Canadian politicians are pushing back on the idea of clearing out Palestinians from the Gaza Strip as an Israeli minister suggests some of them could be sent to Canada.
U.S. President Donald Trump stunned leaders across the Middle East and beyond this week when he suggested that the territory be cleared out and made into a U.S.-owned resort destination.
In a post on X this morning, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz says Canada "previously expressed willingness to take in residents from Gaza" and should take them, noting Ottawa already has a "structured immigration program."
But Ottawa's resettlement program is only for people with relatives in Canada, and a small portion of the applications — currently capped at 5,000 — have resulted in Palestinians actually making it to Canada.
Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly says Canada supports self-determination for Palestinians, which includes not "being forcibly displaced from Gaza."
International Development Minister Ahmed Hussen and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh are among a dozen MPs who have pushed back on Trump's idea.
Joly says Canada is still calling for a two-state solution. "Canada’s long-standing position on Gaza has not changed," she wrote Wednesday on the platform X.
Human Rights Watch and similar groups say Trump's plan would amount to ethnic cleansing.
The Gaza Strip was established as a Palestinian territory after Palestinians were displaced across the region during the creation of the State of Israel.
Jordan, Lebanon and Egypt already have thousands of Palestinian refugees and say it would be inappropriate to remove more from their homeland.
Israel rejects the United Nations' designation of Palestinians as refugees, saying this creates an illegitimate idea of them returning to land that is now Israel. Israeli officials also have argued that the Jewish people have ancestral ties to the land.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 6, 2025.
