Organizations demand urgent government action on Gaza crisis
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The United Church of Canada echoes the prayers and calls of the church committees in the Saint Porphyrius and Holy Family churches in Gaza, and the joint statement of the Greek Orthodox and Latin Patriarchates, who address Israel’s massive military mobilization and forced relocation of hundreds of thousands of civilians, including Christian communities. The operation has already begun, dubbed by the Israeli government as “the gates of hell will open,” and described by the Patriarchs as a “death sentence.”
“Leaving Gaza City and trying to flee to the south would be nothing less than a death sentence. For this reason, the clergy and nuns have decided to remain and continue to care for all those who will be in the compounds. We do not know exactly what will happen on the ground, not only for our community, but for the entire population. We can only repeat what we have already said: There can be no future based on captivity, displacement of Palestinians or revenge.”
Israel’s ethnic cleansing of Gaza is a war crime under international law. Canada must take decisive action now in accordance with its obligations under international law to oppose these violations.
As families in Gaza make life-or-death choices about who gets to eat and whether they can share their food with their starving neighbours, some also wait to be reunited with family members who are in Canada. This week, The United Church of Canada supported two more open letters to address the ongoing starvation and genocide in Gaza.
A coalition of organizations that are working towards Gaza Family Reunification include: Amnesty International Canada, Canadians for Peace and Justice in the Middle East, Canadian Muslim Public Affairs Committee, Sustainable Human Empowerment (SHE) Associates, Rural Refugee Rights Network, Righting Relations Canada, and The United Church of Canada.
“The Canada–Ukraine Authorization for Emergency Travel (CUAET) program clearly demonstrated what Canada can accomplish: welcoming 129,000 Ukrainians fleeing the Russian invasion in the first year alone, and waiving security screening for children and seniors,” the letter states. “By comparison, only 864 Palestinians have made it to Canada as of July 8, 2025, and the vast majority left Gaza on their own. Canadian officials have assisted in the evacuation of fewer than 2% of program applicants directly from Gaza, and only where applicants had previously approved biometrics, despite program guidelines.”
Read the full statement on Amnesty Canada’s website.
The open letter by the Canadian Association for Food Studies (CAFS) Ad Hoc Working Group on Palestine and the Right to Food, on Israel’s use of starvation as a weapon of war highlights the intentional denial of food and water in Gaza as a crime against humanity, a violation of the international human rights to food and water, and a breach of humanitarian law.
“As scholars, students, workers, and practitioners with decades of collective experience related to food, nutrition and agricultural work within our communities,” the collective writes, “we call on the government of Canada to act concretely against Israel’s deliberate and systematic weaponization of food and water against the people of Palestine.” Read the full letter.
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