A coalition of Canadian legal rights groups has initiated the lawsuit. 

The Coalition for Canadian Accountability in the Gaza Strip, which includes the Legal Centre for Palestine (LCP), the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP) and other legal advocates, alleges that Ottawa has failed to meet its legal obligations to prevent genocide and has violated the plaintiffs’ rights under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

The legal action has been filed in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice on behalf of two Palestinian-Canadians who have suffered devastating losses in Gaza during Israel’s year-long assault on the civilian population.

The case centers on two plaintiffs: Hany el Batnigi, who was trapped in Gaza during the initial bombardment in October and lost multiple family members to Israeli regime‘s attacks, and Tamer Jarada, whose family suffered crushing losses when their apartment building in Gaza City was destroyed by an Israeli air strike, killing his father, sisters, uncle, aunt, nephews and numerous extended family members.

The lawsuit specifically challenges Canada’s continued military exports to Israel and its failure to exercise influence over Israeli actions. The filing argues that the government has neglected to deploy available tools, including sanctions against Israeli leaders, preventing Canadian citizens from serving in the Israeli military, and curtailing Canadian charities’ support for illegal acts in Israel.

The plaintiffs are seeking a declaration that Canada has violated its duty to take all measures within its power to prevent genocide. Additionally, they argue that the government’s failure to act has violated their Charter rights to security of the person and equal protection under the law without discrimination.

The legal action also criticizes Canada’s Gaza Special Measures temporary resident visa program, which has failed to provide adequate assistance to Palestinians fleeing the conflict, with both plaintiffs experiencing major obstacles in their attempts to secure safe passage for surviving family members to Canada.

Source: Middle East Monitor