The Canadian Muslim Public Affairs Council (CMPAC) is deeply concerned about Israel’s approval of 19 new settlements in the West Bank, a call that clearly reinforces the long-standing Israeli governmental objectives to expand territorial control. In September of 2025, Canada recognized Palestinian statehood. Canada must move beyond statements of concern and take action that is consistent with its new foreign policy positions.
- Context and Core Developments
The recent expansion of settlements in the West Bank is occurring within a broader context of ongoing violations of international law by Israel, including actions documented by the International Court of Justice and human rights organizations that amount to a plausible genocide. These settlement activities are occurring alongside ongoing violations and increased fragility of the October 2025 ceasefire agreement. Israel’s finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich alongside the Defence Minister, Israel Katz both stated that the intention behind the decision is to stop the establishment of a Palestinian state. Smotrich reinforced the long-standing governmental objectives to expand territorial control beyond Israel’s pre-1967 borders. In Israel’s cabinet-approved state budget, Smotrich has included a plan to spend NIS 2.7 (equivalent of USD 843 million) over five years on the expansion of settlements and legalization of outposts that were built without government permits. This is a form of de facto annexation where Israel expands control in the West Bank through settlements, effectively annexing it while bypassing international law that prohibits forcible acquisition.
The recent approval of the settlements came amid a broader pattern of intensified settlement expansion and settler violence in the West Bank under the current far-right administration. Canada has also recently condemned settler violence in the West Bank, recognizing it as a threat to civilian safety and stability. In August 2025, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Anita Anand, along with 21 foreign ministers from other countries collectively condemned the Israeli Higher Planning Committee to approve plans for settlement construction in the E1 area. Between 2023 and 2025, at least 870 Palestinians, including 177 children have been killed and more than 6,700 wounded in attacks by the Israeli army and settlers across the West Bank. During the past three years, Israel has approved 69 new settlements, according to Smotrich. Following the decision, a senior UN official warned that settlement activity this year has reached its highest levels since 2017. The acceleration of settlement expansion advances population transfer and land appropriation in territory long envisioned as the core of a future Palestinian state.
- International Legal Framework and United Nations Statements
The Israeli’s settlement activity in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) is unlawful under established international law, including the Fourth Geneva Convention. Article 49 of the Convention states that the Occupying Power “shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into territory it occupies” and prohibits the “individual or mass forcible transfers, as well as deportations of protected persons from occupied territory”. This is reinforced by the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) under Article 8 (2) (b)(viii) which classifies transferring one’s own civilians into occupied territory as a war crime and a serious violation of the laws and customs applicable in international armed conflict.
Francesca Albanese, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, released a report that frames Israeli settlements within a long-standing project to undermine Palestinian self-determination, “the violence that Israel has unleashed against the Palestinians post October 7th is not happening in a vacuum, but is part of a long‑term intentional, systematic, State‑organized forced displacement and replacement of the Palestinians”. She demonstrates that settlement and occupation policies are not isolated events, but core elements of sustained systemic harm.
In addition, the United National Security Council Resolution 2334 (2016) reaffirmed that the Israeli settlement expansion constitutes a “flagrant violation” of international law with “no legal validity,” calling on Israel to cease such activities as part of its obligations as an occupying power. Recently, the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has reiterated that settlement expansion “fuels tensions, impedes access by Palestinians to their land and threatens the viability of a fully independent, democratic, contiguous and sovereign Palestinian State”.
There is an international consensus objecting Israeli settlements which includes the International Court of Justice (ICJ) released an Advisory Opinion in July 2024 concluding that Israel’s continued presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory is unlawful under international law. According to the majority of the Court, Israel has the obligation to cease all new settlement activities, evacuate Israeli settlers, and make full reparation for damage caused to people and property. Moreover, the International Committee of the Red Cross’ statement highlighted that the Israeli settlement enterprise undermines the raison d’être (reason for existence) of the law of occupation. These legal assessments and statements align with a consensus in international legal scholarship and past declarations by UN human bodies including the Human Rights Council (HRC) and the UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR).
- Canada’s Obligations Towards the Recognized Palestinian Statehood
After its formal recognition of the State of Palestine in September 2025, Canada has a legal and ethical obligation to hold Israel accountable for the unlawful decision of approving the 19 new settlements in the West Bank. Canada cannot profess support for peace while ignoring Israel’s establishment of illegal settlements.
In his statement on Canada’s recognition of the state of Palestine, Prime Minister Mark Carney highlights that the recognition is firmly aligned with the principles of self-determination. Prime Minister Carney also notes that Israel is working methodically to prevent the prospect of a Palestinian state from ever being established. He recognizes that the unrelenting policy of settlement expansion in the West Bank is illegal under international law. Thus, Canada’s recognition of the State of Palestine signals a commitment to Palestinian self-determination. Settlement expansions present clear contradictions in international engagement. However, recognition without enforcement is symbolic rather than transformative.
Canada is a signatory and party to all four Geneva Conventions, including the Fourth Convention which prohibits these illegal settlements. This means that Canada has a legal obligation not only to respect international humanitarian law, but to ensure respect by others. Canada is also a signatory and State Party to the Rome Statute, and notably one of the first countries to implement its provisions with the War Crimes Act. Thus, Canada bears legal and moral duties to prevent, not merely condemn illegal settlements.
The Canadian government, alongside 14 other countries issued a joint statement condemning Israel’s approval of 19 new settlements in the West Bank, noting that these actions violate international law, risk fuelling instability, and jeopardize peace prospects. While the joint statement is a necessary diplomatic signal, condemnation alone, without concrete policy consequences, remains insufficient in the face of sustained settlement expansion that systematically undermines Palestinian self-determination
CMPAC calls on the Government of Canada to:
- Escalate its diplomatic measures by moving beyond routine expressions of concerns; beginning with delivering a formal diplomatic demarche to the Israeli ambassador outlining Canada’s legal objections and expectations; and raising settlement expansion systematically in bilateral engagement, rather than treating it as a secondary concern.
- Align Canada’s Palestine recognition with policy measures though ensuring that no Canadian trade, investment, or procurement activities directly or indirectly support settlement enterprises; and publicly recognize the 1967 borders as the legal baseline for a two-state solution.
- Enforce Canada’s obligations under international humanitarian law by reviewing Israel’s actions in the West Bank under Canada’s Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act; clarifying that Canadian nationals and corporations may face legal consequences for involvement in settlement construction, financing, or facilitation; supporting the findings and recommendations of international accountability mechanisms including the ICJ, ICC, and UN human rights bodies.
- Impose targeted sanctions for settlement expansion on individuals and entities directly responsible for settlement expansion; apply entry to Canada restrictions on leaders and officials linked to settlement violence.
- Empower and fund civil society organizations to defend the rights Palestinian civilians; ensure support against intimidation and criminalization of these organizations.
Canada cannot support Palestinian statehood while allowing the systematic destruction of the territory on which that state must exist. Upholding international law requires more than statements. Canada has positioned itself as a defender of human rights and international law. It has to follow through with meaningful action.
