Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has warned that Israel's endorsement of the illegal E1 settlement plan east of occupied East Jerusalem poses "a direct threat to peace", whilst announcing fresh humanitarian aid for Palestinians on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
Carney confirmed he will co-host a meeting with the prime ministers of the United Kingdom and France alongside the UN secretary-general "on the two-state solution and the implementation of Security Council Resolution 2720 in Gaza", cautioning that "immense human suffering continues".
He stressed that the long-standing international consensus backing a two-state solution, sustained by "every one of my predecessors since the formation of this organisation, will mean nothing if these conditions continue".
Trade restrictions, illegal E1 expansion
Carney announced $71 million in "international assistance for Palestine", allocating $55 million for immediate humanitarian relief and $16 million to "support peace and security capacity building, including our leadership of police training in the occupied West Bank".
He stated that Canada and its allies, "with reluctance", will implement "trade restrictions targeting goods produced in those illegal Israeli settlements", describing the move as "a pragmatic, practical action" directed towards achieving "a durable peace for Israelis and Palestinians."
The move follows coordinated action earlier this month, when Canada joined Denmark, Finland, France, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and the UK in announcing targeted trade measures against products originating from illegal Israeli settlements.
Israeli authorities are preparing to open tenders on October 25 for 2,167 illegal settlement units under the controversial E1 scheme, supplementing 1,234 illegal units tendered in August to reach a total of 3,401 illegal units.
The Palestinian presidency has warned that the strategic project is designed to sever the occupied West Bank by annexing Palestinian land to connect the Maale Adumim settlement directly with occupied Jerusalem.
