New Delhi: Hours after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called for Israel to stop the “killing of women, of children, of babies” in Gaza, Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a curt response, said the blame for Palestinian civilian deaths fell on Hamas.
Trudeau’s recent comments drew a line on the Canadian support for Israel’s “right to defend”, as he urged the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) to “exercise maximum restraint” in Gaza.
In a statement directed at Trudeau on X (formerly known as Twitter), Netanyahu said, “It is Hamas not Israel that should be held accountable for committing a double war crime — targeting civilians while hiding behind civilians,” asserting that all “forces of civilization” must support Israel.
It is not Israel that is deliberately targeting civilians but Hamas that beheaded, burned and massacred civilians in the worst horrors perpetrated on Jews since the Holocaust.
While Israel is doing everything to keep civilians out of harm’s way, Hamas is doing…
— Benjamin Netanyahu – בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) November 15, 2023
His statement came after Trudeau, in his harshest rebuke yet of the Netanyahu government since the conflict began last month, said, “I urge the government of Israel to exercise maximum restraint.”
Speaking to the media in British Columbia, Trudeau observed, “The world is watching, on TV, on social media – we’re hearing the testimonies of doctors, family members, survivors, kids who have lost their parents. The world is witnessing this killing of women, of children, of babies. This has to stop.”
Netanyahu shot back. “While Israel is doing everything to keep civilians out of harm’s way, Hamas is doing everything to keep them in harm’s way,” he said.
His comments came hours before IDF troops entered Gaza’s biggest hospital, al-Shifa, Wednesday, after surrounding the premises for days.
According to the Gaza health ministry, 40 patients, including three babies, have died since al-Shifa’s emergency generator ran out of fuel Saturday. Another 36 babies are at risk of dying due to lack of fuel to power incubators, it added.
Canada had initially supported Israel’s right to defend itself against the militant group Hamas, after the 7 October attack, which killed 1200 Israelis. About 240 were taken hostage into Gaza, Israel said.
Trudeau’s position on the conflict, however, has been ambiguous throughout the conflict. From condemning Hamas and asserting Israel’s right to defend, to talking about the “dire” humanitarian situation in Gaza and emphasising on the “imperative need” for a humanitarian corridor, the Canadian prime minister has attempted to maintain a balancing act.
But Tuesday’s remarks were his strongest criticism of the Netanyahu government. “The price of justice cannot be the continued suffering of all Palestinian civilians. All wars have rules. All innocent life has equal worth. Israeli and Palestinian,” Trudeau stated.
The Canadian leader also called on Hamas to stop using civilians as human shields and to release all 240 hostages “immediately and unconditionally”.
Ottawa, along with its Western allies like Washington, has expressed its growing concern over the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and mounting death toll in the besieged enclave, with over 11,000 Palestinians killed in the violence so far, according to the Gaza health ministry.
(Edited by Tikli Basu)
Also read: Qatar seeking Israel-Hamas deal to free 50 hostages and 3-day truce, sources say