Canadian aid agencies press Ottawa to action after UN rules Gaza conflict constitutes genocide
Why It Matters
The UN Commission’s genocide finding compels governments to act on their legal and moral obligations. For Canadians, the crisis exposes the tension between the urgent calls for humanitarian access and Ottawa’s cautious diplomatic approach. How world leaders respond will set a precedent for whether international law is enforced when entire populations face death.
More than 20 major aid agencies, including Canadian organizations, working in Gaza have urged world leaders to immediately intervene, following a United Nations Commission of Inquiry’s determination that genocide is being committed in the conflict.
In a joint statement released and published on Care.ca ahead of the upcoming UN General Assembly, the aid organizations described the situation in Gaza as “not only an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe, but what the UN Commission of Inquiry has now concluded is a genocide.”
Since Oct. 6, 2023, more than 65,000 Palestinians have been killed — including more than 20,000 children — thousands are missing under rubble, and about 90 per cent of Gaza’s 2.1 million population have been forcibly displaced, many more than once.
The group warned that famine is declared and spreading, and that public infrastructure — hospitals, water treatment, agriculture — has been systematically destroyed.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued the order for ground forces to move in and warned residents to leave immediately on Sept. 8.
“Our forces are gathering and getting ready for entering the city of Gaza,” he said, reported by the Associated Press, Reuters and AFP. “You have been warned!”
The aid agencies assert that Gaza has “been deliberately made uninhabitable” and called on UN member states to use every available political, legal and economic tool to uphold international law and prevent further death.
Canadian response: from airdrops and tepid statements
The call comes as Canadian non-profit and philanthropic groups intensify pressure on the federal government to take clearer and more forceful action.
Oxfam Canada said last week that the plan to move one million people from Gaza City into just 42 sq. kms of ill-equipped space was inhumane, “physically impossible and would compound disease and hunger and be a flagrant breach of international humanitarian law.”
In October 2023, Israel announced a “total blockade” on food, water, medicine, fuel and electricity. It later eased some restrictions, before re-intensifying its siege of the Gaza Strip in recent months.
The American-backed and Israeli-controlled Gaza Humanitarian Foundation assumed control of aid operations three months ago, resulting in more than 1,000 violent deaths at the hands of Israeli forces and military contractors.
In mid-August, famine was declared in Gaza, marked by widespread starvation, destitution and preventable deaths, according to an Integrated Food Security Phase Classification analysis.
In response, Canada airdropped some critical aid supplies into Gaza, in part to respond to pressure from charities demanding delivery of emergency supplies.
However, the airdrop was also criticized as unsafe and inadequate.
What is needed from Canada
Several Canadian groups have said that Ottawa’s statements have been too cautious, and that Canada has not sufficiently acted.
“The absence of accountability reflects a deeply troubling normalization of Israel’s impunity and underscores the ongoing, blatant violations of International Humanitarian Law. Civilians are being deliberately targeted while those with the power to act fail to intervene,” said Anne-Claire Yaeesh, Country Director of Humanity and Inclusion Canada, a sentiment also echoed by Oxfam.
“The scale of deaths and destruction has already been cataclysmic, but we are at a juncture where states have the tools to prevent further crimes,” said Amnesty International Canada, adding they want to see Canada halt arms and security transfers to Israel, demand a permanent ceasefire and unrestricted humanitarian access, as well as a re-evaluation of the country’s trade ties.
“They must demonstrate that they also have the will to do so.”
“The UN Commission of Inquiry’s report also warns … that the specific intent to destroy the Palestinians as a whole has extended to the rest of the OPT, that is the West Bank, including East Jerusalem,” AIC added.
A letter written to Prime Minister Mark Carney by the Canadian Religious Conference, a coalition of 52 Catholic congregations, also urged humanitarian action.
CRC Letter to Prime Minister Carney September 12 2025 by ElishaDacey
Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand told the media on Wednesday that Canada does oppose Israel’s intensified military campaign in the Gaza Strip.
However, she refrained from calling it genocide, instead emphasized that Canada will await a formal judgment from the International Court of Justice before making such a determination.
The 80th session of the United Nations’ General Assembly is in New York City next week.
-With files from Sharlene Gandhi
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