Showing posts with label Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Show all posts

Tuesday, October 20, 2015

Update: Stephen Harper out as Canadian Prime Minister. Israel has lost a great ally. Oct. 20, 2015



Stephen Harper - Canadian Prime Minister elected out Oct. 19, 2015

Article published below printed before the election results came in.

Canadian Elections Could Spell Doom for Israel as “Anti-Israel” Candidates Gain Ground


“A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.” (Proverbs 17:17)
On Monday, October 19th, the Canadian parliament will hold elections, possibly jeopardizing the pro-Israel stance of its government. The Conservative-led Canadian government has been one of Israel’s best friends for nine years, standing up for Israel time and again in international bodies such as the United Nations, as well as the G8, under the leadership of Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
Breaking Israel News spoke with Ilan Mann, a Conservative party activist working on the campaign of an incumbent MP (Member of Parliament) for Thornhill, which has a very strong Jewish representation. Mann described why it is so important for people who care about Israel, Jews and non-Jews alike, to vote for the Conservative Party of Canada.
“The Conservative government’s record on Israel has been second to none, both in Canadian history, and in the international community,” he explained. “This is represented clearly by the fact that several Israeli and Canadian publications have commented that Harper is ‘Israel’s best friend.’”
In January 2014, Israel honored Harper by giving him the “Key to the Knesset” in thanks for his friendship. Harper, in an address to the Knesset, told the Israeli people and the world that Canada will stand with Israel through fire and water.
Harper’s “morality doctrine” has been the lynch pin of his government’s foreign policy for the Middle East, often garnering bad press for Canada. When Canada’s bid for a coveted seat on the United Nations Security Council was rejected, the Conservative government’s Israel stance was cited by its critics as a possible explanation why.
“The Conservative Party of Canada recognizes Israel as a beacon of freedom in a region plagued by oppression, tyranny and terror, which is why we will continue to stand with Israel on the world stage,” said Mann. Indeed, the Harper government has not flinched from the proverbial slap in the face it received from the United Nations, even going so far as to harshly criticize the international body by calling it a “debate club for dictators.”
It seems that other parties vying for control over the Canadian parliament are looking to appear strong on Israel as well. According to Mann, “This election, every party has tried to emulate the Conservative Party’s principled position on the Canada-Israel relationship.”
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However, Mann added, this newly adopted stance may not be as genuine as it seems for the Liberal or National Democratic Party (NDP). “The reality is, that actions speak louder than words,” Mann said. “The Conservative Party is the only party that is not running, and will not run, a single anti-Israel or anti-Semitic candidate.”
“The Conservative Party will never take the middle road when it comes to the only democracy in the Middle East,” he added.
Mann said that the track records of other candidates running for office speak for themselves. “The NDP ranks are ripe with anti-Israel candidates, including star candidate Andrew Cash, who has spoken in favor of the BDS movement,” he pointed out.
Mann also noted that the Liberal party’s list features anti-Israel MPs. “The Liberal ticket includes Omar Alghabra, former head of the Canadian Arab Federation, who has refused to condemn Palestinian suicide bombers as terrorists, doesn’t believe that Hamas is committed to the elimination of Israel and said that Israel’s actions in defense of its citizen during last year’s operation in Gaza were ‘blind and cruel’,” he told Breaking Israel News.
Mann compared the empty rhetoric of other parties to the Conservative Party’s consistently pro-Israel actions. “Meanwhile, the Conservatives have spoken publicly against the BDS movement, have stood by Israel in the face of rockets and ongoing terror, and defunded the Canadian Arab Federation for their support of terrorism and promotion of anti-Semitism,” he said.
“When it comes to the question of the Canada-Israel relationship, there has never, in our short history as friend and allies, been a starker choice,” he concluded.
Canadians go to the polls on Monday, October 19th, in what is shaping up to be one of the closest elections in Canadian history. According to current election polls, the Liberal party has a strong lead. What this will mean for Canada’s close relationship with Israel remains to be seen.

Read more at http://www.breakingisraelnews.com/51515/israels-best-friend-at-risk-as-canadian-conservative-party-faces-elections-jerusalem/#B2ERHbbzXH0cmxiu.99


Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Canada Unequivocally Backs Israel, Urges Others To Do So

Canada Unequivocally Backs Israel, Urges Others To Do So

Wednesday, July 16, 2014 |  Israel Today Staff
Given his behavior over the past several years vis-a-vis the Middle East conflict, it will come as little surprise that Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper has been the most clear and unwavering among world leaders in his support for Israel as it combats the Gaza rocket threat.
“The indiscriminate rocket attacks from Gaza on Israel are terrorist acts, for which there is no justification,” Harper said in a statement issued this week. “It is evident that Hamas is deliberately using human shields to further terror in the region.”
Whitewashing Hamas or drawing moral equivalence between it and the Jewish state will only prolong the conflict, Harper warned fellow world leaders.
“Failure by the international community to condemn these reprehensible actions would encourage these terrorists to continue their appalling actions,” he insisted, concluding with an open call for Canada’s “allies and partners to recognize that these terrorist acts are unacceptable and that solidarity with Israel is the best way of stopping the conflict.”
A day earlier, Canadian Foreign Minister John Baird slammed Navi Pillay, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, for blaming Israel for the civilians deaths in Gaza and for demanding ceasefire terms that would leave Hamas and its offensive abilities intact.
Baird said that Pillay’s remarks were “neither helpful nor reflective of the reality of this crisis.” In particular, Baird took issue with Pillay drawing moral equivalence between a democratic state that is taking extraordinary measures to avoid civilian casualties and a recognized terrorist organization.
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Thursday, January 23, 2014

Canada's Harper: Why Single Out Israel for Criticism? - ISRAEL TODAY

Canada's Harper: Why Single Out Israel for Criticism?

Wednesday, January 22, 2014 |  Ryan Jones, Israel Today 


Visiting Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Tuesday wondered why people keep trying to get him to single out Israel for criticism, while ignoring differences his government might have with nearly every other country.
During a joint press briefing with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem, Harper was asked by Israeli media why he had failed to publicly condemn Jewish "settlement activity" in Judea and Samaria.
"When I’m in Israel I’m asked to single out Israel, when I’m in the Palestinian Authority I’m asked to single out Israel, and half the other places around the world you ask me to single out Israel," Harper responded, wondering why when he visited Ramallah a day earlier "no one asked me there to single out the Palestinian Authority for any criticism in terms of governance or human rights or anything else."
Harper went on to point out that Canada's readily available official policy opposes Jewish settlements, and that he is not constrained in expressing his government's differences with Israel when meeting with Netanyahu. But, Harper suggested, he sees no reason to make a public show of it.
When addressing the Knesset earlier in the day, Harper said he knew why exaggerated criticism of Israel had become so popular in the world today - it is the new haven for those who would in generations past have been labeled as anti-Semites.
"People who would never say they hate and blame the Jews for their own failings or the problems of the world, instead declare their hatred of Israel and blame the only Jewish state for the problems of the Middle East," he told Israel's gathered lawmakers. "...this is the face of the new anti-Semitism. It targets the Jewish people by targeting Israel."
Netanyahu also addressed the settlement question, reminding those present that "this conflict raged for half a century before there was a single Israeli settlement or Israeli soldier in Judea, Samaria and Gaza."
He reiterated that, as such, it was wrong to view the presence of Jewish communities as the "core of the conflict," a notion the Canadian government seems to grasp.
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Tuesday, January 21, 2014

"Canada will stand with Israel." - Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper - 'Through fire and water, Canada will stand with Israel'

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, 
Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and wives




'Through fire and water, Canada will stand with Israel'

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper delivers stirring pro-Israel speech at the Knesset • Harper: I believe the story of Israel is a great example to the world • Two Arab MKs disrupt Harper's speech • Netanyahu: Harper stands up for the truth.

Gideon Alon, Shlomo Cesana, Daniel Siryoti, Israel Hayom Staff and News Agencies
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper addresses the Knesset on Monday
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 Photo credit: Dudi Vaaknin

Monday, January 20, 2014

'A great friend of Israel and the Jewish people' - Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper (Israel Hayom)

'A great friend of Israel and the Jewish people'


Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper lands in Israel on Sunday, is welcomed at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem • PM Benjamin Netanyahu to Harper: You have shown great moral leadership • Harper set to address the Knesset on Monday.

Shlomo Cesana, Israel Hayom
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomes Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper to Israel on Sunday
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 Photo credit: Dudi Vaaknin