Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has endorsed the airstrikes against the Iran-backed Houthi in Yemen, saying the attack by U.S. and British forces was accomplished with the support of Canada’s military.
Mr. Trudeau, during a press conference in Guelph Jan. 12, called the Houthis’ actions against commercial ships carrying economic and humanitarian goods in the Red Sea “absolutely unacceptable” and “contrary to international law.”
He said Ottawa was “deeply concerned” by the Houthis’ attacks on commercial and civilian traffic, adding that while Canadian military members were involved in some of the planning with the U.S. and U.K., Canada “did not have any operational assets involved in the precision strikes.”
Canada will “continue to take the necessary actions and engage in responsible ways in ensuring that the world is a safer place,” he said.
A senior U.S. military officer said the U.S. and U.K. had “non-operational support” from Canada, Australia, the Netherlands, and Bahrain, adding that the strikes did not target civilians in Yemen.
Canada Has 3 Personnel Assisting With Operation
The strikes were consistent with the U.N. Charter, and came following a Jan. 10 U.N. Security Council resolution demanding the Houthis cease targeting merchant and commercial ships, Global Affairs Canada said in a Jan. 12 statement. The statement said the Houthi attacks “directly impact the flow of food, fuel, humanitarian assistance, and other essential commodities to populations around the world, which can affect the global economy.”The prime minister added there had been many conversations at the leadership level to ensure that the airstrikes on Yemen were “as precise and specific as possible in terms of degrading the Houthi military capacity to continue to attack and interdict commercial traffic in the Red Sea.”
“We have always been very, very committed to making sure that targets are very, very strictly defined,” Mr. Trudeau added.
Conservatives Support Airstrikes
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre responded to the airstrikes Jan. 12, calling the Houthis a “Tehran-backed pirate outfit that is threatening international security.” Mr. Poilievre said the Conservatives believed the airstrikes were necessary to protect vital trade routes.The Tory leader criticized the Liberal government for failing to ban Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) from Canada at a time when “our allies are forced to strike rebels that are backed by the Iranian regime.”
“Justin Trudeau allows terrorists who are an official part of that regime to operate legally and with impunity on Canadian soil,” he said. “A common sense Conservative government will ban the IRGC.”
While the Conservatives have repeatedly called on the Liberal government to designate the IRGC as a terrorist group and ban it in Canada, the Liberals have yet to commit to such an action despite backing a Tory motion in the House of Commons in 2018 to list the group as a terrorist entity.
In 2022, then-Justice Minister David Lametti said he was concerned that using the Criminal Code against Iran would be too much of a “blunt instrument” since military service is mandatory in Iran and labelling the IRGC a terrorist organization may “punish innocent people or those against the regime.” According to a Global News report from late 2023, roughly 700 IRGC agents are operating on Canadian soil.
