Benjamin Netanyahu is openly throwing his weight behind Pierre Poilievre. But few are pushing back against this flagrant interference in Canada’s election.
On Friday the Israeli prime minister posted, “Canada has always sided with civilization. So should Mr. Carney. But instead of supporting Israel, a democracy that is fighting a just war with just means against the barbarians of Hamas, he attacks the one and only Jewish state. Mr. Carney, backtrack your irresponsible statement!”
Netanyahu’s post quoted Carney’s response to a recent heckler, who shouted that Israel was committing genocide in Gaza. In seeming agreement with the heckler’s statement, Carney responded, “I’m aware, that’s why we have an arms embargo.”
It’s notable that Netanyahu’s post came after Carney had already partially walked back his comment.
Twenty-four hours after Netanyahu’s intervention into the election Poilievre took a further step toward aligning with the Netanyahu/Trump axis. The Conservative leader announced that he would copy the Trump administration, which at the behest of mega donor Miriam Adelson and other Zionist forces is deporting critics of Israel. “Anyone who is here on a visitor visa who carries out law-breaking will be deported from this country,” Poilievre told reporters Saturday in response to a question about Israel. “We will bring in tougher laws to target vandalism, hate marches that break laws [and] violent attacks based on ethnicity and religion.”
Netanyahu’s intervention is on top of various other forms of Israeli interventions into Canadian affairs. Israel’s diaspora ministry is spending millions and millions of dollars on online disinformation efforts targeting US and Canadian officials. They were caught last year promoting explicitly Islamophobic positions to deflect criticism of their holocaust in Gaza.
The Israeli diaspora minister also funds Canadian schools that send children to pro-genocide demonstrations. Israel invests tens of millions of dollars into North American Jewish schools. In 2023 minister for Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism, Amichai Chikli, visited Toronto’s TanenbaumChat school, noting “Investment in Jewish education is an investment in the future of Israel.”
At many Canadian Jewish schools Israeli emissaries are seconded to “provide a living connection to Israel by promoting Israeli experiences.” Hundreds of Israeli emissaries are also sent to Canadian summer camps and community organizations through a program between Canada’s Jewish federations and the Jewish Agency for Israel.
Canada’s Jewish federations have long been formally tied to the parastatal Jewish Agency for Israel (Jewish Agency for Palestine until 1948). Its website notes, “Canadian Federations are engaged in unique alliances with the Jewish Agency for Israel” and “founded in 1929, the Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI) is a primary agent for JFC-UIA in carrying out our mandate.”
The Jewish Agency for Israel effectively became Israel’s government in 1948 with long-time head David Ben-Gurion its first prime minister. Israel’s first foreign minister and second prime minister, Moshe Sharett, subsequently led the Jewish Agency while current Israeli president, Isaac Herzog, stepped down as head of the Jewish Agency to take that position. Today the Jewish Agency for Israel is a parastatal organization that seeks to further Judaize Israel, especially far-flung areas.
The federations’ official advocacy agent is the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs. CIJA has formally lobbied or sponsored trips to Israel for 58 per cent of incumbents running in the federal election. After restrictions were introduced on registered lobbying groups sponsoring international trips in late 2023, Toronto’s Jewish federation paid for five MPsto travel to Israel in November of that year.
Despite the obvious ongoing foreign state interference in Canadian politics, despite Benjamin Netanyahu trying to help Pierre Poilievre become prime minister, media outlets such as the Globe and Mail express no outrage. If China or Russia or India was caught doing 10 percent of Israel’s regular ongoing involvement in Canadian politics the mainstream media would whip the public into a frenzy about foreign interference.
Why the double standard? Is it because Israel is Canada’s ally as Zionists claim? An ally in the announced Trump-Netanyahu plan for the ethnic cleansing of Gaza? An ally in the killing of tens of thousands of Palestinian children? An ally in an ongoing genocide?
All candidates in the ongoing federal election should be asked these questions.
Yves Engler is a Montréal-based activist and author. He is author of the several books, including Stand on Guard For Whom? A People’s History of the Canadian Military.
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