As is always the case when Canadian Dimension is critical of Israel, pro-Israeli readers emerge to denounce the magazine’s coverage with complete obfuscation of fact in favour of blunt ideology, the most recent example being Prime Minister Steven Harper’s claims of “anti-Semitism” amongst the opposition.

One could staunchly defend Harper’s statement, as our most avid pro-Israeli readers do, or one could place Harper’s comments within its proper context. Harper said there were “anti-Semites” amongst the opposition in reference to a statement made by an opposition member during the 2006 Lebanon War.

It would be impossible to say just who this member was as, when Liberal hawk Bob Rae asked the Tory house leader to point out the “anti-Semites” during question period, Harper was not in the House.

We can, however, make a fairly educated guess as to who made this famous “anti-Semetic” statement, and the results should come as no surprise. During the radio interview which sparked this recent spat, Harper said, “I am disturbed that there are some elements in our political system, there are even some members of Parliament we saw during the confrontation between Israel and Hezbollah a couple years back — some that were willing to cater to that kind of opinion.” Well “that kind of opinion” was clearly from a Liberal, as it was Rae who came to this “anti-Semite’s” defence, and it was also likely a high ranking Liberal, as the charge came from Haper. In the context of the 2006 Lebanon War, this “anti-Semitic” statement most likely emanated from our most famed and failed intellectual, Michael Ignatieff.

Ignatieff, following the devastating Israeli attack on Qana, accused Israel of having committed a “war crime.” The July 30 Israeli air attack on an apartment building in Qana claimed 28 lives, all civilians, half of which were children. The attack is a clear violation of Geneva conventions and a blatant war crime, but condemning the attack is the “kind of opinion” that Harper deems “anti-Semetic.”

What should come as no surprise is the fallout that occurred when Ignatieff briefly deviated from the party line. Susan Kadis, Member of Parliament for Thornhill, immediately released a statement renouncing her support for Igantieff based on his allegations against Israel. “I find his unprovoked comments very troubling
given that fact that the Israeli response came in light of brazen kidnappings by Hezbollah of Israeli soldiers,” her statement read. The framing of her argument is in complete accord with U.S./Israeli spin, and the Canadian press willingly followed suit. The 2006 War did not commence because of the abduction of Israeli soldiers. The U.S. and Israel kidnap soldiers all the time, and it’s completely acceptable in their view. These kidnappings were merely the convenient pretext to quash Hezbollah, the strongest supporters of the Palestinians, who are so woven into Lebanese society that the 2006 U.S./Israeli forces just wiped the civilian population out as well (even a cursory glance on wikipedia will prove as much).

Ignatieff then whipped back into his usual hawkish mode with a press release of his own on the same day as Kadis’ release. “In a conflict between a terrorist militia and a democratic state, Canada must always side with the democratic state,” Ignatieff wrote. He went on to say that Israel lives under the constant threat of Hezbullah attacks, but made no mention of the reign of terror Israel has imposed upon Lebanon (again, even a basic search will prove as much).

One important factor to keep in mind in all of this is that it is completely irrelevant. A brief divergence from the hawkish line by Ignatieff will hardly bring to an end the atrocities conducted by Israel on a regular basis. Where this fairly trivial routine does become significant is the extent to which Canadian politicians and press do not deviate from the script.

For an excellent article on Igantieff’s hawkish comments as an MP, read Sam Mokel’s “The Birth of Ignatieff as a Politician.”

“Morality’s Avenging Angels” by Edward S. Herman and David Peterson is another detailed study of Ignatieff’s hawkish statements on the 1999 NATO war in Kosovo, in which Canada played a significant role.

Matthew Brett is an anti-war activist and freelance journalist based in Montreal. Read other posts by Matthew Brett.