New Democrats prepare to debate emergency resolutions on Israel-Hamas war

New Democrats will debate at least two emergency resolutions Saturday that could stake out the party's position on the Israel-Hamas conflict.

The party has released a list of some of the emergency resolutions up for debate.

One calls on New Democrats to advocate for the release of hostages and demand a ceasefire and life-saving humanitarian assistance for residents of the Gaza Strip. It also condemns both the "Hamas terrorist attacks" and "Israel's total siege of Gaza."

Another emergency resolution approved for debate argues that "the seeds" of this past weekend's brutal Hamas attacks "were sown by decades of repression and colonial expropriation." It also calls for a ceasefire and an end to "the embargo on food, medicine and fuel to Gazans."

On the convention floor, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh told CBC he looks forward to discussing the party's response to the conflict.

"We have been taking a clear position that this is horrible and violence is going to cause more and more life to be lost. We've been calling for peace," Singh said.

The NDP's Socialist Caucus also pushed the party to include one of their emergency resolutions on the conflict. It's still not clear if it will be debated on Saturday's convention floor.

The Socialist Caucus resolution includes tougher language — it calls Israel an "apartheid state" and calls for an immediate ceasefire. It also urges the party to launch a boycott, divestment and sanctions campaign against Israel if it doesn't end its occupation of Palestinian territories.

Ahead of the debate on the emergency motions, some members of the Socialist Caucus accused the party of attempting to suppress debate.

"It's the higher-ups in the NDP that are fighting this," said Elizabeth Byce, a member of the caucus. "The grassroots people at this convention, I can guarantee you, are on the side of the Palestinian people."

An NDP senior official attending a background briefing before the convention dismissed claims that party headquarters is trying to avoid a debate on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.