Canada:Muslim groups say MPs won’t be welcome in mosques until they call for Gaza ceasefire

Is that a threat or a promise? Vote according to conscience and never have to pull on a scarf, remove shoes and bite one’s tongue while listening to taqiya ever again; it’s a win-win. 

From CBC

With Ramadan just around the corner, a national Muslim organization and several local congregations are warning members of Parliament they won’t be welcome in their mosques until they call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, demand restoration of funding for the UN’s aid agency and condemn what they call Israel’s “war crimes.”

An open letter signed by the National Council of Canadian Muslims and a number of prominent mosques, obtained by CBC News, says MPs who refuse to make these pledges publicly will not be “provided with a platform to address our congregations.”

“If you cannot publicly commit to all of the above, respectfully, we cannot provide you with a platform to address our congregations,” the letter says. “Ramadan is about humanity. This Ramadan, more than ever, only those MPs who share in our commitment to humanity will be welcome to address us in our sacred spaces.”

The letter, which is being released today, also says MPs must oppose “the flow of arms and military equipment” to Israel and stand up for “the right of Canadians to express solidarity with the Palestinian people without fear of reprisal.”

After Israel claimed that 12 or 13 employees of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) had participated in various capacities in the Oct. 7 attack, Canada suspended federal funding for the agency.

Canadian Council of Imams (CCI) director Abd Alfatah Twakkal said MPs who refuse to sign on to these pledges risk losing the “political capital within our communities.”

Mosques and Muslim community organizations are popular stops for campaigning politicians. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has visited mosques across the country for pre-Ramadan events, where in the past he’s been greeted by mobs of supporters. Since October, however, Trudeau has found himself targeted by protesters infuriated by his government’s approach to the war in Gaza.