Shafaqna English- Issuing a statement, the Council of Shia Scholars of Ontario (CSSO) appealed to the Canadian Prime Minister to continue the role of Canada as a mediator and peacemaker and affirm the UN Charter’s prohibition on the use of force.
According to Shafaqna, the full text of the statement by the Council of Shia Scholars of Ontario addressed to Mark Carney, the Prime Minister of Canada, is as follows:
Dear Prime Minister Carney,
We, the undersigned residents of Ontario, serve a community of approximately 80,000 Shia Muslims through our work as imams, preachers, educators, and counsellors in the province’s Islamic centres and schools.
We begin by commending your remarks at the World Economic Forum in Davos (Tuesday, 20 January, 2026). Your characterization of United States policy as a “rupture of the world order”—one where “the strong can do what they can, and the weak must suffer”—was a moment of necessary candor. It encouraged leaders globally to speak more openly about the erosion of multilateral constraints.
It is precisely because we share this worldview that we were concerned by your statement on Saturday, 28 February, 2026: “Canada supports the United States acting to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and to prevent its regime from further threatening international peace and security.”
A leader benefits from the counsel of experienced elders. In this instance, we believe the perspective of Mr. Lloyd Axworthy, former Liberal Minister of Foreign Affairs (1996-2000), provides the clarity this moment requires. He stated the matter plainly: “Under the UN Charter, cross-border uses of force are prohibited except in two narrow cases: …decisions of the Security Council, or self-defence in response to an actual or truly imminent armed attack.”
The U.S.–Israeli attack on Iran fits neither case. There is no Security Council mandate, and Ottawa has not argued that the United States of America and Israel were responding to an attack that was “instant, overwhelming, leaving no choice of means.” These strikes occurred whilst Oman was actively mediating negotiations.
Mr. Axworthy’s observation highlights the pattern you identified at Davos: coercion replacing law. The JCPOA (The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) provided verifiable limits on Iran’s nuclear program. Its abandonment, followed by force rather than a return to diplomacy, is a rupture Canada should not endorse.
Our primary concern is that the Government of Canada did not unequivocally condemn the aggression or publicly affirm that all nations have the right to self-defence within the framework of international law. Canadian parliamentarians have often spoken strongly about the right of certain states to defend themselves; however, such principles have not always been applied consistently across different conflicts. Yet, Canada has long played a rôle as a mediator and peacemaker, even in situations where it did not share a particular political outlook. We believe this is the rôle Canada should continue to uphold, and we hope it will remain committed to peace, dialogue, and respect for international law. But when Canada fails to affirm unequivocally the UN Charter’s prohibition on the use of force, we undermine the very rules-based order you championed in Switzerland.
We trust that you will give due consideration to our concerns and inform us of the steps your government intends to take in this regard. Thank you.