
London police arrest 150 as pro-Palestinian protesters defy new law
London's Metropolitan Police posted in a statement on X, formerly known as Twitter that officers are steadily working through the crowd making further arrests.

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Toronto Star
3 minutes ago
- Toronto Star
European leaders rally behind Ukraine ahead of Trump-Putin meeting
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — European nations rallied behind Ukraine, saying peace in the war-torn nation can't be resolved without Kyiv, ahead of a planned meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russia's Vladimir Putin. Trump had said Friday's meeting in Alaska with his Russian counterpart was to discuss ending the more than three-year war.


Winnipeg Free Press
3 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
European leaders rally behind Ukraine ahead of Trump-Putin meeting
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — European nations rallied behind Ukraine, saying peace in the war-torn nation can't be resolved without Kyiv, ahead of a planned meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russia's Vladimir Putin. Trump had said Friday's meeting in Alaska with his Russian counterpart was to discuss ending the more than three-year war. Zelenskyy responded by thanking European allies and wrote on X on Sunday: 'The end of the war must be fair, and I am grateful to everyone who stands with Ukraine and our people.' Trump-Putin meeting spikes worries Saturday's statement by top European leaders came after the White House confirmed the U.S president was willing to grant Putin the one-on-one meeting Russia has long pushed for, and suggestions from Trump that a peace deal could include 'some swapping of territories,' raising fears Kyiv may be pressured into giving up land or accepting other curbs on its sovereignty. A White House official, who spoke on condition of anonymity as they aren't allowed to speak publicly, told The Associated Press that Trump remained open to a trilateral summit with both the Russian and Ukrainian leaders, but for now, he will have a bilateral meeting requested by Putin. Meanwhile, U.S. Vice President JD Vance met Saturday with top European and Ukrainian officials at the British Foreign Secretary's weekend residence to discuss how to end the war. Trump had earlier said he would meet with Putin even if the Russian leader would not meet with Zelenskyy. The Trump-Putin meeting may prove pivotal in a war that began when Russia invaded its western neighbor and has led to tens of thousands of deaths, although there's no guarantee it will stop the fighting since Moscow and Kyiv remain far apart on their conditions for peace. The statement Saturday's statement, signed by the president of the European Union and leaders of France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Finland and the UK, stressed the need for a 'just and lasting peace' for Kyiv, including 'robust and credible' security guarantees. 'Ukraine has the freedom of choice over its own destiny. Meaningful negotiations can only take place in the context of a ceasefire or reduction of hostilities,' the statement said. 'The path to peace in Ukraine cannot be decided without Ukraine. We remain committed to the principle that international borders must not be changed by force,' the Europeans added. A fruitless push toward a truce A monthlong U.S.-led push to achieve a truce in Ukraine has so far proved fruitless, with Kyiv agreeing in principle while the Kremlin has held out for terms more to its liking. Trump had also moved up an ultimatum to impose additional sanctions on Russia and introduce secondary tariffs targeting countries that buy Russian oil if the Kremlin did not move toward a settlement. The deadline was Friday. The White House did not answer questions Saturday about possible sanctions. The Kremlin earlier this week reiterated demands that Ukraine give up territory, abandon its bid to join NATO, and accept limits on its military, in exchange for a withdrawal of Russian troops from the rest of the country. Zelenskyy said Saturday that Ukraine 'will not give Russia any awards for what it has done' and that 'Ukrainians will not give their land to the occupier.' Ukrainian officials previously told the AP privately that Kyiv would be amenable to a peace deal that would de facto recognize Ukraine's inability to regain lost territories militarily. But Zelenskyy on Saturday insisted that formally ceding land was out of the question. — Associated Press writer Michelle L. Price in Washington, D.C., contributed to this report.


Winnipeg Free Press
34 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
The controversy over Canada's rules on military exports to Israel, explained
OTTAWA – A Canadian senator is calling on Ottawa to be more transparent on its policy to restrict arms exports to Israel, following contradictory reports about what manufacturers have been allowed to send to the Middle East. 'I'm horrified to hear this news about certain arms exports and parts going to Israel, directly or indirectly,' Sen. Yuen Pau Woo said in an interview with The Canadian Press. 'Civilians are being killed and starved, and the Israeli government has only made things worse.' Ottawa insists it hasn't been allowing exports of lethal weapons to Israel and has been blocking any military goods that could be used in Gaza. Here's a look at what we know — and don't know — about Ottawa's efforts to keep Canadian weapons out of Gaza while allowing Israel to import military goods for other purposes. What is Canada holding back from Israel? In March 2024, Parliament voted in favour of a non-binding motion to halt new arms permits for Israel. The government announced a review of export permits and suspended about 30 of them to determine whether they involved lethal uses. Ottawa has allowed all other military export permits for Israel to continue. There were 164 such permits used to export military goods to Israel in 2024, and some of them are valid for years. Of the 30 suspended permits, some have expired and the rest remain suspended, says Global Affairs Canada. In March 2024, the office of then-foreign affairs minister Mélanie Joly said that none of the valid permits allowed for the export of 'lethal goods' to Israel, such as weapons technology and equipment. Her office also said Canada stopped approving permits for Israel on Jan. 8, 2024, citing human rights concerns. While Israel's foreign minister suggested at the time the decision would undermine Israel's ability to defend itself, Israeli Ambassador Iddo Moed said 'we will be able to continue to defend ourselves.' What is Canada still allowing into Israel? Ottawa has said its restrictions exclude 'non-lethal' equipment. The government provided Parliament with a list of all existing permits in June 2024. The list mentions circuit boards well over a hundred times. In September 2024, after the U.S. State Department approved the purchase of mortar cartridges made in Quebec for Israel, Joly said Canadian-made weapons were prohibited from reaching the Gaza Strip. 'We will not have any form of arms or parts of arms be sent to Gaza, period,' Joly said at the time. 'How they're being sent and where they're being sent is irrelevant.' Anand said in an Aug. 1 statement that this pledge actually goes back to January 2024. Groups like Project Ploughshares argue the term 'non-lethal' is poorly defined and misleading. Activists say Israel can use Canadian-made components such as lenses and cameras in the Gaza war and in military campaigns in the West Bank, despite Ottawa saying Israel is violating international law in both theatres. What does Israeli customs data say? In late July, pro-Palestinian activists reported that the Israel Tax Authority had listed publicly imports from Canada that were officially recorded in customs data as bullets, guns and other weapons. The data suggested 175,000 bullets were sent from Canada to Israel under the customs code that Israel uses for 'munitions of war and parts thereof,' with three similar shipments in 2024. Israeli customs agents recorded another Canadian shipment in the category of 'tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles, motorized, whether or not fitted with weapons, and parts of such vehicles.' It took the Canadian government three days to respond to the claims. Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand's office said it took the time 'to verify if any of the serious allegations of wrongdoing were true.' In her reply, Anand said the report was flawed and its findings 'are misleading and significantly misrepresent the facts.' The bullets were 'paintball-style projectiles' that cannot be used in combat, Anand's office said. Sen. Woo called that explanation trivializing and suggested Israel is likely using those materials to train its soldiers. Woo was among 32 senators — a third of the Senate — who called for a thorough investigation into what's reaching Israel from Canada. He called Anand's statement 'very limited, slippery and highly defensive.' 'She missed an opportunity to grasp the gravity of the situation in Gaza,' he said. What about aircraft? Advocates argue Canadian components are being used in Israeli fighter jets and drones, citing exports of items such as circuit boards and scopes or cameras. The July report noted that specific companies in Israel receiving Canadian imports have also been equipping Israel's offensive in Gaza. The report pointed to no direct, explicit evidence that Canadian arms had been used on the ground in Gaza. Ottawa insists it is doing everything it can to ensure Canadian components aren't used in Gaza. What about that parliamentary report? On Aug. 4, the Canadian Muslim Public Affairs Council released a report assembled by the Library of Parliament that it said disproves much of what the government has claimed. The July 8 report is marked 'not to be published' and the Library of Parliament said in a statement that it 'provides impartial customized research services for individual parliamentarians,' on the basis that the 'client's research request (will) remain confidential.' The government says the report is a rehash of publicly available information that doesn't contradict what the government has said publicly. Advocates seized on the portion of the report showing two arms permits to send goods to Israel were issued in 2024. Anand's office noted the permits were disclosed to Parliament last June and were issued on Jan. 8, 2024, the day Ottawa stopped issuing new permits. The advocates also noted that the report cited $2.3 million in Canadian sales to Israel listed as 'bombs, torpedoes, rockets, missiles, other explosive devices and charges and related accessories, components and equipment.' Anand's spokesman James Fitz-Morris wrote that these were 'electronic components for detection equipment' in Israel's Iron Dome system, which intercepts and destroys incoming rockets. Did Carney change the Trudeau government's policy? While the government insists it hasn't changed policies, its language has shifted. Joly and her office spoke about non-lethal uses for arms. Anand has avoided that language. 'For a year and a half, we have been clear: if an export permit for an item used to protect civilians is requested, it will be approved,' her office wrote in a statement this week. 'Canada has not approved the export of any lethal weapons or munitions to Israel since January 2024, and any such permit that could have allowed such items were suspended and remains inactive today.' Woo said Anand is 'prevaricating, with the shift in language and … an effort to try to be legalistic about the government's adherence to its own promise.' Fitz-Morris wrote that it would be 'a disingenuous claim, at best' to suggest Ottawa's language has been shifting. 'The government's position has not changed. Minister Anand is not reading from a script. She uses different words sometimes to convey the same message or to add clarity, depending on the circumstances and what she is responding to,' he wrote. 'The only permits that may be granted are for the items used to defend civilians, such as the Iron Dome, and items that are transiting through Israel as part of the global supply chain such as items (whose) end-users include Canada and/or NATO allies.' Why not end all arms exports to Israel? The government says it would compromise the complex supply chains that Canada and its allies rely on if Canada refused to export military goods to Israel, or to import them from that country. 'Any consideration of a two-way arms embargo that would block Israeli-made components from entering Canada would need to take into consideration the impact that would have on Canada, including the (Canadian Armed Forces),' Fitz-Morris wrote. Sen. Woo said Anand should halt all military trade with Israel. 'She's digging a deeper hole for herself and for our government, particularly if there are in fact legal consequences around complicity, aiding and abetting war crimes,' he said. 'We are witnessing, in the memorable words of Amnesty International, a live-streamed genocide. It's tearing at our souls.' Israel says it's in an existential war of self-defence and blames Hamas for the high casualty count. What do Canadians want? In an online survey of 1,522 Canadians conducted by the Angus Reid Institute from July 31 to Aug. 5, 54 per cent said they want Ottawa to ensure Canada is not selling lethal military equipment to Israel. Monday Mornings The latest local business news and a lookahead to the coming week. One-fifth of respondents said they want the restrictions dropped. Another 27 per cent said they were unsure or opted not to respond. Is the government being transparent? 'The Government of Canada tables regular reports concerning arms exports and has provided thousands of pages of documentation to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs — which the committee then published to its website,' Fitz-Morris wrote. That's not good enough, Woo said. 'To play with words, when a genocide is happening before our very eyes … it's scandalous,' he said. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 10, 2025.