Canada denounces Israel’s ‘mistreatment’ of group of nationals denied entry to West Bank

MADRID, December 17 (EUROPA PRESS) –

The Government of Canada denounced this Tuesday the “mistreatment” allegedly exercised by Israeli authorities against a delegation of Canadian citizens, including six MPs, who were refused entry into the occupied Palestinian territories from Jordan.

This was stated by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Canada, Anita Anand, on her account on the social network

In the brief message, the head of Ottawa’s diplomacy assured that she had “expressed Canada’s objections to the mistreatment suffered” by her compatriots as they attempted to enter the West Bank through an Israeli border post.

The Israeli government justified this measure by invoking “security reasons” and ensuring that the group had arrived at the border “without prior coordination”.

However, the Israeli ambassador to Ottawa, Iddo Moed, revealed in statements to CBC that the reason was the alleged links of Canadian-Muslim Vote – the NGO registered in the North American country which is financing the trip – with Islamic Relief Worldwide (IRC), classified as a “terrorist organization” by Israeli authorities.

The goal of the three-day trip was to meet with displaced Palestinians, with stops in the West Bank and Israel.

Canadian Muslim Vote expressed itself “disgusted but not surprised” by the response of the Israeli executive, in a note in which it defended that the donations it receives “come from those who believe that a healthy democracy belongs to all of us.” “Obviously, this is not something Israel believes in,” he added.

For his part, IRC director Tufail Hussain called the ambassador’s accusations “false and reckless.” “Allegations that our charitable resources support terrorism are unfounded and dangerous, and endanger the humanitarian workers and beneficiaries we serve,” he said.

Jenny Kwan, a New Democratic Party (NDP) MP who was detained for several hours at the border, said in a statement that the Canadian executive had informed Israel of the trip and its preparations.

Furthermore, he rejected the Israeli authorities’ argument that the individuals concerned “represent a risk to security or public order” and warned that the decision to refuse entry to citizens and organizations who “participate in peaceful and transparent parliamentary activity raises serious concerns about the opening of channels of dialogue.”