The Iranian Canadian Congress (ICC) expresses its deep concerns regarding the escalation of tensions in West Asia. Despite ongoing deadly operations by Israel in Gaza, over 100 hostages are still believed to be held captive there.
In these operations, the Israeli government has indiscriminately attacked innocent civilians, resulting in over 41,500 Palestinians killed, more than 95000 people injured, and more than two million people displaced in the last year. This is not to mention the many thousands of additional deaths due to starvation and disease. In the face of an unprecedented level of international outcry and confirmation of Israel’s war crimes by both the International Court of Justice and International Criminal Court, instead of accepting international calls for a ceasefire, Israel has expanded its aggression against Lebanon and has carried out multiple assassination operations, leading to the killing of thousands of additional civilians across the region. The Israeli government has demonstrated its full disregard of many international laws.
In recent days, in retaliation for Israeli aggression — including the killing of a peace negotiator on Iranian soil— the Iranian armed forces carried out a response against military targets in Israel. Since Iran’s response on October 1, 2024, Israeli officials are threatening to once again attack Iran, including by targeting oil refineries, infrastructure, and civilian nuclear program, which is under the inspection and monitoring of the IAEA. Such attacks would have devastating consequences for the Iranian people and could expand the conflict into a regional war, endangering the lives of millions of Muslims, Jews, Christians, and other citizens of the West Asia.
Considering that thousands of Canadian citizens and their family members live across the region and in the countries impacted by the Israeli government’s military operations, the Iranian Canadian Congress is deeply concerned about these recent escalations. We urge the Canadian federal government to use all diplomatic means available, including rallying the international community, to pressure the Israeli government to accept a ceasefire in Gaza, to stop its aggression toward Lebanon, and to refrain from expanding the war, including against Iran.
The time has come for this genocidal war to come to an end. A just and lasting peace is in the interest of all people in the region and in the interest of Canada and the Canadian people.
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