Unceded Anishinaabe Algonquin Territories [OTTAWA], 9 October 2025:
Climate Action Network Canada stands in solidarity with the hundreds of participants from the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF), the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), and the Thousand Madleens to Gaza (TMTG) who have been illegally abducted and detained by Israel in international waters, including nine Canadians. These flotillas are peaceful, non-violent convoys of volunteers that were headed to Gaza in an attempt to break Israel’s illegal blockade of the enclave, which is currently causing famine and starvation for more than half a million people.
This humanitarian effort comes after two horrifying years of genocide in Gaza. While the new ceasefire deal brings relief and hope for an end to the violence, it does not erase the suffering and loss that Palestinians have endured and continue to face, nor does it erase Canada’s long complicity and silence. Israel’s attacks over the last two years have directly killed at least 67,000 people—though the actual number of people killed through unaccounted for or indirect causes is likely in the hundreds of thousands—and follow decades of oppression and displacement. The Flotilla aimed to bring life-saving aid and to confront international complicity in the ongoing genocide, building on a long history of Palestinian resistance.
Of the nearly 500 participants from the GSF, which was intercepted on October 2nd, six are still being illegally detained by Israel, as of the time of this publication. On October 8th, 145 FFC and TMTG participants were also illegally intercepted, abducted, and detained—including six Canadians on board the Conscience.
We wholeheartedly echo our International Network’s condemnation of Israel’s interception of the Flotilla in international waters, and the subsequent abduction of the activists on board. The illegal and inhumane treatment of these activists is not an isolated incident, but rather one instance of the pattern of violence with impunity that Israel has been enacting against the Palestinian people for decades.
As civil society, we call out the Canadian government’s inadequate response to these abductions, including those of its own citizens, when we have often heard Canada call for the respect of human rights and democracy in international fora. CAN-Rac calls on our government to:
- Condemn this latest act of illegal aggression by Israel;
- Demand the immediate release of all those abducted by Israeli forces and their ships, and their unhindered passage in continuing on their humanitarian mission safely.
We reiterate our demand that Canada halt its arms exports to Israel and use every tool at its disposal to ensure that Israel ends the genocide, following the six provisional measures ordered by the International Court of Justice:
- Take all measures in its power to prevent the commission of genocide;
- Ensure that its military does not commit genocide;
- Prevent and punish incitement of genocide;
- Enable the provision of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance;
- Prevent the destruction and ensure the preservation of evidence related to allegations of genocide.
There can be no climate justice without human rights. As a group of organizations working in a state built on colonialism, we recognize the importance of decolonization everywhere. Until the conventions and institutions to protect the most fundamental human rights are respected, climate action, democracy and international cooperation will continue to crumble before our eyes. CAN-Rac calls on Prime Minister Carney and his government to follow up its recognition of the State of Palestine with real action to uphold the rights of the Palestinian people.
Quotes:
Caroline Brouillette, Executive Director, Climate Action Network Canada:
“The ceasefire brings tenuous hope after unimaginable suffering, but the fight for lasting peace, justice, and liberation for the Palestinian people is far from over. We have so often heard Canada defend human rights and democracy in climate diplomacy fora—but where are these principles when Israel is arresting Canadian citizens delivering aid to Gaza? What should we make of those words when Canada stands by as Israel commits genocide against Palestinians? As civil society, we must hold our government accountable for its failures and fight for Canada to offer meaningful support to Palestine through the uncertain times ahead.”
Amara Possian, Canada Team Lead, 350.org:
“The people aboard the Global Sumud Flotilla embody the courage and solidarity our times demand, risking their safety to deliver life-saving aid and challenge an illegal blockade that’s starving Palestinians in Gaza. Canada’s silence in the face of their abduction is indefensible. True climate justice demands solidarity with people resisting colonialism and oppression everywhere, including in Palestine — and that means stopping arms exports to Israel and using every tool available to end this genocide.”
Jesse Whattam, Campaigns Manager, Leadnow:
“While Israeli forces commit acts of piracy in international waters — abducting hundreds of unarmed civilians bringing desperately needed aid to Gaza — the Canadian government remains silent. For nearly two years, Canada and other Western governments have done little to stop the genocide in Gaza. So ordinary people from over 50 countries stepped up in their stead, risking everything to break Israel’s illegal blockade and bring aid to Palestinians. Canada has a responsibility — not just to its own citizens, but to international law and basic human decency. It’s time for Canada to take concrete action – they must demand the safe release of all flotilla participants and sanction Israel for the ongoing genocide and systemic human rights violations.”
Lorraine Green, Co- Founder, Grand(m)others Act to Save the Planet (GASP):
“Grand(m)others Act to Save the Planet (GASP) condemns the illegal abduction of the Global Sumud Flotilla, as the military interception of civilian vessels carrying humanitarian aid is a blatant breach of international law. We urge the Canadian Government to speak out strongly against this action, as it confirms that the blockade and the denial of life-saving aid are tools of war. When peaceful missions are violently seized, it exposes the criminal intent to maintain the siege and ensure the starvation of the population. The IOF has violated international maritime and humanitarian law.”
Andrea Koehle Jones, Executive Director, The ChariTree Foundation:
“Courage is love in action. Around the world, brave and caring people continue to help others amid war, displacement, natural disasters, climate emergencies, poverty, and health crises. The ChariTree Foundation welcomes the latest ceasefire as a step toward lasting peace in Gaza and the region, calling for the safe, swift delivery of humanitarian aid, and urging Canada and the international community to protect all who bring it — including flotilla participants — and ensure it reaches those most in need, especially children.”
Wyanne Sandler, Network Director, For Our Kids:
“For Our Kids is an organization rooted in a spirit of love and protection for children and future generations. We are deeply distressed and heartbroken over the suffering of children and families in conflict zones all over the world. Our hearts are perpetually broken for the children and families of Gaza, where Israel has waged a relentless military campaign and siege on food, water, and medicine. We stand in solidarity with the flotilla volunteers who have been attempting to break that siege, and get these necessities of life, including infant formula, to Palestinians in Gaza. We call on the government of Canada to denounce the illegal detainment of these humanitarian volunteers and demand their immediate release. We also call on the Canadian government to do everything in their power to end the genocide in Gaza, support a just and lasting peace, and demand accountability for war crimes and violations of human rights.”
Salomé Sané, Nature & Biodiversity campaigner, Greenpeace Canada:
“Greenpeace began as an antiwar movement, rooted in the belief that peace, justice, and a healthy planet are inseparable. Our fight for climate and environmental justice has taught us that the same systems that scorch forests, poison rivers and push us towards climate collapse are the ones dropping bombs on Gaza and bulldozing Palestinian land and ecosystems. While Gaza bleeds in front of our eyes, we must denounce Canada’s complicity in fuelling this genocide but continuing to ship weapons to Israel. Citizens from around the world, including from Canada, are stepping in where governments have failed by attempting to pierce the blockade imposed on Gaza. We demand Prime Minister Carney and Minister Anand impose a total arms embargo on Israel, and act to stop this genocide. Land back is more than a ceasefire, it means justice and liberation everywhere.”
Lyn Adamson, Co-Chair, Canadian Voice of Women for Peace:
“It is vital that we speak up, together, for justice and peace, which are intertwined. We support the Flotilla participants for their commitment to their humanitarian mission and we urge our government to support their safe release – and to support a just future for Palestinians, with human rights for all.”
Dr. Melissa Lem, President, Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment:
“As physicians committed to human health and environmental justice, the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment has been deeply distressed at the unfolding genocide in Gaza. We stand in full support of the brave healthcare workers, aid workers and volunteers aboard the flotillas and in Gaza, who are risking their lives to protect Palestinian civilians. It’s time for the Canadian government to take a stronger stance against this injustice, including ensuring the safety of its own citizens apprehended by Israel, and implementing a full, two-way arms embargo. The current ceasefire brings us hope, but the work is far from over.”
Jared Blustein, Executive Director, Calgary Climate Hub:
“The Calgary Climate Hub opposes the military industrial-complex, and its creation of perpetual global conflict, the genocide in Palestine being the latest. We highlight the clear ecological and human devastation caused by these neo imperial wars, and demand that our government end its complicity in these atrocities by implementing a two way arms embargo with Israel, support a meaningful cease-fire, and help to ensure the safe passage and return of flotillas providing humanitarian aid to the region.”
Anjali Appadurai, Campaigns Director, Climate Emergency Unit:
“In a time when genocide has unfolded for two years without intervention from the world’s most powerful governments, the flotillas bound for Gaza represent the best of us. These brave humanitarians are acting with the courage and moral clarity required from all of us, and it is a stunning disgrace that Canada has not intervened in their illegal abduction. We stand in solidarity with the members of the flotillas, and remain committed to pushing our government to uphold and defend international law by stopping all arms exports to Israel, closing loopholes to enable a true arms embargo, and using all available tools to end the genocide and stand up for human rights and justice.”
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Canada’s farthest-reaching network of organizations working on climate and energy issues, Climate Action Network – Réseau action climat (CAN-Rac) Canada is a coalition of more than 180 organizations operating from coast to coast to coast. Our membership brings environmental groups together with trade unions, First Nations, social justice, development, health and youth organizations, faith groups and local, grassroots initiatives.
For more information or to arrange an interview, contact:
Vicky Coo, Communications Manager
comms@climateactionnetwork.ca
Photo credit: Gulcin Bekar / Global Sumud Flotilla