Prime Minister Mark Carney is looking the discharge of hostages under a ceasefire deal in Gaza “a moment of profound relief” and is urging all parties to uphold the ceasefire agreement.
Carney travelled to Egypt Sunday to participate within the signing of a Middle East peace plan with other world leaders, including U.S. President Donald Trump. Media weren’t notified of Carney’s trip before it had been confirmed through an update to his Sunday itinerary, about three hours before his plane was set to depart.
The gathering of world leaders, dubbed “Summit for Peace,” comes as Hamas released 20 remaining living Israeli hostages and Israel began to free tons of of Palestinians from its prisons.
“For the Jewish people, this can be a moment that holds two truths directly — a grief for what can’t be restored, and a fragile light of what might still be repaired,” Carney said in a press release released Monday.
He said it’s a time to recollect all those murdered within the Hamas’ “heinous terrorist attacks” of Oct. 7, 2023, including Canadians Vivian Silver, Netta Epstein, Alexandre Look, Judih Weinstein, Shir Georgy, Ben Mizrachi and Adi Vital-Kaploun, in addition to others with close ties to Canada like Tiferet Lapidot.
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Within the statement, Carney praised Trump’s leadership in advancing the peace plan and called on all parties to implement the terms of the ceasefire.
That features establishing a transitional governance for Gaza and dealing toward a everlasting political solution where Israelis and Palestinians peacefully coexist. Hamas must disarm and play no role in the long run governance of a demilitarized Palestinian state, reads the statement.
“The discharge of hostages should be a turning point toward lasting peace,” Carney said.
Israel has rejected any role in Gaza for the internationally backed Palestinian Authority.
Major questions remain unanswered over what happens next, raising the danger of a slide back into war, at the same time as the world pushes for peace.
© 2025 The Canadian Press