Canada foreign affairs minister announces immediate suspension of 30 arms export licenses to Israel and blocks US ammunition deal News
U.S. Department of State from United States, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Canada foreign affairs minister announces immediate suspension of 30 arms export licenses to Israel and blocks US ammunition deal

Canada Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly announced on Tuesday the suspension of 30 permits for arms sales to Israel and the unprecedented blocking of a contract with the US Government to send Quebec-made ammunition to the Israeli Defence Forces, according to local, media. The Canadian arm of General Dynamics, a US-based corporation had created the ammunition in question.

This ban is in addition to the freeze on new arms export permits to Israel, which had been introduced in January in a non-binding motion and had been met with a sharp reaction from the country. The sale of these arms by General Dynamics was being facilitated by attempting to use Canada as a go-between country for the export deal, and the latest announcement makes such a business transaction unlawful.

The Ottawa-based Center for Israel and Jewish Affairs said in response to the new ban:

Less than a week after six hostages were brutally murdered following more than 300 days in Hamas captivity, and while hundreds of thousands of Israelis remain displaced by Hezbollah’s relentless bombing in the north, Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly continues to proclaim Israel’s right to self-defense — just not with Canada’s support.

The National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM) on the other hand welcomed the news in a post on X saying:

This is a positive step for the Minister to take in sending a strong signal that the one-way weapons export ban remains strong and without loophole.

We must continue to work towards further policy to stand for peace and for a better world for all to live in.

This latest halt on arms exports comes after the UK foreign secretary announced last week the immediate suspension of 30 arms exports to Israel. It also comes in response to the ongoing conflict in Gaza. Israel is currently facing genocide accusations from South Africa before the International Court of Justice (ICJ). In a separate case, the ICJ ruled that Israel had violated international humanitarian law by occupying Palestinian territory unlawfully, violating the Hague Convention, the Fourth Geneva Convention, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.

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