The following statement was developed by Samidoun Toronto. Reach out to Samidoun Toronto at toronto@samidoun.net.
It is strongly suspected that on January 21st, Israeli Occupation Forces abducted Palestinian-Canadian journalist Mansour Shouman at a safe passage crossing between Khan Younis and Rafah in Gaza. Shouman is a Canadian citizen and was living with his mother, wife, and five children in Calgary before bravely choosing to report from Gaza on the Zionist genocidal onslaught against the Palestinian people. His kidnapping and possible incarceration as a Palestinian journalist makes Shouman a political prisoner of the Zionist entity. Samidoun Toronto strongly condemns the IOF’s targeted kidnapping, incarceration, and slaughter of Palestinian journalists.
Like other reporters before him, Mansour Shouman’s journalism exposed the reality of Israel’s colonial brutality in Gaza. The Palestinian journalist’s work is inherently politicized due to the nature of this feat, and thus Israel’s incarceration of Palestinian journalists is a form of political incarceration. We continue to call for the release of all political prisoners from the Zionist dungeons as the Resistance has called and struggled for since October 7th.
Samidoun Toronto condemns the cowardly silence and indifference of the Canadian settler-colonial government towards the safety and wellbeing of Canadian citizens forcibly contained in Gaza. This includes Mansour Shouman, the Kouta family, and any others still abandoned by their so-called government that is actively arming the ongoing genocide, putting their lives at risk. We demand the so-called Canadian government take immediate action in locating Mansour Shouman and facilitating his unconditional release and safe passage back to his family. We call on all people in so-called Canada to demand elected officials to locate Shouman and ensure his safe return home by signing Justice for All Canada’s call to action addressed to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly, and Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Minister Marc Miller. Be sure to issue the same demands to your local elected officials and be unrelenting in the struggle for Palestinian liberation by any means necessary.
We urge all people of conscience in so-called Canada to support the Palestinian struggle by involving yourselves in local solidarity events and organizing. It is our duty as people in the imperial core to demonstrate our principled and unconditional support of this anti-colonial struggle and that the masses will not tolerate so-called Canada’s direct military, financial, and diplomatic support of the genocidal Zionist entity.
Upcoming Palestine Solidarity Events in Toronto:
- GENOCIDE IS NO JOKE: Protest at Yuk Yuk’s, a comedy venue fundrasing for the IOF. Wednesday, January 31st at 5:45pm at 224 Richmond St W.
- Trinity of Fundamentals Book Launch: Palestinian Youth Movement translated a book written in prison by a political prisoner in Palestine. Friday, February 2nd 6-8pm. Preorder your copy here!
- Keep up with the ILPS Canada social media for our upcoming teach-in series about the Right to Resist featuring Samidoun Toronto and our comrades in Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM) Toronto, Canada-Philippines Solidarity Organization (CPSO) Toronto, Anakbayan Toronto (ABTO), Tamil Freedom Coalition (TFC), Jewish Anti-Zionist Collective Toronto (JAZCto), and more.
