Carney’s decision to recognize a Palestinian State a mistake

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On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas launched a terrorist attack on Israel that killed roughly 1,200 people including eight Canadians. On Sept. 21, 2025, less than two years after that attack, Prime Minister Mark Carney rewarded Hamas and their terrorism by announcing that Canada would recognize a Palestinian state.

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There was no fanfare, no announcement, just a news release issued to the government website, a social media post by Carney.

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In his statement, Carney said that Canada has long supported a two-state solution, which is true, but he blames Israel for currently opposing a two-state solution. That of course ignores the fact that Hamas has repeatedly said they reject the two-state solution, that they continue to wage war and hold hostages and have said they will launch Oct. 7 attacks over and over again until they control all the land, “from the river to the sea.”

In fairness to Carney, he does acknowledge that Hamas is an evil organization that must go.

“Hamas has terrorized the people of Israel and oppressed the people of Gaza, wreaking horrific suffering. It is imperative that Hamas release all hostages, fully disarm, and play no role in the future governance of Palestine. Hamas has stolen from the Palestinian people, cheated them of their life and liberty, and can in no way dictate their future,” Carney said.

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The problem is that Carney believes he, along with Britain’s Keir Starmer and France’s Emmanuel Macron, can simply wish a Palestinian state into existence and say that the Palestinian Authority will lead this new state. That will not happen, the Palestinian Authority has no support and lacks the ability to control anything on the ground in the Gaza Strip.

Hamas is still the leadership on the ground, such as it is, and that is why Carney is rewarding terrorism no matter how he phrases it.

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“Recognising the State of Palestine, led by the Palestinian Authority, empowers those who seek peaceful coexistence and the end of Hamas. This in no way legitimizes terrorism, nor is it any reward for it,” Carney wrote.

“Furthermore, it in no way compromises Canada’s steadfast support for the State of Israel, its people, and their security – security that can only ultimately be guaranteed through the achievement of a comprehensive two-state solution.”

While Carney doesn’t think he has rewarded terrorism, former Liberal justice minister and international human rights advocate Irwin Cotler disagrees. In an op-ed published in National Post on Saturday, Cotler and co-author Orde Kittrie, a law professor and former U.S. State Department official, called out the leader of his former party for this plan.

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“If Israeli-Palestinian peace is to be achieved, recognition of a Palestinian state must be the end result of a negotiated peace agreement, not a reward for terrorism,” Cotler and Kittrie said.

Carney has said that Canada’s recognition of a Palestinian state would be contingent on a number of conditions including the Palestinian Authority holding elections, democratic reforms and more, including that Hamas has no role. As Cotler and Kittie wrote, the assurances Carney received from Mahmoud Abbas, the head of the Palestinian Authority, don’t amount to much.

“One of us (Irwin Cotler) has personally met with PA President Mahmoud Abbas and his aides many times over the years. They have repeatedly promised that they would abolish the pay-for-slay program and move towards demilitarization and de-radicalization. Regrettably, those promises have largely gone unfulfilled,” they wrote.

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Abbas is in the 20th year of a four-year term having won power in 2005 and has been refusing to hold elections since. He also has kept the pay-for-slay program going that provides pensions or payments to the families of those who carry out attacks killing Jews.

What is happening in Israel right now, including the destruction of Gaza, is heartbreaking and it needs to come to an end.

The solution, though, is to end the war, for Hamas to lay down their weapons and release the hostages. Instead, they continue to fight, they keep the hostages and as soon as word that Britain, France and Canada would recognize a Palestinian State, they walked away from peace talks.

Carney’s actions, on behalf of the whole country, won’t bring the region closer to peace, it will do the opposite.

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