Canada's UN ambassador defends UN vote as 'compassionate' response to humanitarian disaster in Gaza

Canada's ambassador to the UN says Canada's decision to vote in favour of a humanitarian ceasefire was a necessary reaction to the increasingly desperate humanitarian situation in Gaza, as major international powers join the call for a ceasefire.

In an interview airing Sunday on Rosemary Barton Live, Bob Rae said that Canada could not stand by and remain fixed in its position as the scale of destruction and number of civilian deaths in Gaza continued to rise.

"It was a changing of the situation on the ground. The war has caused such major destruction in Gaza, and caused such humanitarian hardship ... and over the last three weeks [the calls of humanitarian agencies] have gotten more and more urgent, so naturally it's something that causes us to reflect," he told CBC chief political correspondent Rosemary Barton.

Canada voted Tuesday in favour of a non-binding motion in the UN General Assembly calling for an "immediate humanitarian ceasefire." It marks a change in Canada's voting pattern, which traditionally supports Israel.

WATCH | Bob Rae discusses Canada's vote at the UN:

‘We want to see a change,’ says Canada's ambassador to the UN on the conflict in Gaza

12 months ago

Duration 10:04

Bob Rae, Canada's ambassador to the United Nations, discusses Canada's vote to support a UN resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and what this means about Canada's response to conflicts in the Middle East.

"We cannot be indifferent to what we know is happening in Gaza and the impact that it's having on civilians. And that's really what I think has led to the government's decision to support this particular motion," Rae said.

But he added that the vote didn't indicate Canada was abandoning its support for Israel.

"There's no way in which Canada is changing its position in respect to its support for the state of Israel to live in security, to live with boundaries. There's no change in our position with respect to Hamas, none whatsoever," he said.

"What there is is a response to a humanitarian situation in a way that shows, I think, what Canadians want, which is for their government to show compassion in a situation that demands compassion."

Jewish groups in Canada and even MPs within the Liberal caucus denounced the decision to vote for the UN resolution. Israel's ambassador to Canada said this week he was "deeply disappointed" in the vote.

"The motion was an unconditional call for a ceasefire. I do not support an unconditional call for a ceasefire. I do not believe a majority of my constituents support an unconditional call for a ceasefire," Liberal MP Anthony Housefather said earlier this week.

"It's my obligation to speak out when I think Canada has abandoned its traditional position at the UN in support of Israel at a time when Israel is at war."

One major criticism of the resolution was that it lacks any reference to Hamas.

WATCH | The American response to calls for a ceasefire: 

U.S. doesn't believe a ceasefire is the way to end the war in Gaza, says ambassador

12 months ago

Duration 15:58

One hundred and fifty three nations, including Canada, voted in favour of a UN resolution demanding an "immediate humanitarian ceasefire" in Gaza. The United States joined Israel and eight other nations in voting against the resolution. Power & Politics sat down with U.S. Ambassador to Canada David Cohen to talk about the vote and U.S. support for Israel moving forward.

In response to prior resolutions, Rae had said that Canada could not support a resolution that did not sufficiently condemn Hamas. An amendment to include such language in the most recent resolution failed to reach the two-thirds threshold of support needed, something Rae said was "very regrettable."

In a separate statement released by the Canadian, Australian and New Zealand governments earlier Tuesday, the three countries specifically called out Hamas.

"This cannot be one-sided. Hamas must release all hostages, stop using Palestinian civilians as human shields, and lay down its arms," the statement said.

Broader international turn against Israel's actions

Canada's vote is part of a wider hardening of the international community's position against Israel's actions in Gaza. U.S. President Joe Biden this week issued his strongest rebuke so far of the Israeli campaign, saying the country was losing international support. On Saturday, both the United Kingdom and Germany — countries which voted against the UN resolution earlier in the week — endorsed a "sustainable ceasefire," while France on Sunday called for a "immediate and durable truce."

Gaza's Health Ministry says more than 18,600 Palestinians have been killed by Israel's military since the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas, in which around 1,200 Israelis were killed and 240 others taken hostage, according to the Israeli government.

Rae said the situation in Gaza is "very much as bad as people are hearing."

The ambassador emphasized that Canada needed to adapt to the evolving situation on the ground and the state of humanitarian disaster.

"We cannot be cold and unaffected by that, we have to respond to it in a real way," he said.

WATCH | Israel responds to Canada's UN vote:

Canada's UN vote 'unfortunate' but Trudeau's remarks 'favourable,' says adviser to Israel's PM

12 months ago

Duration 2:29

'We're not used to hearing double standards from our friends,' Ophir Falk, a foreign policy adviser to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, told CBC News in a wide-ranging interview that included criticism of the United Nations and Canada's vote in favour of a resolution calling for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war. Falk did compliment Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's remarks regarding Hamas on Wednesday.