The House of Commons passed an NDP opposition motion advocating for a peaceful resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, after significant last-minute amendments softened its original call for the immediate recognition of Palestinian statehood.
The motion, which all New Democrat and Bloc Quebecois MPs and nearly all Liberals supported, has sparked widespread condemnation from pro-Israel groups.
Liberal MP Anthony Housefather was one of just three Liberals, alongside Marco Mendicino and Ben Carr, to oppose the motion.
Prior to the vote, Housefather made his opposition to the motion clear in a post to X.
“On Monday the NDP has a motion that it pitches as a call for a ceasefire. It does so without demanding Hamas surrender & no longer rule Gaza. It also calls for a litany of other things hostile to Israel. Changing foreign policy to reward a terrorist attack. Not smart,” he said.
During the debate of the motion, he gave a near ten-minute emotional speech, pleading that Canada “should not be passing motions that make a terrorist organization equivalent to a democratic state.”
Debate on the opposition motion started on Monday afternoon and lasted around six hours. Fourteen amendments, agreed to by Liberal and NDP leadership behind closed doors, were introduced shortly before voting, prompting a chaotic scramble by MPs to discern what the motion was, and allegations that the chamber’s rules had been broken.
Independent MP Kevin Vuong, who opposed the motion, pointed out that the amendments were so hurried they weren’t even available in both official languages.
“This is not how you make policy, never mind something so substantive for Canada,” said Vuong.
The speaker suspended the House for 40 minutes but ultimately dismissed concerns by MPs that they didn’t have the time or debate to consider the rewritten motion, which passed with 204 votes for and 118 against.
Deputy Conservative leader Melissa Lantsman warned about what supporting the motion would entail.
“This motion is about rewarding Hamas for their massacre. This motion is a vote to reward the murder, the rape, the kidnapping of Israelis, and this motion is deeply irresponsible for this parliament,” said Lantsman.
Despite the opposition from some Liberal MPs, Ya’ara Saks, who is Jewish, voted in favour. She was seen last week holding hands with Holocaust denier and Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas.
Carr, one of the Liberal MPs who voted against the motion, wrote a letter to his constituents explaining his reasoning before the vote.
“I maintain that no peace is achievable so long as Hamas is in charge of governing Gaza. How can we recognize or negotiate the borders of a state that is governed by a group of people listed as a terrorist organization by our own government and who seek the destruction of Jews?” he wrote.
The opposition motion originally called to “officially recognize the State of Palestine and maintain Canada’s recognition of Israel’s right to exist and to live in peace with its neighbours.”
The amended version of the motion replaced this section with “work with international partners to actively pursue the goal of a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East, including towards the establishment of the State of Palestine as part of a negotiated two-state solution, and maintain Canada’s position that Israel has a right to exist in peace and security with its neighbours.”
The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs issued a press release saying that it was angered and disappointed by the passage of the amended NDP motion.
“We are angered and deeply disappointed that the Liberal government has chosen to effectively sub-contract Canadian foreign policy to anti-Israel radicals within the NDP and Bloc Québecois,” said Shimon Koffler Fogel, the organization’s president and CEO.
B’nai Brith Canada also condemned the motion.
“B’nai Brith Canada is outraged by the House of Commons’ decision Monday to adopt an unprecedented and appalling anti-Israel proposal introduced by the NDP,” said the organization.
“Far from addressing the deteriorating humanitarian situation in the region, the motion calls for measures that would help Hamas reclaim power in Gaza and resume attacks against Israeli civilians.”
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh celebrated the motion’s passing in a post to X.
He said that the vote had “forced the Liberals” to stop selling arms to the Israeli government, support the ICC and ICJ, place sanctions on extremist settlers, and much more.
Despite being posted Monday night, the post to X already has a community note.
“The motion in question does not ‘force’ the Liberals to do anything. According to the House of Commons procedure, motions are non-binding,” reads the community note.