City of Burnaby asks federal government to call for ceasefire in Gaza

The City of Burnaby is believed to be the first Canadian municipality to pass a motion asking the federal government to call for a ceasefire in Gaza.

The motion, which was brought forward by Councillor Daniel Tetrault Monday night, also asks Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to call for the increased flow of humanitarian aid and the release of all hostages.

The motion, which was brought forward by Councillor Daniel Tetrault Monday night, also asks Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to call for the increased flow of humanitarian aid and the release of all hostages.

The ask would come in the form of a letter also sent to Burnaby MP’s Jagmeet Singh and Terry Beech.

Tetrault says now that the motion has passed, he hopes other cities will follow suit.

“We want other people and other organizations, elected officials, and people in general to feel that it’s safe to speak out and call for a ceasefire, in order to stop the killing of innocent civilians,” he told CityNews.

Tetrault says he can’t believe the federal government hasn’t already called for a ceasefire.

“We will hope at the bare minimum, we call for a ceasefire,” Tetrault said. “That shouldn’t be controversial… given all the civilian casualties.”

The motion also asks Mayor, council, and the City of Burnaby to condemn all acts of anti-semitism, anti-Palestinian racism and Islamaphobia in the community. Adding that these acts “have risen since the escalation of violence this past month.”

“As someone who comes from a Jewish background, I want to make clear this isn’t an issue of Jews versus Muslims, this is an issue of basic human rights,” Tetrault said.

The motion passed unanimously.