The Department of National Defence is refusing to answer questions about the scheduled training sessions.
I don’t get it… why can’t Canada just totally divest from Israel?
Cooperation and support of nations engaging in genocide is a war crime itself. Canada needs to respect international law and fulfill its obligations under the UN Convention on Genocide.
The weapons were purchased before any ICJ rulings or UN decisions had been made against Isreal. I’m a huge proponent of divesting entirely and I strongly believe that going forward the world needs to isolate Isreal the way we did apartheid South Africa, but I’m not sure how the CAF was supposed to respect rulings of international courts that hadn’t yet been made or even considered when these purchasing decisions were made. The case hadn’t even been brought before the ICJ when we inked the deal.
The genocide has been going on for decades.
The genocide did not start on Oct 7th.
So, for those who need context, what’s happening here is that some of our people (29 instructors) went to Isreal to get trained in the operation of the new Spike LR2 missile system that we purchased from Rafael, an Isreali company. Those instructors will then train other forces members in how to use the weapon system.
This is the end result of a years long process (IIRC evaluations started back around 2016) to replace our existing, highly outdated, guided anti-tank capabilities. Canada needs a modern ATGM solution. With recent Russian belligerence, that’s a non-negotiable. We spent a LOT of time evaluating the options and selected the Spike as the best one available.
I don’t like that we’re buying weapons from Isreal. That sucks. But I’m also not about to advocate for derailing a years long process when we desperately need the updated capability this weapon system will provide. We already have the weapons for Christ’s sake. What good would it have done to refuse to get trained on them?
Given our recent defence cooperation agreements with Europe, going forward its likely that we’ll see more of our defence purchasing going in their direction, but this contract was a done deal before that agreement was even on the table.
I cynically wonder what the “targets” could be for the training.
Look, Isreal deserves all the hate they get and more. They’re a pack of genocidal monsters. But I’m really not sure what you’re even trying to reach for here. They’re anti-tank missiles. You fire them at tanks. There’s really nothing to read into here.
I also have to note my personal disgust at the suggestion that any member of the CAF would be involved in a training exercise involving live targets. I get that everyone likes to hate on anyone who wears a uniform, but you really don’t know shit about the culture of the CAF if you think that’s even worth implying as a joke. I know members of the CAF who openly proclaim themselves as communists and anarchists. I’ve had a MCpl and his husband over for dinner. I’ve met veterans who talk with a burning hatred for the Conservatives. I’ve heard stories of training exercises where entire platoons unanimously declared that their enemy was “The KKK, because fuck those racist assholes.” I personally know at least four separate officers in the CAF - two of them snipers - who’ve openly declared that they will beat the shit out of anyone they catch being transphobic. If you’re under the impression that the CAF are a bunch of mouth-breathing right-wing fascist assholes, you’ve never actually met them. While those members do exist, and they’re unfortunately more common in the reserve force, they are not representative of the culture of the CAF as a whole.
Luckily, Palestinian schools and hospitals aren’t great practice for ATGMs
Scums
