Canadian authorities are conducting a structural investigation into war crimes and other atrocities committed in the Israel-Palestine war. First reported by journalist Ben Mussett, the news comes amidst mounting evidence of the intentional starvation of civilians in Gaza, the refusal of Hamas to return hostages, moves to build new (and illegal) settlements in the West Bank, and open calls among Israeli leaders to depopulate Gaza. The investigation marks the first time that Canada has dedicated tangible resources to investigating international crimes in Palestine and Israel.

Here’s what we know so far.

The RCMP opened the investigation in early 2024, just months after the 7 October 2023 attacks by Hamas, and amidst Israel’s ongoing siege on Gaza. 

A structural investigation collects and preserves evidence of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide in a particular context without necessarily linking that evidence to specific perpetrators. Somewhat akin to a fact-finding mission, such investigations can collect evidence by reaching out to victims and survivors who have fled wars of atrocity events to gather their testimony. They can also include collecting open-source evidence such as videos or photographs.

States like Canada can use the evidence collected if an opportunity to do so arises, for example to support a prosecution of a perpetrator who enters onto their jurisdiction. Alternatively, they can share that evidence with other authorities – the prosecutors of allied states or bodies like the International Criminal Court (ICC). 

Canada is currently conducting a structural investigation into Ukraine and conducted one into the atrocities committed against the Yazidi people in northern Iraq. Canadian readers might recall seeing signs at Canadian airports inviting Ukrainians to provide information regarding Russia’s 2022 illegal invasion and encourage witnesses of war crimes to provide their testimony to Canadian authorities. RCMP officers were also seconded to the ICC to support the Court’s investigation into Ukraine.

Here’s what we don’t (yet) know.

It is unclear what the focus and core purpose of the structural investigation into the Israel-Palestine war is. Does the investigation cover all of Israel and Palestine? Or is it emphasizing themes, such as use of starvation as a weapon of war in Gaza or settler violence in the West Bank, topics that Canadian leaders have been especially vocal about in recent weeks? 

When Canada opened its structural investigation into Ukraine, it did so with a great deal of publicity. As Mussett points out, Canadian authorities promoted it and openly acknowledged other investigations. Why did that not happen with the investigation into the situation in Israel-Palestine? Was it only acknowledged now because patience with the Netanyahu government is running thin?

Is the investigation’s goal criminal accountability or something else? Over the last two decades and with few exceptions, Canada stepped away from actively prosecuting alleged perpetrators of international crimes who arrived on Canadian soil. It preferred to deport them to their country of origin without any guarantee that they would subsequently be prosecuted. Could the investigation be aimed at ensuring Canada is not a ‘safe haven’ for alleged war criminals as opposed to holding those alleged perpetrators to account?

In a statement, the RCMP insisted that it has not initiated any criminal investigations, although seemed to keep the door open to such probes in the future. While structural investigations focus on contexts and not specific individuals, effective probes into international crimes should lead to prosecutions, especially in countries where alleged perpetrators reside or where they regularly visit.

In other Western states, including the United Kingdom and Belgium, there are ongoing efforts to investigate dual citizens who fought with the Israeli Defence Forces and who allegedly committed war crimes, evidence of which has apparently been shared on their own social media. Would Canada do the same? 

A structural investigation might also examine whether any Canadians have provided material support to Hamas, or whether Canadian companies or persons have contributed to settler violence or the construction of Israeli settlements in the illegally occupied West Bank. Canada views those settlements as a violation of the Geneva Conventions.

Even if Canada does not move to prosecute perpetrators who live in or enter the country, it is important to establish whether evidence collected by the RCMP of alleged atrocities committed in Israel and Palestine can be shared with the ICC, which has its own ongoing investigation into the situation in Palestine.

Canada was a founding member of the Court but has historically opposed the ICC’s investigation into Palestine, going so far as to suggest that its funding for the world’s only permanent international court with jurisdiction over war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide was at risk of being pulled. While Canada’s stance on the ICC’s investigation in Palestine has softened, direct cooperation between the RCMP and ICC on the Palestine investigation would be a game changer. It would likewise extend concrete support to the ICC as it faces unrelenting attacks from the Trump administration.

Some will undoubtedly see the RCMP’s structural investigation as a choice, and there’s little doubt that the move required political consent and cover. But it is important to remember that states like Canada are under a legal obligation to investigate and prosecute perpetrators of war crimes and genocide, regardless of their nationality or where their crimes were committed. A structural investigation breathes life into that obligation.

More than anything, the opening of a structural investigation signals that Canada may finally be moving from talking about the need for accountability over atrocities committed in Israel and Palestine, to playing a part in delivering it.

A version of this article first appeared in the Globe and Mail.