Presumptively, on behalf of all Canadians, Prime Minister Mark Carney has condemned the Government of Israel for its alleged “failure to prevent the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian disaster in Gaza.” As with other commentators, he added some gratuitous and utterly unhelpful advice that he knew no one would attend to. This is why moralizers and virtue signallers such as Mr. Carney are, to use a phrase of Michel Foucault, also sadistic: They demand an impossible action that no one can fulfill, which means their words are meant only to annoy.His first bit of sadism: Israel’s food and aid distribution “must be replaced” by a comprehensive provision of assistance led by unnamed “international organizations.” Many of these unnamed organizations, he added, are sequestering Canadian funds designated for the relief of “starving civilians.”Could he have the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) in mind? That would be the same UN Relief and Works Agency whose staff members have assisted Hamas over the past several years. The practical end of that would be have Canada assist the friends of Hamas..A second bit of useless advice: Canada wants “all sides” to stop fighting and for Hamas to release the hostages it kidnapped, if they are alive. In return, Israel must “respect the territorial integrity” of the West Bank and Gaza.Even a former central banker cannot be so naïve as to expect any of the parties involved to take such advice seriously. Why then offer it?A final bit of sadistic moralism: Canada supports a two-state solution, “which guarantees peace and security” for Israel and the Palestinians. To that end, Canada will soon take part in a UN conference on this “solution.”The notion that the UN and its agencies are a major part of the problem seems never to have crossed his mind.So, let’s inject a small dose of reality..First off, Mr. Carney seems to have forgotten there is a war going on in Gaza. Does he recall how it began? Here is a hint: just as Belgium did not invade Germany on August 4, 1914, Israel did not invade Gaza on October 7, 2023.Second, Hamas still controls territory in Gaza. And Hamas, the terrorist outfit that launched the massacre of so many Israelis on October 7, still holds dead and living Israeli hostages.Third, until Hamas is extinguished, it retains the ability to fight.So, just with respect to the “humanitarian disaster,” Mr. Carney is asking Israel to do something that no country in the history of recent armed conflict has ever done: reduce its military activity to facilitate the ability of the enemy to continue fighting. This did not happen in either the European or Pacific theatres in World War II. Nor in Korea, Vietnam, Iraq or Syria. But Mr. Carney thinks the IDF should help Hamas by feeding Gazans using Hamas’ sympathizers to deliver food..Actually, Israel, despite the lack of historical precedent including from Canadian soldiers in the midst of fighting Germans circa 1939 to 1945, has made every effort to help Gazans access food. Thus, a further consideration: if Gazans are starving, who is preventing the delivery of food?The UN says the IDF restrictions and combat operations make it too dangerous for them to distribute food. The Israelis say the UN deliberately refuses to distribute food and last week pointed to nearly a thousand trucks inside Gaza at the Kerem Shalom Crossing filled with relief supplies but standing idle because the UN would not deliver the goods. The international media were shown the evidence but ignored it.One group that seems to have stepped up is the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF.) It is a joint Israeli and American operation that partners with local Gazans to deliver aid without the assistance of Hamas. And the aid they deliver is free, unlike the pricey stuff provided by the UN via Hamas..Critics, including Philippe Lazzarini, the Commissioner-General of UNRWA, don’t like the GHF because it is effective and because it avoids Hamas. According to Signore Lazzarini, the “so-called Gaza Humanitarian Foundation” is an “abomination” and a “deadly scam.” As of June 29, the GHF has delivered since last May some 90 million meals to Gazans. In addition, Israel has opened “humanitarian corridors” for UN truck convoys and resumed airborne food delivery.This is the real context within which Mr. Carney’s remarks can be understood. In reality Hamas, not Israel, has deliberately failed to prevent the humanitarian disaster. Accordingly, the sole effective purpose of Mr. Carney’s remarks is to bring further unnecessary pressure on Israel when, in truth, pressure needs to be directed at Hamas.Dr. Barry Cooper is a Professor of Political Science at the University of Calgary, author of 35 books and 200 studies, and is a Senior Fellow of the Aristotle Foundation for Public Policy. His book, New Political Religions, An Analysis of Modern Terrorism was recovered from Osama bin Laden’s personal library in Abbottabad, Pakistan, when Seal Team Six killed him in 2011.
