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OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said universities should be places where ideas are debated but they also need to be safe for students, as a growing number of encampments protesting Israel’s war in Gaza have been set up at Canadian schools.
“Universities are places where the freedom of speech, the freedom of ideas, the challenge of debate, of dialogue, of discussion about how to shape the world, how to see the world, how to go on out after university or college and lead the world are a core part of what campuses are all about,” Trudeau told reporters while visiting Hamilton, Ont. on Friday.
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“We need to make sure that as part of that, everyone can feel safe on campus. Whether you’re a Jewish student, whether you’re Palestinian, whether you have strong feelings on one side or the other,” he said. “We have to trust both universities to manage their campuses and local police of jurisdiction to do their work to make sure that everyone is safe.”
Following similar protests at U.S. schools, protest camps have been set up at McGill, the University of Toronto, University of Ottawa, University of Vancouver and the University of Vancouver.
The groups have denounced Israel’s actions in Gaza and called for their schools to cut off any financial ties with the Jewish state. Several large encampments have sprung up at schools in the U.S. with students refusing to leave until their demands are met and violence breaking out when police move in.
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Israel’s war in Gaza began after the terrorist group Hamas, which governs Gaza, launched an attack on October 7 killing more than 1,000 people and leading to more than two hundred being taken hostage into Gaza. More than 100 hostages are still there.
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Trudeau said Jewish Canadians are rightfully concerned about the rise in antisemitism since the attacks and he also understands that many people are concerned about Israel’s invasion of Gaza and the ensuing humanitarian crisis.
“These are things that are challenging for a diverse and pluralistic society like Canada to deal with, but we must and we do that through conversations,” he said. “We do that through making sure that everyone is protected, that laws are enforced, that people take on their responsibilities to create spaces for conversation in which everyone can feel safe.”
National Post
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