Netanyahu slams Carney's reply to anti-Israel agitator who said there's a 'genocide' in Gaza
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu criticized Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney after he seemed to validate an anti-Israel protester's assertion that there is a "genocide" in Gaza.
"Canada has always sided with civilization. So should Mr. Carney. But instead of supporting Israel, a democracy that is fighting a just war with just means against the barbarians of Hamas, he attacks the one and only Jewish state. Mr. Carney, backtrack your irresponsible statement," Netanyahu wrote in a post on X.
Carney was at a rally in Calgary, Alberta, when someone in the crowd shouted, "Mr. Carney, there's a genocide happening in Palestine!"
In response, Carney thanked the protester and said, "I'm aware, which is why we have an arms embargo" as the crowd began chanting his name.
The response sparked an uproar among Canadian Jewish organizations, such as the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA), which tweeted an objection to Carney's comments. CIJA also criticized Canada's arms restrictions on Israel, calling them "dangerous."
"It is outrageous to see politicians fuel antisemitism through false narratives of demonization," CIJA tweeted. "There is no genocide in Gaza. Claiming otherwise is false."
Hampstead Mayor Jeremy Levi, a member of Canada's Conservative Party, also condemned Carney's remarks, calling them a "disgraceful betrayal of moral clarity."
"By siding with a heckler and endorsing the false, slanderous claim of 'genocide' in Israel, he has shown himself unworthy of leadership or respect."
When asked to clarify his comments, Carney claimed he did not hear the protester say the word "genocide."
"It's noisy. If you're up there you hear snippets of what people say and I heard Gaza, and my point was I'm aware of the situation in Gaza," he said, according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC).
Canada began halting arms sales to Israel in January 2024. Months later, in September 2024, Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said that she had suspended the permits of multiple companies over a U.S. plan to sell Canadian-made ammo to Israel. She said that Canada would "not have any form of arms or parts of arms be sent to Gaza, period."
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