Mr. Speaker, for 2,500 years Jews lived in Arab lands, but in the 20th century many Arab regimes expropriated the property of Jews, stripped them of their citizenship, and expelled, arrested, tortured, and murdered scores in some of the most vicious pogroms ever perpetrated against the Jewish people.
Some 850,000 Jews were displaced. It is imperative that under international law, these people be determined to be refugees. Our own House of Commons standing committee on foreign affairs agrees. In its report from 2013, it recommended that:
...Canada officially recognize the experience of Jewish refugees who were displaced from states in the Middle East and North Africa after 1948.
In Israel, a law has been enacted marking November 30 as the national day for commemorating the flight of Jewish refugees from Arab lands. Across Canada and around the world, there will be events to mark this day.
In 2013, Canada became the first country in the world to formally recognize Jewish refugees from Arab countries. I encourage nations around the world to follow our lead and recognize this injustice. Under the Prime Minister's principled leadership, our country will stand proud and tall for the values that make Canada great, which are freedom, democracy, human rights, and the—