2/ Maybe the lead is that the war goals DO NOT involve destroying Iran's nuclear weapons program. This is, uh...surprising...since Trump says over and over this is a key goal.
But then of course we already know air strikes can't wipe out their nuclear material.
The language is very specific about not joining the “offensive.” Macron is telling the French there is a difference between as “offensive” and a “defensive,” and the French are not buying it. I think more questions need to be asked.
The international Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal is preparing to examine the cases of missing and murdered Indigenous children and unmarked graves in Canada, with the session scheduled for late May in Tiohtià:ke/Mooniyang/Montreal 👇
davidsuzuki.org/story/intern...
Finally.
This had to be said, and it took too long, but it’s critically important nonetheless: PM Carney says Canada is not participating in the US & Israeli war on Iran & “will never participate in it.”
Hopefully that’s bc he now gets that it’s manifestly illegal & misguided.
"In both wars, the aims of the campaign have been framed differently at different moments, while the legal justification, scholars say, is nonexistent" "Both sides have portrayed their actions as defensive, citing what experts say are at best dubious claims"
Americans demand to know who they have to bomb to lower gas prices
Best jersey I’ve seen in a while. Last night in Vancouver.
🇨🇦
#Never51st
Some universal jurisdiction news from the UK:
A man has been charged w 3 counts of murder as a crime against humanity, 3 counts of torture, & one offence of conduct ancillary to murder as a crime against humanity, linked to attacks against civilians in Syria in 2011: www.bbc.com/news/article...
"Trump continues to taunt us and belittle our nation in the same way that Putin ridiculed Ukraine...Canada’s future is tied with Ukraine. If Putin is allowed to win, Trump may be willing to try his luck bombing our cities & trying to terrify our civilians." charlieangus.substack.com/p/canada-is-...
“More than 70,000 Palestinians were killed in two years of war in Gaza. Israel has also expanded its illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank & has taken advantage of the chaotic end of Syria’s civil war to expand its presence on the Golan Heights.” www.theglobeandmail.com/world/articl...
The issue is not whether we trust the US; it’s whether Canada exercises its own sovereignty to assess human rights risks. 🇨🇦⚖️
I’m urging all MPs to look at the facts and vote to close the arms export loophole this Wednesday.
#C233 #EndTheLoopholes
www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZHRJ...
This is the best answer FM Anand has given on Iran and international law so far, tho she still refuses to call the US & Israeli attacks what they are: manifest violations of international law.
Anand would also do well to explain how nuclear proliferation is an intl law issue & threatens the world.
A reminder of the devastating cultural cost of war. Many of these artifacts will be sold to fuel violence unless states track & prevent their sale.
Museums looted of priceless artifacts as Sudan counts the cost of a deadly conflict: www.nbcnews.com/world/africa... #KeepEyesonSudan
The Conservatives stand against the Iranian regime and its repression and then propose to deport IRGC agents to Iran.
That would clearly risk strengthening the regime and furthering its repression.
This policy is reckless and, frankly, nuts.
In a world of potlucks, Canada cannot rely on nostalgia for past parties. As the conflict in Iran deepens uncertainty about the global order, the states shaping the future will be those able to bring real capabilities to the table – and invitations to do so will hinge on what we bring. Operationalizing Davos means aligning rhetoric with resources, choosing partners with purpose, showing up when it counts and ensuring our institutions can backstop our promises. If we fail to adapt, the risk won’t just be a lingering sense of exclusion, but diminished prosperity, reduced influence and, ultimately, weakened sovereignty in a far less forgiving international order.
I have a new Op-Ed on how the Carney government can operationalize Davos.
Based on an idea I developed with @thomasjuneau.bsky.social a few years ago but tweaked a bit for our ruptured times.
www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/arti...
To the contrary, the framers of the American constitution were *deeply* concerned about a Trump. They believed - it turns out incorrectly - that the system of checks and balances, the other institutions, would prevent a despotic president.
The Conservatives' policy is to send IRGC agents BACK to Iran, where they could terrorize Iranians.
That's how Conservatives (and Liberals) deal w perpetrators of atrocities: exporting them back.
If they were serious, they'd support investigating & prosecuting them, in Canada.
While PM Carney's lack of clarity on the illegality of Israel and America's war of aggression deserves criticism, the position of Poilievre - the law and order guy - is reckless: to outright support violations of international law & dismiss the UN Charter.
vancouverisland.ctvnews.ca/video/2026/0...
“Discrimination cannot be neatly packaged into a single ground & a person will often live with other circumstances, realities, or identities that may enhance or exacerbate their disadvantage.”
SCC grants refugee claimants access to subsidized daycare in Quebec www.leaf.ca/news/supreme...
"If you look at the pattern of conduct, the language of the perpetrators, and the acts committed against this particular group - or two particular groups - the only reasonable inference you can draw is that intent."
www.middleeasteye.net/news/sudan-u... #KeepEyesonSudan #genocide
"If certain States continue to condemn violations of international law only by States they see as adversaries or less powerful, while giving... allies a free pass to commit brazen aggression, international law will ultimately cease to function altogether." www.justsecurity.org/133417/aggre...
It is also the result of people who imagine they would be winners in a system that rewards the strong
"Perhaps the greatest threat to international justice is not just outright opposition from ill-wishers but indifference and arbitrary application... We must never allow the law to fall silent, for it stands as humanity’s foremost defender."
www.aljazeera.com/opinions/202...
“I ask those who have the ability, especially foreign media, to reflect on this situation. What are people supposed to do under these conditions? This is truly a crime against humanity.” www.theguardian.com/world/2026/m...
“As rain poured down on the city of 10 million people on Sunday morning, authorities warned of toxic acid rain and many residents woke up with pain in their throat and eyes burning.”
Iranians describe scenes of catastrophe after Tehran’s oil depots bombed www.theguardian.com/world/2026/m...
Take note, @anitaoakvilleeast.bsky.social:
Irish President Catherine Connolly says events in the Middle East are “deliberate assaults on international law” and must be called out “without euphemism and without equivocation”. www.irishexaminer.com/world/arid-4...
I am in Brazil asking them about their civil-military relations, and one of the answers I keep getting is: depends on the Minister.
And, yes, same for Canada as our Minister of Defence seems fully in the pocket of the CAF.
Reducing civilian oversight, what little there is, ain't great. More l8r
The cost of another illegal war: the lives of children.
Say their name. His was Mikaeil Mirdoraghi.
And please: let’s not diminish his death by saying all wars are “tragic”. His death is not a mere tragedy. It’s a crime.
Let’s call for justice and an end to illegal wars.
Israeli settler and reserve IDF soldier fatally shoots Palestinian in West Bank, health ministry says
reuters.com/world/middle... #WestBank
So much needed good news
