Relative of Hamas hostage decries ceasefire motion

Article content

The Canadian relative of a woman kidnapped by Hamas nearly six months ago described Monday’s motion calling for recognition of Palestinian statehood as “disgusting.”

Ashley Waxman Bakshi said the motion does little but embolden extremists, and carries little meaning if it also doesn’t specifically exclude Hamas from any future Palestinian state.

Article content

“They’re incentivizing terrorism, because they’re saying if you carry out an attack that’s so bad that it creates a huge response, the western world is basically going to forget about it,” she said on Monday during a visit to Ottawa.

Article content

“It’s going to come back and bite the western world in its butt, because this isn’t going to stay in Israel — it’s sending a message to every terrorist organization around the world, said Bakshi, a Canadian-Israeli content creator and one of Israel’s most viewed influencers.

Bakshi is the cousin of Agam Berger, a 19-year-old woman kidnapped by Hamas terrorists from her home in Nahal Oz on Oct. 7.

A video from the day of the attack showed a handcuffed and bloodied Berger being bundled into a truck by Hamas terrorists.

The House of Commons is set to debate the non-binding NDP-sponsored motion Monday evening, which among other demands calls on Canada to recognize a Palestinian state.

Born in Hamilton, Bakshi moved to Israel in 2006 where she would eventually turn social media posts about makeup and beauty tips into her full-time career.

Today, her YouTube channel features a mix of makeup and beauty content alongside commentary about the ongoing war against Hamas.

Bakshi also lectures at Reichman University in Tel Aviv, and is an outspoken advocate for Israel. Since Oct. 7 she has campaigned extensively on behalf of hostages and their families.

Article content

Article content

Bakshi took exception to how the motion is being presented, saying that requests for Hamas to release their hostages while also calling for a ceasefire renders the motion both hypocritical and disingenuously unbalanced.

“As a family member of a hostage, the only thing that they’re doing is sending any possibility of a deal literally into the garbage,” she said.

“When the Hamas sees Israel’s closest allies in the West coming against Israel at a time like this, Hamas will say ‘why should we negotiate any deal?’”

Letting the West act as a proxy for Hamas in ceasefire negotiations removes any incentive for Hamas to ever release the hostages, Bakshi said.

Monday’s vote comes just two days before a delegation of Canadian relatives of the Oct. 7 victims arrive on Parliament Hill to call for sanctions and an RCMP investigation into the murder and rape of Canadians by Hamas.

Irwin Cotler, former Canadian justice minister and founder of the Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights, said Wednesday’s visit by the families underscores Canada’s urgent need to ensure both justice and accountability for Canadian victims of Hamas’s crimes against Canadians, as well as the hostages still held by the terror group.

Article content

“Every day that these hostages are in Hamas captivity is a standing crime against humanity,” Cotler said.

Bakshi said that any credible proposal for Palestinian statehood should feature clauses specifically excluding Hamas as a prerequisite.

“Even in recent history with (the) Oslo and Camp David (accords,) there were so many attempts (at peace). Israel attempted, Israel wanted a two-state solution, but it was the Palestinians who always said no,” she said.

Canada, she said, has an important part the play in the peace process, but described the motion as a means for Canada to quietly condemn Israel while also legitimizing antisemitism.

“It’s strengthening Hamas and letting terrorism win,” she said.

“It’s endangering the future of not only every Israeli like me who lives there now and my children, but also every Jewish Canadian here.”

National Post

bpassifiume@postmedia.com
x.com/bryanpassifume

Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark nationalpost.com and sign up for our newsletters here.

Article content