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B’nai Brith Backs Senator’s Suggestion for International Community to Oversee Elections in Palestinian Territories

Senator Leo Housakas (CBC)

March 09, 2022

TORONTO – B’nai Brith Canada supports an important speech given recently in the Senate by Senator Leo Housakos, who urged the Government to call on democratic countries in the “international community” to supervise free and fair elections in the Palestinian Territories.

Housakos’ speech, delivered March 2, was the first and only time a Canadian politician recognized that the situation is frozen in the Middle East, with the Palestinian people unable to move to a durable peace.

Senator Housakos’ speech can be viewed here 

Housakos said it should be apparent by now that neither the Palestinian Authority that runs the West Bank or Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip through brutal intimidation and violence, have the least interest in giving a voice to the Palestinian people. Housakos said there will never be credible elections unless the world community bypasses the Palestinian Authority and Hamas to organize elections. The Senator noted how the lack of a credible Palestinian partner for peace hinders the two-state solution that Canada and much of the democratic world endorses.

B’nai Brith has advised the Government of its position that a just peace, recognizing the needs of Israel and the Palestinians is possible only when the Palestinians are freed from the terrorists that keep them suppressed. B’nai Brith also has called on Canada to work with the world community to facilitate free, fair, and credible elections in the Palestinian territories as the basis for a partnership that allows for peace to emerge.

“Between the corrupt Palestinian Authority and the genocidal Hamas, there is no chance for a viable peace unless the world community provides the infrastructure and oversight for free and fair Palestinian elections,” said Marvin Rotrand, B’nai Brith’s National Director of the League for Human Rights.

“Senator Housakos’ position is a breath of fresh air. If it gains traction, it could further assist the flourishing of peace in the Middle East,” added Michael Mostyn, B’nai Brith Canada’s Chief Executive Officer. “The Palestinians are yoked to corrupt and terror-inciting regimes that have no interest in improving the lives of their own people or encouraging their youth to thirst for peace. This needs to change.”