Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is urging Israel to make use of “most restraint” to guard civilian life within the brutal struggle it’s waging on Hamas within the Gaza Strip.
Israel declared struggle towards Hamas after its militants launched a shock assault on Oct. 7 — killing 1,200 individuals and taking about 240 hostage, in response to Israeli officers.
Well being officers in Hamas-controlled Gaza say weeks of retaliatory airstrikes on the besieged Gaza Strip have now killed greater than 11,200 individuals.
“The value of justice can’t be the continued struggling of all Palestinian civilians,” Trudeau, who beforehand said Israel has the fitting to defend itself after the Oct. 7 assault, mentioned on Tuesday. “I urge the federal government of Israel to train most restraint.”
He mentioned the violence should urgently cease so Palestinians can get entry to life-saving medical providers, meals, gas and water; so hostages may be launched; and so Canadians and different overseas nationals can escape.
To this point, Trudeau mentioned Tuesday, greater than 350 individuals with connections to Canada have been capable of enter Egypt through the Rafah border crossing in southern Gaza — the one exit level out there to these in Gaza because of a blockade by Israel that has been enforced since 2005.
“For weeks, we have been calling now for a sustained humanitarian pause,” Trudeau mentioned. “We hope {that a} sustained pause within the violence will help create the circumstances for lasting peace.”
Trudeau additionally repeated Israel’s declare that Hamas makes use of civilians as human shields.
“Hamas must cease utilizing Palestinians as human shields…. They should launch all hostages instantly and unconditionally,” he mentioned.
“Hamas has mentioned that they might commit horrors like Oct. 7 again and again — the identical violent assault that killed so many civilians, together with Vivian Silver,” Trudeau added, referring to a Winnipeg-born peace activist who was confirmed lifeless on Monday.
Trudeau mentioned he had beforehand met together with her youngsters and referred to as Silver a “vivid gentle” that was extinguished.
“Her braveness, dedication and compassion exemplifies what it means to be a Canadian, what it means to be engaged on the planet in constructive methods,” he mentioned.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a Tuesday social media publish directed at Trudeau, blamed Hamas for placing civilians in hurt’s method.
“It’s Hamas not Israel that needs to be held accountable for committing a double struggle crime — focusing on civilians whereas hiding behind civilians,” Netanyahu said on X, the platform beforehand referred to as Twitter.