Israel's ambassador to Canada has expressed profound concern about a Palestinian tribunal that was recently hosted within the Senate of Canada, highlighting the event's impact during a new reality of heightened tensions.
Ambassador's Testimony Before Senate Committee
Iddo Moed, Israel's Ambassador to Canada, appeared before the Standing Senate Committee on Human Rights in Ottawa on Monday evening. During the session, Quebec Senator Leo Housakos directly questioned Moed about Israel's perspective regarding the Senate's decision to host the two-day Palestinian tribunal on November 14 and 15.
"We are extremely concerned about such a phenomenon," Moed stated in his response. While acknowledging Canada's democratic principles of free speech, the ambassador emphasized that the current context has changed the significance of such events. "In this new reality, these kinds of incidents have an impact, and so it's different than just having a broad discussion and allowing people to come up with extreme views," he explained.
Controversial Tribunal Details and Participants
The tribunal, which was condemned by the Jewish advocacy group Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, featured several controversial panelists. Senator Housakos revealed that some participants had been denied entry into Canada by the Canada Border Services Agency. Among the concerning views associated with panelists were denials of the 9/11 terrorist attacks and conspiracy theories suggesting the 2015 Charlie Hebdo terrorist attack in France was committed by the government rather than the Islamic Brotherhood.
Ambassador Moed argued that providing a platform for such views could have dangerous consequences. He warned that "such acceptance may give rise to expressions of hatred by other parts of the public and repeating messages that are inflammatory, that are hateful, that are discriminatory."
Broader Concerns About Rising Antisemitism in Canada
The committee hearing also featured testimony from Jewish community advocates who detailed their experiences with rising antisemitism. Talia Klein Leighton, president of the nonprofit Canadian Women Against Antisemitism, responded to questions about whether public institutions were failing Jewish Canadians.
"I think that there is a total lack of law enforcement of these marauders who are on the university campuses, who are in the streets of Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and so on," Leighton stated. "And I think this lack of law enforcement, plus the statements that are made by faculty associations, by unions, has created an environment of absolute permissiveness, so that it is socially acceptable right now to be an antisemite."
Rachel Cook, a Jewish law student at the University of Alberta, shared a specific example that she said demonstrates institutional bias. After the October 7 attacks, Cook requested that the university display a menorah alongside its Christmas tree. Instead of accommodating both religious symbols, the university removed the Christmas tree entirely. The menorah, used during the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah known as the Festival of Lights, typically coincides with Christmas celebrations.
Cook described this as evidence of "an institutional coddling of people who have views that the administration agrees with."
Ambassador Moed concluded that while free speech should be protected "within the law," Western democracies face the significant challenge of balancing democratic principles with protecting citizens "from hateful speech, from brainwashing, from misinformation and disinformation." He emphasized that addressing these issues requires collective effort, stating "the best way to do it is to do it together and share our experiences."
