Former envoy to Israel tells MPs Canada should recognize Palestinian state now

Canada's former ambassador to Israel says Canada should recognize the existence of a Palestinian state now as a way to forge a path to peace in the region.

"Recognition of a Palestinian state is not about peace in the region today, or even tomorrow. Few people in Israel or Palestine can focus on two states right now," said Jon Allen.

"Recognizing a Palestinian state now is about sending a message of hope and commitment to Palestinians and sending a clear message to Israel and others that simply managing the conflict, Israel's policy for the last 17 years, is not an option and never was."

Allen, who was appointed by former prime minister Stephen Harper's government and served as ambassador to Israel from 2006 to 2010, made the comments during an appearance before the House of Commons standing committee on foreign affairs Tuesday. 

Allen told the committee that he and his wife are Jewish and he has a sister who lives just south of the Lebanon-Israel border with his nieces and nephews, where they are within the range of Hezbollah rocket fire.

He said he strongly supports Israel's right to exist in peace and security but he believes that can only happen if Palestinians have "a horizon for peace" and a clear path forward.

Allen and other experts were called to appear before MPs after the committee voted on a motion to study the quickest path to federal government recognition of a Palestinian state.

That vote passed despite Conservative MPs on the committee arguing that recognizing a Palestinian state in the absence of a negotiated agreement with Israel would be a stark departure from long-standing Canadian government policy.

The motion's wording supports a "two-state solution where a safe and secure state of Israel lives side by side with a safe and secure state of Palestine."

It calls on the committee to "dedicate no more than four meetings to immediately study the issue of how the Government of Canada can advance the recognition of the State of Palestine within a two-state solution."'

The future of Palestine

Allen said recognizing a Palestinian state would send a message to Palestinians that the international community believes they deserve the same rights and responsibilities as Jewish Israelis.

He also said "early recognition" would demonstrate that the international community's condemnation of Jewish settlement expansion, acts of violence on both sides and support for a two state solution can be "translated into action and commitment."

Recognizing a Palestinian state, Allen said, also would demonstrate that Canada and the international community do not believe all Palestinians are Hamas supporters or terrorists.

"Hope and a path forward to end the conflict can do much to reduce violence and offer the next generation of Palestinians and Israelis an alternative future," he said.

Allen said Canada also needs to signal that while Israel should have a strong voice, it does not have a veto over the future of Palestine.

When asked if recognition of a Palestinian state would undermine the security of Israel, Allen said, "Absolutely not."

Israel launched its offensive in Gaza after the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel killed about 1,200 people and took about 250 hostage, according to Israeli tallies. The ensuing ground invasion has killed more than 42,000 Palestinians since then, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. Most of Gaza's 2.3 million people have been displaced.

Allen said that recognizing a Palestinian state "does not give any benefit to Hamas," a group identified as a terrorist entity by the Canadian government, because Hamas does not support a two-state solution.

"Hamas does not want to see the existence of Israel. Recognition of two states is contrary to what Hamas, and contrary to what radical right ministers in Israel, want," he said. "They both want one state: their own."