In mid-November, the International Centre of Justice for Palestine formally notified Canada’s top politicians, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly, National Revenue Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau, and Justice Minister Arif Virani of its intention to pursue prosecution for alleged complicity in Israel’s war crimes in Gaza. The warning suggests potential liability and the prospect of facing charges before the International Criminal Court (ICC) for aiding and abetting Israeli war crimes.

Over the past seven weeks, as it has conducted its brutal war, Israel has cut off water, food, fuel, and electricity to Gaza and has claimed it is fighting “human animals.” Defense Minister Yoav Gallant declared a commitment to “eliminate everything” in the coastal strip of 2.2 million. Tens of thousands of houses, hospitals, Mosques, schools, and other buildings have been destroyed. The human toll is staggering, with over thirty thousand Palestinians injured and fourteen thousand killed, including six thousand children. As highlighted in the notice to Canadian ministers, a director at the United Nations, Craig Mokhiber, has called Israeli policy a “text-book case of genocide.”

Ottawa has played a role in facilitating Israel’s effort to ethnically cleanse Palestinians from a small part of what’s left of their historic homeland. During a visit, Foreign Minister Joly offered Canada’s approval for Israel’s ruthless siege and violence. Israel’s foreign minister, Eli Cohen, boasted about the meeting a week into its onslaught, stating, “We continue to mobilize the world for the fight against Hamas! I met today with Canada’s foreign minister Mélanie Joly, who also came to support Israel.”