Daphna Pollak was fed up that over the past 73 days since nearly 250 hostages were taken by Hamas, the Red Cross has not seen or attended to a single captive. She felt they were derelict in their duty and mission as a humanitarian organization – especially in light of the abhorrent conditions reported by released hostages.
The Toronto-area woman decided to take matters in her own hands and planned a care package convoy to Red Cross Canada’s office with the aim of raising awareness, and ideally, having the items make their way to the hostages.
About thirty people convened at Lawrence Plaza in Toronto, Tuesday, with bags of materials ranging from hygiene products, warm clothing, and teddy bears.
There were an additional thirty participants who met at Promenade Mall in Thornhilll, who filled their cars with packages for the hostages.
“We demand that Red Cross finally do its job and visit the hostages,” Pollak said at the gathering. “There is no justification for leaving them to languish.”
Many brought letters addressed to specific hostages that were placed in a courier envelope to be mailed to Red Cross’ international headquarters in Geneva.
From the plaza, the demonstrators made their way to the Canadian Red Cross headquarters in Mississauga, where these dozens of packages were left at the front desk. The offices were empty, save for one individual who disappeared through the back when the group arrived.
Pollak said this added insult to injury.
“We had hoped that someone would receive us, and see how much care people took to choose these items, how they decorated their bags. How they lovingly dedicated their gifts to certain hostages, and the time they took to show they care. We had hoped someone in the office would at least tell the international offices that people came by, and showed compassion for the hostages,” Pollak said.
Pollak urged people to understand that each of the hostages is a real person.
“The hostages aren’t some abstract idea,” she continued. “They are seriously wounded, newborn babies, sexually assaulted women, people desperate for medical care, new mothers, elderly, ill people, who – if they aren’t killed – are starved and tortured to the point of barely holding on to life. They are not being provided the necessities of life.”
According to the Israeli military, 129 hostages are still being held in Gaza by Hamas terrorists.
True North asked Canadian Red Cross spokesperson Jason Small to acknowledge receipt of the packages, if they would be delivered to the intended recipients, and was asked what happens to the donations if they cannot be delivered. He immediately emailed a 400-word boilerplate that did not answer the questions.
“The Canadian Red Cross is deeply concerned about the violence impacting civilians in the Middle East. International Humanitarian Law requires that civilians must be protected and our Red Cross Red Crescent partners on the ground have mobilized to help all people affected by the escalating conflict,” it said in part.
He claimed that The International Committee of Red Cross has “publicly and repeatedly” sought to have access to the hostages. The statement added that the international Red Cross transferred released hostages held in Gaza, to Israeli authorities, and “was also able to transfer Palestinian detainees to authorities in the West Bank, to be reunited with their families.”
The Jerusalem Report reported last month that six women and seven children – who were released in exchange for three times as many Palestinian prisoners – were shuttled out of the Gaza Strip by Red Cross drivers. According to Pollak, Red Cross taxi-serviced 110 women and children that Hamas released.
Hen Mazzig, a senior fellow at think-tank Tel Aviv Institute, wrote on X (formerly Twitter) that the International Red Cross is “being used a car service only to transfer Israeli hostages back to Israel. They have done nothing to promote the release of the hostages and ignored them in their advocacy. Remember that when you see their cars in their footage from the crossing.”
UN Watch, an NGO that scrutinizes United Nations statements and policy, has taken Red Cross to task, saying it is “overwhelmingly” biased against Israel.
“By systematically omitting the direct responsibility of Hamas for the damage to civilians and property in Gaza, the Red Cross promotes a narrative that wrongly blames Israel — a democracy that has made efforts, unprecedented in any other army, and exceeding the requirements of the laws of war, to save Palestinian civilian lives, including warning them to leave target zones,” UN Watch wrote in a statement.
Salman Sima, a Muslim event participant, attended to show his support for the Jewish people.
The mathematics teacher, who fled to Canada from Iran in 2011, said that he could relate to the hostages, as he was jailed as a political prisoner in the Islamic Republic as a student, convicted of phony charges. Over the course of three arrests, he served a year in a half, mostly in solitary confinement.
“I feel the pain of my Jewish brothers and sisters. This was my main motive. I have no hope for Red Cross or UNICEF – who have shut their eyes. They have shown bias against Jewish people. Red Cross has failed to do its duties in Israel.”
Andria Spindel, executive director of the Canadian Antisemitism Education Foundation, said that she participated because she understood the Red Cross “failed in reporting, and calling out, the crime of kidnapping babies, children, the elderly, youngsters, pregnant women, and other civilians”
“If it is choosing to ignore the Israeli and foreign nationals held in Gaza for over 70 days, then they are not deserving of Canadian support. Where is the Red Cross speaking out about the execution of innocent Israelis by terrorists?”
Dorit Smali, a professional marketer strategist in attendance, said: “The right thing for Red Cross to do would be to constantly use every means at its disposal to get to the hostages in Gaza, and even work with Qatar – the mediators and negotiators – to get to the hostages. But that’s not happening.”
She said the initiative Tuesday was “a much-needed awareness piece, because we really don’t see much of this kind of advocacy otherwise. I feel like we brought more attention to the conditions that our hostages are living in.”
