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As Canadians cast their votes in the April 28 parliamentary election, a pressing foreign policy issue hovered over the Ottawa electorate:
Canada’s continued funding of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) – with no conditions attached.
That decision reflected a troubling Canadian willingness to disregard mounting evidence linking UNRWA to Hamas, a designated terrorist organization responsible for the murder and abduction of civilians.
Canada’s relationship with UNRWA has long been marked by ideological inconsistency.
In 2010, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper suspended funding to UNRWA following the release of a study by the Center for Near East Policy Research, funded by the European Parliament, exposing the Hamas takeover of the UNRWA employee union and the UNRWA teachers’ association. The study raises serious concerns about UNRWA’s ability to remain impartial, and independent from extremist influences.
View that study:
https://israelbehindthenews.com/library/pdfs/UNRWA%20in%20Gaza%20and%20Terrorist%20Organizations%20A%20Cooperative%20Relationship.pdf
Harper’s decisive action in 2010 reflected the government’s decision to counter terrorism and ensure that Canadian taxpayer dollars were not supporting radical agendas.
However, in 2015, when Canada’s Liberal Party assumed power, the government of the new Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau reinstated UNRWA funding, despite the fact that Hamas held control of the 30,000-strong UNRWA unions. This funding continued until Ottawa again suspended UNRWRA funding following the October 7, 2023 terrorist attacks.
That suspension, however, proved short-lived.
In early 2024, the Trudeau government resumed funding for UNRWA, despite evidence presented to the Canadian government indicating that UNRWA employees directly participated in the October 7 massacres.
This decision reflected a disregard for Canadian values and the wellbeing of one of its closest democratic allies,
The Hamas-led assault on October 7 left over 1,200 dead in Southern Israel and more than 250 kidnapped.
Following the attack, Israel intelligence revealed that at least 12 UNRWA employees were directly involved, while that the vast majority of 30,000 UNRWA staff continued their affiliation with Hamas.
The idea that individuals connected to terrorist organizations could operate within an entity funded by Canadian taxpayers seemed unconscionable.
Despite these revelations, Prime Minister Mark Carney reaffirmed unconditional support for UNRWA during the April UNRWA policy parliamentary debate, arguing that continued Canadian funding for UNRWA was necessary for humanitarian purposes.
Carney failed to acknowledge UNRWA’s well-documented refusal to maintain neutrality.
Carney’s move raises questions about whether the Canadian government has been knowingly turning a blind eye to UNRWA’s continued ties to Hamas terror.
Neither the Canadian Embassy in Tel Aviv nor the Canadian Representative’s Office in Ramallah would respond to press inquiries on the matter of continued funding for UNRWA.
Such a lack of transparency deepened concerns over Canada’s unwillingness to engage with legitimate questions about accountability and oversight.
In contrast, Canadian Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre pledged to end Canadian funding to UNRWA and pursue a foreign policy grounded in security, transparency, and accountability.
His approach resonated with Canadians who believe that tax dollars should not be used to support terrorism under the guise of humanitarian aid.
The debate over UNRWA funding underscores a broader moral divide in Canadian politics.
Indeed, UNRWA transformed the Canadian election into a referendum on whether Canada would endorse a government that overlooks troubling evidence of terrorist involvement or support a new leadership committed to defending democratic values.
The outcome of this election has profound implications—not only for Canada’s international credibility but also for its moral commitment to peace and justice.
On April 28, Canadian voters had a chance to choose a path that upholds the principles of truth, security, and moral clarity—and put an end to complicity in the perpetuation of violence.
