By
Brent Patterson
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PBI-Guatemala has posted:

“Last week, PBI accompanied the Human Rights Law Firm [BDH] to the hearing of first statement of 8 people criminalized in the case ‘USAC Takeover: Political Spoils’.

The MP [Public Ministry] accuses students, unionists and professionals of depredation of cultural assets, aggravated usurpation, unlawful association and sedition for supporting the university resistance that opposed the imposition of Walter Mazariegos as rector of the University of San Carlos de Guatemala (USAC).

The judge scheduled the next hearing for Tuesday, February 13, where it will be known if any of the accused wishes to give a statement.”

On February 13, Prensa Comunitaria tweeted: “Today the hearing of the first statement of the people criminalized for opposition to the imposition of rector Walter Mazariegos was resumed. Judge Víctor Cruz will listen to students, union members and professionals from the USAC, who supported the student movement that denounced the imposition of Mazariegos.”

Those accused

The six facing charges of “continued aggravated usurpation, continued plunder of cultural property, and criminal conspiracy” are: 1) Rodolfo Chang Shium, 2) Alfredo Bebe Aceituno, 3) Javier de León Gómez, 4) Marcela Blanco Fuentes, 5) Eduardo Antonio Velásquez Carrera, and 6) Martín Jorge Macario. The group is said to include: a student, a dean (and member of the CSU/Higher University Council), a trade unionist, a researcher, a teacher, and an activist.

Public Services International (PSI) has posted: “We demand the cancellation of the orders against the trade unionists and the immediate release of comrade Martín Jorge Macario, 43, a General Services worker at USAC and former leader of the union of workers at this university (STUSC).”

Photo: Martín Jorge Macario.

Soy 502 reports: “Marcela Blanco is 23 years old and has a degree in Communication Sciences from Rafael Landívar University. She is currently pursuing a master’s degree in public administration.” She was a candidate for Semilla party (the Seed Movement) in the June 2023 general election.

Photo: Marcela Blanco being taken into custody, November 2023.

Plaza Publica has also reported: “Participating in the protests that rejected Walter Mazariegos as rector of the University of San Carlos de Guatemala (USAC), was the basis of the MP to accuse Eduardo Antonio Velásquez, economist, sociologist, professor and researcher. ‘Guayo’ is one of those implicated in the USAC Takeover: Political Booty case. …According to the accusatory thesis, he is responsible for the damages caused to the University during the seizure of the facilities in rejection of the election of the rector Walter Mazariegos.”

Photo: The accused were held at the Mariscal Zavala Military Barracks.

The background

Mouvement Démocratie Nouvelle has explained:

“Mazariegos was elected rector of the University of San Carlos in a controversial election [on May 14, 2022] and is seen by his critics as a confidant of the pact of the corrupt [Pacto de Corruptos]. Seven electoral representatives of the faculties in which Mazariegos’ opponents had won were excluded. The most promising opponent, former human rights president Jordán Rodas, was forced into exile in August [2022] following threats from far-right circles.

The rector of the University of San Carlos has the right to vote and thus influence in various state committees. Critics accuse Mazariegos of seeking a process of gradual privatization of Guatemala’s only public university. To protest what they see as a manipulated election, student organizations occupied the capital’s central campus in late April 2022; Their action lasted until June of [2023]. Various university branches in the country were also occupied for months.”

Prensa Comunitaria further notes:

“On Wednesday, July 19, [2023] the U.S. Department of State published the Engel List in which they sanction citizens of Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras, accused of being involved in corruption cases. In Guatemala, there are several names of judges, prosecutors and officials. The list includes Walter Mazariegos, rector of the University of San Carlos (USAC), rejected by the student community for reaching this position through a fraud promoted by the government.”

We continue to follow this with concern.

Photo.

South Africa lodges ‘urgent request’ with International Court of Justice to consider if Israeli attack on Rafah breaches provisional orders

By
Brent Patterson
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Photo: PBI-Canada was present at an emergency rally in Ottawa on February 12 following the Israeli airstrikes against Rafah earlier that morning.

The Associated Press reports: “South Africa’s government said Tuesday [February 13] it had lodged an ‘urgent request’ with the U.N.’s International Court of Justice to consider whether Israel’s military operations targeting the southern Gaza city of Rafah are a breach of provisional orders the court handed down last month in a case alleging genocide.”

That article adds: “South Africa has asked the court to weigh whether Israel’s intention to launch a ground offensive in Rafah — where 1.4 million Palestinians have fled in an attempt to escape fighting — represents a ‘further imminent breach of the rights of Palestinians in Gaza’.”

Under Article 75(1) of the Rules of Court: “The Court may at any time decide to examine proprio motu whether the circumstances of the case require the indication of provisional measures which ought to be taken or complied with by any or all of the parties.”

The South African government says: “In a request submitted to the court yesterday (12 February 2024), the South African Government said it was gravely concerned that the unprecedented military offensive against Rafah, as announced by the State of Israel, has already led to and will result in further large scale killing, harm and destruction. This would be in serious and irreparable breach both of the Genocide Convention and of the Court’s Order of 26 January 2024.”

More than 100 people, including children, were reportedly killed when Israeli attacked Rafah in the early hours of Monday morning. Israel had previously designated Rafah a “safe zone” and more than 1 million displaced people are sheltering there with nowhere to go.

We continue to follow this.

Dutch Appeals Court rules the Netherlands must stop within 7 days the export of parts for F-35 fighter jets to Israel

By
Brent Patterson
-

Photo: An Israeli Air Force F-35I with four GBU-31s in the foreground.

This morning, the Associated Press reports: “Judges in the Netherlands on Monday [February 12] ordered the Dutch government to halt the export of F-35 fighter jet parts to Israel, citing a clear risk of violations of international law. A trio of human rights organizations [have] argued that delivery of parts for the aircraft makes the Netherlands complicit in possible war crimes being committed by Israel in its war with Hamas. The Hague Court of Appeals [has now] ordered the government to cease exports within seven days.”

Judge Bas Boele says: “It is undeniable that there is a clear risk that the exported F-35 parts are used in serious violations of international humanitarian law.”

The ruling also said: “Israel does not take sufficient account of the consequences for the civilian population when conducting its attacks.”

CNBC further reports: “The appeals court also said it was likely that the F-35s were being used in attacks on Gaza, leading to unacceptable civilian casualties. It dismissed the Dutch state’s argument that it did not have to do a new check on the permit for the exports.”

And The Jerusalem Post adds: “[The court] said the state had to comply with the order within seven days and dismissed a request by government lawyers to suspend the order during an appeal to the Supreme Court.”

The Court’s ruling can be read in full here.

Lockheed Martin has responded: “We’re working closely with the F-35 Joint Program Office to evaluate the impacts the recent Dutch court ruling will have on our supply chain.”

The F-35 Lightning II Joint Program Office (JPO) is “the United States Government representative and implementing agency for the F-35 Production, Sustainment and Follow on Development Memorandum of Understanding (PSFD MOU) between the countries.”

F-35 partner countries include Canada.

On November 2, 2023, the Office of the Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO) reported: “Prior to the conclusion of the open competition for the Future Fighter Capability Program [January 9, 2023], Canada had contributed funds towards the 2006 Joint Strike Fighter Memorandum of Understanding. With contributions during each of the 2010-11 through the 2022-23 fiscal years, these amounts totaled approximately $0.5 billion.”

The PBO adds: “Contributions occurring in the 2023-24 fiscal year and later are fully included in the estimates described in this report.”

Canadian parts in F-35s

Significantly, Kelsey Gallagher of Project Ploughshares has noted in “Fanning the Flames” that at least 110 Canadian-based suppliers have been awarded contracts for the F-35 program and that a study commissioned by Lockheed Martin in 2018 says there are US$2.3-million worth of Canadian components in every F-35 jet.

Legal implications for Canada

The Court of Appeals ruling also highlights: “The Netherlands is a party to several international regulations which stipulate that if a clear risk of serious violations of international humanitarian law exists, the Netherlands has the obligation to prevent the export of military equipment.”

Canada is under similar obligations.

Commenting on the International Court of Justice finding on January 26 that it is “plausible” that Israel has committed acts in Gaza that violate the Genocide Convention, law professors from York University and the University of Toronto have commented: “Because the ICJ found a serious risk of genocide in Gaza, continuing to export arms to Israel would be illegal [under the Export and Import Permits Act where Canada’s ascension to the Arms Trade Treaty is reflected]. It would also be flagrantly inconsistent with Canada’s obligation to prevent genocide, and could expose Canada and Canadian officials to liability for participation in genocide.”

Ottawa-based CADSI, the lobby group for the arms industry in Canada that counts among its members Lockheed Martin, has not commented on social media about either the International Court of Justice or Court of Appeals rulings.

We continue to follow this.

Photo: Defund Warplanes protest on Parliament Hill on January  7, two days before Canada announced it had contracted with Lockheed Martin to buy F-35 fighter jets.

Canada’s weapons sales may make it complicit of violations in international law, war crimes and genocide in Gaza

By
Brent Patterson
-

Video still: At least 67 Palestinians were killed and many others wounded by Israeli airstrikes and ground operations on Monday morning (2 am local time) in Rafah.

This morning, the Associated Press reports: “Judges in the Netherlands on Monday [February 12] ordered the Dutch government to halt the export of F-35 fighter jet parts to Israel, citing a clear risk of violations of international law.”

That article adds: “A trio of human rights organizations [have] argued that delivery of parts for the aircraft makes the Netherlands complicit in possible war crimes being committed by Israel in its war with Hamas. The Hague Court of Appeals [has now] ordered the government to cease exports within seven days.”

Law professors from the University of Toronto and York University recently commented on the International Court of Justice finding on January 26 that it is “plausible” that Israel has committed acts in Gaza that violate the Genocide Convention.

They stated: “Because the ICJ found a serious risk of genocide in Gaza, continuing to export arms to Israel would be illegal [under the Export and Import Permits Act where Canada’s ascension to the Arms Trade Treaty is reflected]. It would also be flagrantly inconsistent with Canada’s obligation to prevent genocide, and could expose Canada and Canadian officials to liability for participation in genocide.”

What weapons are being used in the airstrikes on Gaza?

When the media reports on Israeli Air Force (IAF) airstrikes on Gaza, the type of aircraft and bombs used is usually not specified.

But back in November 2023, Aljazeera reported that “the workhorse of the Gaza bombing campaign is the F-16” and that “almost all bombs dropped belong to the United States-designed Mk80 family, which has been in service since the Vietnam War.”

Various sources – including articles in Defense News, The Eurasian Times, the Middle East Monitor, and The Guardian – suggest the F-35I Adir (“Mighty One” in Hebrew) is being used by the IAF in Gaza. The Aviationist further notes that Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi says the F-35 provides “Close Air Support to troops in Gaza … with 2,000 lb GBU-31 JDAM bombs.”

Reporting on the bombing of the Jabalia refugee camp in Gaza, The Guardian quoted Chris Cobb-Smith, a former United Nations weapons inspector, who said: “The munition is almost certainly JDAM, either a GBU 31 (Warhead Mark 84) general purpose bomb or possibly a GBU 56 (Warhead BLU 109) bunker buster. Both about 2,000lb [900kg].”

Business Insider has also reported: “The F-15I Ra’am, also known as Thunder in Israel, plays a key role in the IDF’s air campaign in Gaza.”

And an Associated Press story carried by CP24 includes a photo captioned: “An Israeli Apache helicopter fires a missile in direction of the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Monday, Dec. 25, 2023.” The Eurasian Times has also noted the use of AH-64D Apache attack helicopters carrying Hellfire missiles presumably for attacks against Gaza.

Who makes these weapons?

The companies behind these aircraft and bombs include General Dynamics (F-16 fighter jets, Mk80 bombs), Lockheed Martin (F-35 fighter jets, Hellfire missiles) and Boeing (F-15 fighter jets, GBU 31 JDAM bombs, GBU 56 bombs, AH-64D Apache attack helicopters).

Are there Canadian components in these weapons?

Project Ploughshares has reported that at least 110 Canadian-based suppliers have been awarded contracts for the F-35 program and that a study commissioned by Lockheed Martin in 2018 says there are US$2.3-million worth of Canadian components in every F-35 jet.

And Boeing has previously noted that “Canadian partners provide aerospace parts for all Boeing commercial airplane models and nearly all defence programs, including the AH-64 Apache … and F-15 fighter aircraft.”

How are CADSI and CANSEC linked?

General Dynamics, Lockheed Martin and Boeing are all members of the Canadian Association of Defence and Security Industries (CADSI) lobby group and all are exhibitors at the CANSEC arms show held annually in Ottawa (the next one will be May 29-30).

What’s next?

Yesterday, Euro-Med Monitor reported in the fifteen days since the International Court of Justice ruling that the Israeli military has killed over 1,864 Palestinians—including 690 children and 441 women—and injured over 2,933 more.

Canada does not appear willing to take any action following the ruling.

Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly commented on the day of the ICJ ruling: “Our support for the ICJ does not mean that we accept the premise of the case brought by South Africa. It is for the ICJ to make a final decision on the case, which it has not done today. We continue to follow the case very closely. Canada will continue to support Israel’s right to exist and defend itself, in accordance with international law.”

A next key moment may be the International Court of Justice public hearings on “the request for an advisory opinion in respect of the Legal Consequences arising from the Policies and Practices of Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem” that will take place from Monday February 19 to Monday February 26 in The Hague.

Fifty-two countries have indicated they will participate in these proceedings. Canada is scheduled to speak on Tuesday February 20 from 4.40 p.m.-5.10 p.m. CET.

PBI-Canada will be present at today’s protest in front of the Prime Minister’s Office in Ottawa.

Further reading: The Companies Profiting from Israel’s 2023-2024 Attacks on Gaza (AFSC Action Center on Corporate Accountability), Trudeau Government Authorized $28.5 Million Of New Military Exports To Israel Since October (Alex Cosh, The Maple, February 10, 2024) and  Fanning the Flames: The grave risk of Canada’s arms exports to Israel (Kelsey Gallagher, Project Ploughshares, January 18, 2024).

Spanish actors at Goya Awards say ‘Stop the arms trade’; what about the Junos and Canadian Screen Awards?

By
Brent Patterson
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Photo: Actors Alba Flores and Ana Belén. Photo by Cordon Press/Europa Press.

The Goya Awards (Premios Goya) are Spain’s annual film awards akin to the Canadian Screen Awards or the Academy Awards in the United States.

This year the award ceremony was held on Saturday February 10 in Valladolid, a city situated about 210 kilometres north-west of Madrid.

20 Minutos reports that actor Ana Belén was one of the hosts and that as “she walked the carpet, alluded to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict with a sticker that she showed on her hand and which reads: ‘Gaza. Ceasefire now. Stop the arms trade’.”

That article adds: “[Actor] Alba Flores, [director] Isabel Coixet, who competes with Un amor, and [Basque director and screenwriter] Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren, whose film, 20,000 Species of Bees, is one of the favourites of the night, have also shown it.”

Photo: Director Isabel Coixet.

La Guardia highlights: “This year, one detail has caught everyone’s attention: a watermelon-shaped sticker that many familiar faces, including the presenter of the current awards, have proudly worn.”

Their article also explains: “You only need to read the slogan to understand that they are stickers in support of the Palestinian cause. ‘GAZA. Stop the arms trade. Ceasefire now’ read these stickers, a strong and direct message against the conflict between Gaza and Israel. Moreover, the choice of this symbol is no coincidence. The watermelon, with its colors, represents the flag of Palestine.”

At the ceremony, Urresola said: “If there’s one thing [20,000 Species of Bees] talks about, it’s the importance of naming things and I also wanted to take this opportunity to say that what is happening in Gaza is genocide and we have to ask our governments to stop it.”

Photo: Basque director and screenwriter Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren.

Video: “I take this opportunity to name what is happening in Gaza. It is a genocide and we have to ask governments to stop it.”

Cadenaser also notes: “Actress Alba Flores starred in an off-script moment at the Goya Awards gala when she spoke a few words in support of the people of Palestine before presenting the award for best original song with Amaia Romero.”

It adds: “’Good night and peace for Palestine, please,’ the actress proclaimed, which was followed by unanimous and thunderous applause from the audience. Flores had already starred on the Red Carpet wearing a badge calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.”

Video: “Peace for Palestine, please.”

The “Stop the arms trade” button and sticker were also mentioned in these news reports in El Espanol, El HuffPost, News ES Euro, El Correo, Libertad Digital, El Periodico Mediterraneo, La Vanguardia, Diez Minutos, and ABC among others.

Photo: Penelope Cruz.

Photo: Singer Salvador Sobral, actor Alba Flores and director Alejandro Marín, against arms sales used in Gaza. Photo by Cordon Press/Europa Press.

The Goya Awards took place on the 127th day of the Israeli assault on Gaza. During this period, Israel has killed at least 28,064 Palestinians, and injured more than 67,611.

Canadian arms exports to Israel

Also, on the same day as the Goya Awards, Alex Cosh of The Maple reported: “The Trudeau government authorized at least $28.5 million of new permits for military exports to Israel during the first two months of the state’s brutal war on Gaza, data supplied to The Maple by Global Affairs Canada (GAC) shows.”

“The total value of the new permits authorized over a two-month period exceeds the 30-year annual record high of $26 million in Canadian military exports to Israel in 2021.”

That article adds: “The permits appear to have been authorized quickly, with one processed within four days of the application being submitted. In its 2022 report on military exports, GAC said that its target processing time was 10 days for ‘low-risk’ destinations, and 40 days for other destinations. Israel was not listed as a ‘low-risk’ destination in GAC’s most recent military exports report.”

Three Toronto-based law professors have noted: “Because the ICJ [International Court of Justice] found a serious risk of genocide in Gaza, continuing to export arms to Israel would be illegal [under the Export and Import Permits Act where Canada’s ascension to the Arms Trade Treaty is reflected]. It would also be flagrantly inconsistent with Canada’s obligation to prevent genocide, and could expose Canada and Canadian officials to liability for participation in genocide.”

Canadian award shows in Toronto and Halifax

The 2024 Canadian Screen Awards, this “country’s equivalent of the Oscars and Emmys” will take place this coming May 28-31 at the CBC Broadcast Centre in Toronto.

The nominees will be announced on March 6.

The 2024 Juno Awards for the music industry will take place on March 24 at the Scotiabank Centre in Halifax. The full list of nominees can be read here.

Notably, Bloomberg reports: “The Bank of Nova Scotia’s asset-management arm is facing scrutiny for being the largest foreign shareholder in a publicly traded Israeli defense contractor … Elbit Systems Ltd., which has been accused of manufacturing cluster munitions.” Mondoweiss adds: “ In October 2022, Scotiabank’s asset fund put $500 million into Elbit Systems Ltd, which amounts to 5% of the company.”

At the Scotiabank Giller literary award ceremony that took place on November 10, 2023, in Toronto, host Rick Mercer grabbed at signs taken onto the stage. The sign in the photo says: “Scotiabank funds genocide”. Three people were arrested by police and now face charges for obstructing property and using forged documents to gain access to the invitation-only ceremony at the Four Seasons Hotel.

The Guardian later reported: “More than 1,800 writers and publishers have signed an open letter in support of the pro-Palestine protesters who disrupted the ceremony of a prestigious Canadian literary award.”

We continue to follow this.

Photo: Ana Belén, one of the hosts of the Goya Awards.

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