During the question period in House of Commons on May 12, 2021 Jagmeet Singh, the leader of the New Democratic Party of Canad (NDP), posed the following question to the prime minister Justin Trudeau:
Mr. Speaker, violence in East Jerusalem is deeply disturbing. Demolitions, forcibly removing Palestinians from their homes and blocking access to important gathering spots are all violations of human rights and international laws. Instead of taking action to stop or deal with the long-standing illegal occupation, the Prime Minister is effectively supporting the status quo and going as far as to sell weapons to Israel. Arming one side of the conflict is undermining the peace process and supporting illegal occupation. Will the Prime Minister commit to stopping the sale of arms to Israel while it is violating international human rights?
Trudeau responded by saying:
Mr. Speaker, we are following the situation with grave concern. We call on all parties to end the violence, de-escalate tensions, protect civilians and uphold international law. Rocket attacks against Israel are completely unacceptable, and Canada supports Israel’s right to ensure its own security. Violence at Al-Aqsa is also unacceptable. Places of worship are for people to gather peacefully and should never be sites of violence. We are also gravely concerned by continued expansion of settlements and evictions. Canada supports the two-state solution, and we urge all parties to renew their commitment to peace and security.
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On May 9, 2021 The Jerusalem Post reported:
The High Court of Justice delayed by possibly a month any movement on the pending eviction of four Palestinian families from the east Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah. The postponement came after the Palestinian families filed a request demanding that Attorney-General Avichai Mandelblit weigh in on the case…
Two lower court had upheld the Nahalat Shimon company’s ownership claim to the land, but the Palestinians had appealed to the HCJ, which had been due to decide Monday on whether to accept the appeal.
The property dispute is seen as a test case for some 28 Palestinian families in the neighborhood, who fled ares now located within sovereign Israel during the 1948 War of Independence, such as west Jerusalem, Jaffa and Haifa.
They relocated to east Jerusalem, which at the time was under Jordanian rule. Through a deal that included the United Nations, Jordan offered them homes on land previously owned by Jews if they would give up their refugee status.
But their property rights were never registered and two organizations retained their ownership rights, which has since been transferred to Nahalat Shimon.