Mr. Chair, I am not sure a brief response is possible, but let me address the issue that the member for Mount Royal did earlier, and that is the quote from the Ottawa protocol. It states:

Criticism of Israel is not anti-Semitic, and saying so is wrong. But singling Israel out for selective condemnation and opprobrium—let alone denying its right to exist or seeking its destruction—is discriminatory and hateful, and not saying so is dishonest.

The answer to part of the member's question, because clearly there was quite a bit in her comments, is that any form of hate within our society is unacceptable and we have to find ways to confront it. What we are seeing right now with ISIS and terrorism in the Middle East is a cause for serious concern for all of us, and the House is alarmed by that as a whole.

I believe that we have to find ways to address these issues. Clearly, tonight we are dealing with anti-Semitism and the growth of it across the globe, but in Canada we are able to focus a little more clearly on issues that are more relevant here, and what happened in Montreal today is a clear example of that.

I recently had the opportunity to go to Israel with the Prime Minister. I stood on the border of Syria and Jordan at one point with a group of members of Parliament, and we welcomed refugees as they streamed across the border. One of the privileges of this job is to be able to go places and see things that many people would not have the opportunity to see. I have to say that my heart was torn out for the children, seniors, and people streaming across the border with all the worldly belongings they could carry. They were fleeing from hate, loss of life due to war, and conditions that we cannot understand in our society, and that is what we are fighting.

John Carmichael

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