Canada's Role in Enforcing Peace in Gaza: A Delicate Balance

As the first stage of the peace plan for Gaza takes shape, Canada's willingness to participate in a multilateral mission to enforce peace in the enclave raises critical questions about the country's role in a potentially volatile conflict zone. Prime Minister Mark Carney has announced that Canada is open to contributing "funds, material or personnel" to a temporary international stabilization mission, which would aim to dismantle Hamas and protect Palestinian civilians. However, the precise mandate and scope of the mission remain unclear, and many Canadians are divided on the wisdom of military intervention in a region where the lines between terrorist group and ostensible ally are increasingly blurred.

Key Takeaways:

• The New York Declaration calls for the deployment of a temporary international stabilization mission to protect Palestinian civilians, dismantle Hamas, and offer security guarantees for Palestine and Israel.
• The Trump administration's peace plan includes a point that calls for an "International Stabilization Force" that would be Arab-led and offer a "long-term internal security solution" for Gaza.
• Canada's participation in such a mission would be unprecedented, as the country has never before contemplated participating in a force to protect civilians from a terrorist group and an ostensible ally waging an increasingly acknowledged genocide.
• Military intervention in Gaza would require careful consideration of the precise mandate, including the use of lethal force against actors harming civilians, and the role in securing food and humanitarian aid.
• Many questions need to be answered before a decision is made, including how far Israel must withdraw from Gaza, which Palestinian factions will partner with, and how long the mission would operate.
• States can do much more before any forces are deployed, including suspending trade relations with Israel, issuing sanctions, and pursuing accountability for perpetrators of atrocities in Gaza.

Statistics:

• 20,000 Indonesian troops are prepared to be deployed to help secure peace in Gaza, according to Indonesian PM.
• 1994 Rwandan Genocide led to 800,000 deaths.
• 2011 NATO intervention into Libya was led by a Canadian and included Canadian air support, though no troops in Libya itself.
• 20% of Afghans live under the rule of the Taliban.

Sources:

• "New York Declaration" (no date)
• "The Trump administration's peace plan for Gaza" (no date)
• Slovenian President Nataa Pirc Musar's speech (undated)
• Mark Carney's press statement (undated)
• "Afghanistan's women and girls have limited freedom" (undated)
• "2020 census data on Afghanistan" (no date)