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Statement by the Prime Minister on Eid al-Adha June 15, 2024 Ottawa, Ontario
The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, today issued the following statement on Eid al-Adha:
Today at sundown, Muslims in Canada and around the world will celebrate Eid al-Adha and mark the end of the Hajj, the annual pilgrimage to Mecca. Eid al-Adha is one of the most sacred dates in Islam, commemorating the sacrifice and devotion of the Prophet Ibrahim (Abraham). During this time, Muslims across Canada will gather to pray at their local mosques, share meals with loved ones, and provide food to those in need.
As Muslim communities celebrate Eid with kindness, selflessness, and charity, let us remember that these values are also Canadian values.
Celebrations will be sombre this year, as the humanitarian crisis in Gaza continues to unfold. The scale of human suffering in Gaza, including in Rafah, is catastrophic. We reaffirm the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and long-lasting peace in the region.
Amid the rise in Islamophobia and anti-Arab racism across our communities, we’re standing up against all forms of hate, including through Canada’s Anti-Racism Strategy 2024-2028. With Budget 2024, we’re also increasing funding for the Security Infrastructure Program, protecting communities at risk of hate-motivated crimes.
Muslim communities have helped build the strong and diverse Canada we know and love, and we will always stand with them.
On behalf of the Government of Canada, I extend warm wishes to everyone celebrating Eid al-Adha.
Standing with Islam for Trudeau means adopting practices that are anathema to most Canadians—but not an Islamophile. Only six months after being sworn in, his government made the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) responsible for certifying that slaughterhouses selling halal meats had actually tortured the animals to death.
Eid al-Adha, the Feast of Sacrifice, occurs during the
Hajj pilgrimage and celebrates
Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son Ishmael. On that day, in countries that allow it, goats, sheep, even
cows are bled to death while fully aware in front of people of all ages as
part of the festivities.
The Feast is a time when more animals are tortured to death in both the Muslim world and in Western countries like Canada than at any other time on the Islamic calendar. At the Hajj alone it may be more than one million, one for every two pilgrim. Last year when torrential rains fell in Dhaka during the Feast of Sacrifice, some streets literally flowed with blood.