Ottawa: Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly has said that Canada will impose sanctions on “extremist” Israeli settlers in the Palestinian territories and Hamas leaders, Canada-based CBC News reported.
In an interview on Rosemary Barton Live, Joly said the government was “actively working on it” on the decision while she was on a visit to Ukraine, where she held meetings with Ukrainian officials and visited sites impacted by the ongoing war.
Speaking to CBC chief political correspondent Rosemary Barton, Joly said, “We will be sanctioning extremist settlers and we will also bring new sanctions on Hamas leaders.
She said, “I’m making sure that while I’m in Ukraine, the work is being done in Ottawa and I look forward to doing announcements soon.”
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Friday that Canada was considering the option of imposed restrictions on some Israelis living in illegal settlements in the West Bank.
Speaking to reporters after an event in Ontario’s Waterloo, Trudeau said, “Settler violence in the West Bank is absolutely unacceptable and puts at risk peace [and] stability in the region, and the path toward the two-state solution that is absolutely essential,” CBC News reported.
Melanie Joly said Canada remained dedicated to finding a way to end the fighting and work towards finding a long-term solution. She stressed that they need to ensure that Hamas lays down its arms and termed it the first step to getting on a path to have a longer truce.
She said, “First and foremost, we need to get the hostage deal. Hostages need to get back and be released. We need more humanitarian aid in Gaza,” CBC News reported.
Joly stated, “And we need to make sure that Hamas lays down its arms. And this is the first step to make sure that eventually we get to a path where we can have a longer truce, a sustainable ceasefire and eventually much more a path towards a two-state solution.”
Melanie Joly noted that both sides needed to make changes in their approach to make long-term peace possible. She said, “We need a reformed Palestinian Authority. We need also to have a government in Israel that is willing to do the important work to get to this two-state solution.”
Canada’s decision comes after the US last week announced a second round of sanctions against four individuals it accused of inciting and conducting violence against Palestinians and Israeli peace activists in the West Bank.
In a statement, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said, “Since October 7, the United States has issued five rounds of sanctions against Hamas, including the most recent round of sanctions against Hamas last week. President Biden has also spoken about his concern about the rise in violence that we have seen in the West Bank from extremist actors, in particular the rise in extremist settler violence, which reached record levels in 2023. “
“This violence poses a grave threat to peace, security and stability in the West Bank, Israel and the Middle East region, and threatens the national security and foreign policy interests of the United States,” he added.
Violence in the Palestinian territories has witnessed a rise since the war started between Israel and Hamas. The war between Israel and Hamas began after the latter launched an attack on the former on October 7, where around 1,200 Israelis were killed and around 250 taken hostage.
According to CBC News report, Palestinian health officials said that more than 26,000 people have been killed in Israeli attacks in Palestine since October 7.
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