The Canadian Muslim Public Affairs Council (CMPAC) is profoundly appalled and grieved by the massacre carried out by Israeli forces at Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahia, Northern Gaza, on December 27, 2024. The airstrike on this medical facility, a sanctuary protected under international humanitarian law, claimed many civilian lives, including children, patients, and medical staff. The full extent of the loss remains uncertain. Beyond the tragic loss of life, the attack forced the evacuation of vulnerable patients, led to the detention of healthcare workers, and set vital hospital departments ablaze, leaving the facility completely inoperative. This heinous assault underscores the relentless brutality inflicted on Palestinians in Gaza and a persistent disregard for human rights and dignity.

This assault is not an isolated incident but part of a disturbing, methodical pattern of violence aimed at erasing the basic fabric of life in Gaza. Since October 2023, the region’s healthcare infrastructure has been systematically obliterated, with hospitals, homes, schools, and places of worship relentlessly targeted. These deliberate strikes have rendered critical facilities inoperative, inflicting irreparable damage and deepening the ongoing devastation. According to the World Health Organization, these attacks have left the population without access to essential medical services, intensifying the profound suffering and vulnerability of the people of Gaza.

The situation in Gaza has reached catastrophic proportions, with over 45,000 Palestinians killed since October 2023, including a disproportionate number of women and children. The destruction of critical healthcare facilities like Kamal Adwan Hospital, a blatant violation of international law, highlights Israel’s disregard for Palestinian lives. Hospitals, meant to provide sanctuary, are being targeted, constituting war crimes. Canada and the international community must urgently condemn these atrocities and take concrete steps to hold those responsible accountable.

CMPAC calls on Canada’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Melanie Joly, to take decisive action to address these violations of international law. We urge Minister Joly to:

  1. Publicly and unequivocally condemn the attack on Kamal Adwan Hospital.
  2. Demand the immediate release of all detained patients, medical personnel, and staff, including Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, the hospital’s director.
  3. Suspend all arms exports to and imports from Israel to prevent further complicity in war crimes.
  4. Impose targeted sanctions on Israeli officials and entities responsible for orchestrating and executing these attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure in Gaza.
  5. Support the International Criminal Court’s investigations into alleged war crimes in the occupied Palestinian territories, including enforcing the arrest warrants issued against Israeli officials.

CMPAC has repeatedly made these urgent pleas, yet over a year into Gaza’s genocide, Canada’s inaction continues to embolden Israel’s impunity. Minister Joly, this moment demands moral clarity and decisive leadership. The attack on Kamal Adwan Hospital is a stark reminder of the catastrophic human toll of inaction. Canada must uphold its commitments to human rights and international law.