OTTAWA, Tuesday, March 19, 2024 (WAFA) - Canada's parliament passed a non-binding motion late Monday calling on the international community to work toward a two-state solution to resolve the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, in line with government policy, according to Reuters.

The vote had been delayed by last-minute wrangling over wording supporting Palestinian statehood, an idea that looked set to deepen splits inside the ruling Liberal Party, said Reuters.

According to the news agency Reuters, the original motion was drawn up by the minority left-leaning New Democrats (NDP), who are helping keep Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Liberal Party in power and are unhappy with what they see as his failure to do enough to protect civilians in Gaza.

The amended motion was passed by 204 votes to 117 after most of the Liberal cabinet - including Ya’ara Saks, who is Jewish - and caucus voted in favor.

The initial version called on Canada to "officially recognize the State of Palestine" - a step that no member of the Group of Seven industrialized nations has taken.

After back-room negotiations between the NDP and the Liberals, that wording was dropped in favor of language calling on the international community to work toward the establishment of a Palestinian state as part of a two-state solution, added Reuters.

But Liberal and opposition legislators in the House of Commons complained that they had no notice of the new wording and demanded the chance to debate it, so proceedings were briefly suspended, said the news agency.

T.R.