Category: Canada

MIL-OSI Global: Trump’s push to shut down USAID shows how international development is all about strategic interests

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Nelson Duenas, Assistant Professor of Accounting, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is on the verge of being shut down by United States President Donald Trump’s administration.

On Feb. 4, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the agency would be taken over by the State Department. He stated that “all USAID direct hire personnel will be placed on administrative leave globally.”

This move comes after Trump and his officials have heavily criticized the role and ineffectiveness of the agency. Trump said USAID had “been run by a bunch of radical lunatics, and we’re getting them out,” while Tesla CEO and special government employee Elon Musk said it was “time for it to die.”

The closure of USAID will have significant consequences for many countries in the Global South. USAID is one of the largest development agencies in the world and funds programs that benefit millions of people, from supporting peace agreements in Colombia to fighting the spread of HIV in Uganda.

Around US$40 billion is allocated annually from the U.S. federal budget for humanitarian and development aid. If USAID is dismantled, it raises questions about how these funds will be redirected and the long-term impacts it will have on global development efforts.

A geopolitical fallout?

The potential dismantling of USAID has raised concerns among international development experts about a potential geopolitical fallout that could create unintended consequences for the U.S. itself.

Global issues, such as human security and climate change, are expected to be heavily affected. The U.S. also risks losing influence in the fight for soft power since dismantling USAID could leave behind a power vacuum. Other countries like Russia or China may occupy the space left by what was the largest international aid program in the world.

Read more:
USAid shutdown isn’t just a humanitarian issue – it’s a threat to American interests

This shift could result in the U.S. losing its influence in regions like Africa, South America and Asia, where the country distributed aid to a number of non-governmental organizations, aid agencies and non-profits.

While the future of U.S. foreign assistance remains uncertain, other world powers have a role to play. European donors, despite some limitations in resources, remain committed to the 2030 Sustainable Development agenda.

Beyond humanitarianism

If the agency is shut down, it may be widely condemned on moral and humanitarian grounds. However, its closure would respond to a logic of strategic and ideological interests that has long shaped the international development system. This a key finding from my longstanding field research with organizations that receive funding, not only from USAID, but also from Canadian and European donors.

International development largely unfolded in the aftermath of the Second World War when global powers competed to establish a new world order. This led to the creation of international agreements and multilateral institutions, with major industrialized nations emerging as the primary donors of foreign aid.

While many international initiatives, like the Millennium Development Goals and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, have guided development as we know it, the governments of main donor countries have their own interests in mind when providing aid.

In my research, I have interviewed many people involved in the foreign aid chain, including directors and offices of international non-governmental organizations and governmental co-operation agencies. Many said development relationships are shaped by both the interests of donors and those of recipient populations and organizations.

While these relationships may be based on humanitarian objectives, such as disaster relief or human rights advocacy, they can also be influenced by ideological, geopolitical, economic and social agendas.

In this context, the American move to eliminate USAID could be seen as one that prioritizes national security and economic goals over traditional global humanitarian concerns. Governments steer the wheel of international development according to their political ideologies and interests, regardless of the shock this may generate among citizens.

Canada’s role in all this

The U.S. is not the only country re-evaluating its international development policy. Sweden, another major country in the foreign aid sphere, is also changing its co-operation strategy following changes in its government and criticism of the NGOs that deploy their development assistance.

Canada’s role in this unfolding situation remains uncertain. With the resignation of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as head of the Liberal Party and the upcoming federal election, it’s unclear what will happen to Canada’s international development strategy going forward.

Under Stephen Harper, the country’s international development strategy was closely tied to expanding trade with developing countries based on maximizing the value of extractive economies and a strong defence policy. This approach aimed to bring value not only to the recipient country of aid, but to Canada as well.

When Trudeau took office, Canada’s development strategy turned to a more progressive agenda centred on peace keeping, feminist approaches and humanitarian programs.

Will Canada continue to champion human rights, human security and progressive agendas? Or will Canada reduce funds for foreign assistance, which seems to be the wish of many of its citizens?

The answer to these questions will depend on the direction that our political leaders decide to take, and the sentiments of citizens. Still, Canada’s approach to development aid will probably remain in a trade-off between moral imperatives of humanitarianism and strategic national interests.

Nelson Duenas receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC)
Nelson Duenas is a researcher associated to l’Observatoire canadien sur les crises et l’action humanitaires

– ref. Trump’s push to shut down USAID shows how international development is all about strategic interests – https://theconversation.com/trumps-push-to-shut-down-usaid-shows-how-international-development-is-all-about-strategic-interests-249118

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI Canada: Province opens first eating disorders recovery centre
Alberta’s government is making record investments in mental health and addiction services to support Albertans of all ages in their pursuit of wellness and recovery. Through the Alberta Recovery Model and Recovery Alberta, the province has increased opportunities for recovery of eating disorders. Every aspect of a person’s life can be affected by eating disorders, including both mental and physical health, especially for teenagers who are still in development.

The EHN Sandstone Recovery Centre is the result of a collaborative partnership between Alberta’s government, Recovery Alberta, Silver Linings Foundation and Edgewood Health Network (EHN Canada).

With an investment of almost $10 million over three years (2023-26) in partnership with Recovery Alberta to establish the EHN Sandstone Recovery Centre in Calgary, Alberta’s government remains committed to supporting this important recovery program for young Albertans. The Silver Linings Foundation raised $4 million in capital funding for this facility.

“This is another important step in creating strong, recovery-oriented systems of care in communities across Alberta. Eating disorders can often be misunderstood and can go unrecognized or underdiagnosed. With the opening of this centre, young Albertans can now get the care they deserve and have better access to intensive treatment to better support them in their recovery.”

Dan Williams, Minister of Mental Health and Addiction

Operated by EHN Canada, the 12-bed EHN Sandstone Recovery Centre in Calgary increases access to specialized eating disorders treatment in the province providing up to 52 youth and young adults with treatment free of charge every year.

“EHN Sandstone Recovery Centre provides the highest standard of treatment for eating disorders in a safe, nurturing environment where young people can begin their journey to recovery. Our multidisciplinary team of compassionate experts is dedicated to addressing the unique challenges of eating disorders with evidence-based care and unwavering support. At the heart of our mission is helping patients and their families rediscover hope, rebuild their lives and achieve lasting recovery.”

Christina Basedow, chief operating officer, EHN Canada

“Eating disorders have long been overlooked in mental health, leaving a critical gap in care. After a decade of advocacy, we’re proud to see Alberta’s first live-in recovery centre become a reality. This centre addresses a critical need many families, including my own, have faced. Thanks to this partnership, a critical resource is now accessible to Albertan families.”

Cendrine Tremblay, board chair, Silver Linings Foundation

“The opening of this facility means more resources and support for individuals battling eating disorders. Recovery from an eating disorder is a complex and ongoing process that requires dedication and support. The centre’s multidisciplinary team will play a vital role in guiding individuals through their journey, and we look forward to seeing the positive impact this will have on the lives of many in the community.”

Janet Chafe, executive director, Recovery Alberta

The EHN Sandstone Recovery Centre helps close a gap in the continuum of care for youth and young adults diagnosed with complex eating disorders. Albertans aged 12 to 24 now have access to intensive treatment in a community setting, reducing the need for long hospital stays and increasing positive health outcomes.

The centre offers an individualized approach to care, with around-the-clock support from a multidisciplinary team of physicians, nurse practitioners, registered dietitians, nurses, counselors and support staff. Services include academic support, weekly individual and family therapy, daily group therapy, nutritional rehabilitation, structured meal support therapy, self-care and wellness activities, nutritional education, and distress tolerance skills. While treatment length varies, it generally lasts anywhere from three weeks to four months.
EHN Sandstone Recovery Centre – Bedroom (Credit: EHN Canada)
EHN Sandstone Recovery Centre – Common area (Credit: EHN Canada)

EHN Sandstone Recovery Centre – Exterior (Credit: EHN Canada)

Alberta’s government is committed to building a system of care that gives every person facing mental health challenges an opportunity to pursue recovery and wellness. Albertans experiencing mental health challenges can contact 211 for information on services in their community, including other online supports like Kids Help Phone and the Mental Health Helpline.

Quick facts

The facility welcomed its first client in 2024 and is now fully operational. To date, 18 patients have been admitted to the facility with additional referrals being triaged.

Youth and young adults aged 12 to 24 with complex eating disorders can be referred either by an Alberta physician or nurse practitioner.

Silver Linings is a charitable foundation working with communities, health professionals and agencies to increase the awareness and understanding of eating disorders, provide community support for those affected and expand access to eating disorder treatment and care options.

Edgewood Health Network Canada is the nation’s largest network of industry-leading, evidence-based care mental health, trauma, and addiction treatment facilities, each with a passion for providing quality treatment for Canadians.

Related information

Silver Linings

Edgewood Health Network Canada

EHN Canada media requests

Related news

Expanding access to youth eating disorder treatment (April 5, 2023)

Minister of Mental Health and Addiction mandate letter (Aug. 2, 2023)

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Media can download photos and B-roll from here to use for editorial purposes.
MIL OSI Canada News –
February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Trump’s Gaza and Ukraine plans come under the spotlight

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Jonathan Este, Senior International Affairs Editor, Associate Editor

Steve Bannon may no longer be in Donald Trump’s inner circle, but the newly reinstated US president appears to be adhering to a dictum the conservative disrupter-in-chief outlined back in 2018 as he reflected on his role in getting Trump elected the first time. “The Democrats don’t matter. The real opposition is the media. And the way to deal with them is to flood the zone with shit.”

It’s fair to say that for the first two weeks of Trump’s second presidency the Democrats haven’t really mattered. But Trump and his advisers have got news organisations struggling to work out which way to look.

In any normal news cycle, the appointment of vaccine-sceptic RFK Jnr. as health secretary would dominate the headlines, as would the successful installation of any of the more bizarre Trump cabinet picks. But at the same time the media has had to deal with a steady stream of other attention-grabbing announcements: the idea that the US could one way or the other acquire Greenland from Denmark, for instance, or the threats to use force to take control of the Panama Canal. We’ve had conflicting statements about how to end the war in Ukraine (more of which later) and the now you see them, now you don’t tariff threats against Mexico and Canada, not to mention the idea that the latter could be incorporated as the 51st state of the USA.

The zone has been well and truly flooded. Meanwhile, the administration’s plan to take complete control of the civil service (which appears to be straight out of the Project 2025 playbook) has proceeded apace with career public servants being dismissed in their droves to make way for true Maga (Make America Great Again) believers in key roles. This, needless to say, has struggled for attention in light of all the eye-catching news stories.

Sign up to receive our weekly World Affairs Briefing newsletter from The Conversation UK. Every Thursday we’ll bring you expert analysis of the big stories in international relations.

This week’s big idea has to do with his vision for a post-conflict Gaza. Trump foreshadowed this plan last week when he announced he was talking with the leaders of Egypt and Jordan about resettling Gazans there – whether permanently or just for a period of reconstruction of Gaza was not clear, his statement was short on detail. But this week, hosting the Israeli prime minister in Washington (significantly the first foreign leader to visit since his inauguration), Trump expanded on his vision while Benjamin Netanyahu looked on approvingly.

Initially, it appeared that Trump’s plan was for the permanent relocation of all 2.2 million Gazans to other countries while the Trump administration and its allies considered the considerable real estate investment opportunities presented by turning the 360km² Gaza Strip, with its 40km Mediterranean coastline into the “Middle East Riviera”. But as Simon Mabon notes here, administration officials were later quick to insist that the relocation would only last for as long as it takes to rebuild the stricken enclave.

Mabon, professor of international relations at the University of Lancaster who specialises in Middle East politics, also notes that the proposal did what few other issues seem able to do: united the Arab nations in opposition. He also believes that while both Egypt and Jordan have signed peace deals with Israel, the relationship is often fractious and this latest announcement won’t have helped.

Most importantly, perhaps, will be the reaction of Saudi Arabia. Israel (with Washington’s encouragement) has been pursuing normalisation of relations with Riyadh for some years. But the Saudi ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has explicitly rejected “any attempts to displace the Palestinians from their land as well as affirming that relations with Israel would depend on the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Read more:
What Trump’s proposal to ‘take over’ Gaza could mean for Arab-Israeli relations

It’s not the first time, by any means, that the idea of clearing Gaza of Palestinians has been mooted. It’s not even the first time that the real estate investment potential of such a plan has been discussed by a senior Trump official. Back in March last year, Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and former senior adviser who was the architect of Trump’s 2020 peace plan, talked up the idea of resettling Gazans in the Negev desert while noting that “Gaza’s waterfront property could be very valuable”.

Israel’s far-right settler movement, meanwhile, has long yearned to empty out the strip. In December 2023 the leader of the Nachala Israeli settlement movement, Daniella Weiss, declared that Gaza City had always been “one of the cities of Israel. We’re just going back. There was a historical mistake and now we are fixing it.”

The relocation of Palestinians outside Palestine was actually part of the founding mission of UN agency Unrwa – which, incidentally was banned by Israel last week and has been defunded by the US since allegations surfaced last year that a number of Unrwa employees had taken part in the Hamas attacks on October 2023.

Anne Irfan of University College London, a specialist in refugees and displacement, and Jo Kelcey of the Lebanese American University, whose core research area covers the politics of education in marginalised communities such as Gaza, recount here that Unrwa was set up in 1949 following the Nakba (catastrophe) when more than 700,000 Palestinians were displaced in fighting before and after the foundation of the State of Israel.

Unrwa was set up with the aim of resettling the displaced people and sponsoring projects that would create jobs and promote economic development in their new host countries: the “works” in the agency’s title.

As Irfan and Kelcey note, the staunchest opponents of this plan were Palestinians themselves. They could read between the lines of this mission, that their exile was intended to be permanent. It was a non-starter and within five years of Unrwa’s establishment the resettlement policy was shelved in favour of a focus on education, which remains to this day.

Not that Trump would be keen to associate any plan of his with Unrwa. In 2018 he fully defunded the agency, the first time a US president has done this. He has also more recently extended Joe Biden’s suspension of Unrwa funding after the allegations of Hamas infiltration and has made it clear he supports Netanyahu’s ban on the agency operating in Israel.

Read more:
Trump plans to ‘permanently resettle’ Palestinians outside Gaza – the very reason Unrwa was originally created

Meanwhile, how would the Gaza plan sit in terms of Trump’s “America First” strategy? Mark Shanahan, of the University of Surrey, believes this is all part of what he refers to here as “Trumperialism”. It’s not so much America as the light on the hill, trying to find a way to fix global problems and seek peaceful solutions to dangerous and distressing conflicts. Rather, in this case at least, it sees Gaza as “an opportunity for American business to build wealth – the classic US economic hegemony of the populist America First political theory”.

Rather than emulating the Marshall plan of what feels now like a more enlightened era, Trump’s plan for Gaza, at least as he laid it out after his meeting with Netanyahu, is more akin to the plan for the rebuilding of Iraq after the 2003 invasion, writes Shanahan. That is: US private funding for beachside condos and luxury developments while the countries to whom the displaced Palestinians are relocated would be expected to pay for the privilege.

But Trump also hinted this might mean US boots on the ground in the Middle East, cautions Shanahan, adding that “delivering Mar-a-Lago on the Med may mean thousands of American combat troops deployed to Gaza for years at daily risk of death. How do main-street Americans benefit from that?”

Read more:
How Trump’s Gaza plan does – and doesn’t – fit in with his pledge to put America first

And if you wondered whether – like so many of Trump’s big plans and executive orders issued since his second inauguration – the Gaza Riviera scheme might fall foul of the law, it would. As Tamer Morris –
an expert in international law at the University of Sydney – explains, the US would require the consent of the Palestinian people to take control of Gaza. And this is not going to happen.

Forced relocation is forbidden under the Geneva Conventions as is helping another state forcibly relocate people. It could also be interpreted as ethnic cleansing, as defined by the Commission of Experts report on the former state of Yugoslavia to the UN Security Council in 1994.

Read more:
Trump wants the US to ‘take over’ Gaza and relocate the people. Is this legal?

Meanwhile in Ukraine

Meanwhile, the US president has also been making noises about his ideas for bringing peace to Ukraine. The latest, aired this week, involved linking continuing US support with favourable concessions on Ukraine’s supply of rare earths and other strategic resources. Stefan Wolff, of the University of Birmingham, has been watching the diplomatic manoeuvrings around Trump, Putin, Xi and Ukraine since the war began nearly three years ago. In the past fortnight, he’s been looking at the prospect of a peace deal brokered by the US.

Wolff thinks it unlikely that anything will be resolved in the foreseeable future beyond a ceasefire and freezing of the battle lines. And that’s not even much more than a distant possibility given that neither Kyiv nor the Kremlin seem to want this for reasons of their own.

Read more:
Trump’s vision of a peace deal for Ukraine is limited to a ceasefire – and it’s not even clear if Kyiv or Moscow are going to play ball

The possibility of Europe bearing the burden of maintaining support to Ukraine without the US bearing the lion’s share of the burden also looks remote. Domestic politics in many EU member states is threatening the bloc’s unity – and, in any case, the ability of Europe to make up the shortfall caused by a possible US withdrawal of aid to Ukraine is distinctly doubtful. And unlikely improve any time soon.

Read more:
Ukraine: prospects for peace are slim unless Europe grips the reality of Trump’s world

It appears, meanwhile, that Putin’s ally Kim Jong-un is poised to send another wave of North Koreans to help. Jennifer Mathers, of Aberystwyth University, takes a detailed look at what we know about how these troops have fared thus far. She concludes that, given the terribly heavy losses the North Korean units are reported to be suffering, it’s possible that their leader may be trading the high casualty rate for much-needed combat experience in case his army might want to fight in a conflict nearer to home.

Read more:
North Korea: Kim Jong-un is sending a second wave of soldiers to Ukraine – here’s why

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– ref. Trump’s Gaza and Ukraine plans come under the spotlight – https://theconversation.com/trumps-gaza-and-ukraine-plans-come-under-the-spotlight-249311

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Crapo Statement at USTR Nomination Hearing

US Senate News:

Source: United States Senator for Idaho Mike Crapo

Washington, D.C.–U.S. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) delivered the following remarks at a hearing to consider the nomination of Jamieson Greer to be United States Trade Representative (USTR), with the rank of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary.

As prepared for delivery:

“Mr. Greer, welcome and congratulations on your nomination.

“By traditional timelines, this is one of the earliest dates the Finance Committee has held a nomination hearing for the United States Trade Representative, or USTR.

“Your cooperation and timely responses to questions from both sides of the aisle expedited this Committee’s very demanding process.

“Mr. Greer has been nominated by the President for an incredibly important job: America’s chief trade negotiator. By statute—and frankly, in accordance with our Constitution—our negotiator must report to Congress, which means he reports to the Finance Committee.

“This week, attention fell on President Trump’s executive orders to help secure our borders from illegal immigration and fentanyl smuggling. I strongly support securing our borders and fighting fentanyl trafficking.

“The executive orders rely on the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA, and concern drug policy and border security. The President, not USTR, invokes IEEPA, and the Department of Homeland Security, not USTR, is responsible for securing our borders. Nonetheless, I am securing briefings on these orders and, in fact, Customs and Border Protection will brief Committee staff on this matter today.

“What the President has done that is different, though, is bringing tariffs into the discussions about border security. USTR is, as I said, America’s chief trade negotiator.

“Any time the U.S. government is considering tariffs or something that implicates trade policy, he should be part of those conversations, and report to us about those conversations and solicit our input.

“Right now, Mr. Greer is not in government and not privy to various discussions.

“Confirming him will allow him to be part of the conversation and work with this Committee, ensuring Congress fulfills its constitutional responsibilities over international trade.

“When we look at whether Jamieson Greer will be a good negotiator for America’s trade interests and a partner to this committee, his experience and skillset indicate the answer is yes.

“He understands USTR’s policymaking since he served as its Chief of Staff. At USTR, he distinguished himself as an effective negotiator in his work on the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA, which overwhelmingly passed Congress. As many of my Democrat colleagues know firsthand, he worked closely with them on their priorities for USMCA.

“As an accomplished international trade attorney, he is an expert on our trade agreements and trade laws, including the requirements to report to Congress promptly and thoroughly.

“We need an effective USTR now more than ever. The last USTR did not negotiate any agreements and we lost ground to foreign competitors. The Biden Administration walked away even from its own limited initiatives, such as the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework. Rather than forge new rules to combat China’s trade practices, the prior administration turned its back on existing rules and positions, such as our intellectual property rights under the WTO TRIPS Agreement, and support for open data flows and non-discrimination against our technology companies.

“The Biden Administration also dawdled on enforcement of our existing trade agreements, including by failing to act against protectionist measures on our U.S. agriculture and energy producers.

“Finally, there was one other major USTR failure during the last Administration: failing to report and to consult with this Committee. Both sides of the aisle expressed serious concern about the last USTR’s repeated failures to consult with the Committee—and her position that she did not need to improve consultation with the Committee or the agency’s transparency with the public.

“We should not hold Mr. Greer responsible for those failings. Mr. Greer has been crystal clear that he will consult with this Committee and respect Congress’s constitutional prerogatives over trade. I expect that some members may disagree from time to time with the Administration, but, if so, Mr. Greer has committed to make its case before us, rather than ignore us. If confirmed, I will hold him to that commitment.

“Mr. Greer, thank you for your willingness to serve, and I look forward to hearing more from you about your perspectives on international trade policy and how you plan to work with this Committee to achieve our shared priorities.

“With that, I recognize Ranking Member Wyden for his opening remarks.”

MIL OSI USA News –

February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Former Bosnian prison camp supervisor sentenced to over 5 years in prison for concealing participation in wartime persecution

Source: US Immigration and Customs Enforcement

BOSTON — A Swampscott man was sentenced Jan. 22 in federal court in Boston after Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) uncovered a 25-year scheme to conceal his persecution of ethnic Serbs during the Bosnian War as well as making false claims to come to the United States and ultimately become a United States citizen.

Kemal Mrndzic, 52, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Denise J. Casper to 65 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. In October 2024, Mrndzic was convicted by a federal jury of engaging in a scheme to conceal his involvement in the persecution of Serb prisoners at the notorious Celebici prison camp in Bosnia in 1992; making a false statement to federal agents about his role at the camp; possessing a fraudulently obtained naturalization certificate and Social Security card; and using a fraudulently obtained passport and certificate of naturalization.

“Through the brave testimony of the survivors of the Celebici prison camp, the persecution Mrndzic attempted to conceal was finally brought to light after over 30 years. Though we can never undo what the survivors endured, I hope this sentence brings some measure of justice, no matter how long delayed,” said HSI New England Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Krol. “HSI remains tireless in our effort to pursue war criminals and human rights violators who attempt to evade justice.”

“For over two decades, Mr. Mrndzic evaded accountability for his participation in the persecution and torture of countless victims at the camp. By holding him accountable for his lies and fraudulent conduct, this sentence reinforces our resolve to ensure that those responsible for war crimes and human rights abuses are identified, exposed, and prosecuted. This case underscores that we will not allow our nation to be a refuge for those who seek to escape justice,” said United States Attorney Leah B. Foley. “The government will be working to ensure that his fraudulently obtained U.S. citizenship is revoked.”

Mrndzic served as a supervisor of the guards at the notorious Celebici prison camp in Bosnia and Herzegovina during the sectarian war which fractured the country in the 1990s. Twenty-one former detainees described Mrndzic as one of the most notable guards at the camp, who was widely known for his particularly vicious treatment of prisoners and his close association with the camp deputy commander. Mrndzic participated in the systematic and pervasive brutal torture and deprivation of basic human needs of hundreds of captive victims — some of whom were elderly — at the Celebici prison camp. For seven months, victims were forcibly detained with starvation rations, at times forced into lightless, airless manholes that were sealed for hours at a time. Victims also endured daily and nightly beatings that were administered by the guards at the camp — with baseball bats, wooden poles and rifle butts.

Camp survivors who testified at trial in October 2024 recounted murders, the burning of one detainee’s tongue with a heated knife blade, the wrapping of another detainee with a long explosive fuse cord and then lighting it on fire, sexual abuse and other harrowing acts committed over a period of many months. One survivor recounted the beating death of a 70-year-old detainee whom guards pinned a political party badge to his forehead while he was still dying. Survivors also testified about being starved and deprived of the most basic needs, including sleeping on the concrete floor of a sheet metal hangar for months on end while being fed only a slice of bread a day.

A United Nations tribunal investigated the crimes committed at Celebici and in 1998 convicted the two top commanders of the camp and one particularly sadistic guard on numerous crimes including murder and torture. While Mrndzic was interviewed by investigators in connection with that case in 1996, he was not charged by international authorities. Mrndzic subsequently concocted a scheme to leave Bosnia by crossing the border into Croatia and applying to immigrate to the United States using a fabricated story. In his immigration application and interview, he falsely claimed to U.S. immigration authorities that he fled his home after he was captured, interrogated and abused by Serb forces, and could not return home for fear of future persecution. As the government argued at trial, Mrndzic used his own experience as a persecutor to press a false narrative that he had been persecuted. He was admitted to the U.S. in 1999, and ultimately became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 2009.

Many Celebici survivors became refugees during and after the Bosnian War. Some came to the United States and have since become U.S. citizens. The survivors living in the United States played a central role in the investigation and prosecution of this case. They provided critical trial testimony and submitted moving victim impact statements.

The investigation was led by HSI New England’s Document and Benefit Fraud Task Force and HSI’s Human Rights Violators & War Crimes Center (HRVWCC) with assistance from the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General’s Boston Field Office; the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service, Boston Field Office; and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Boston Field Office. Additional support was provided by the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services, DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section and the U.S. Embassies in Sarajevo, Belgrade and Helsinki. The United Nations International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT) in The Hague, Netherlands, the Australian Federal Police, Bosnian and Herzegovinian Ministry of Justice, Serbian Ministry of Justice, law enforcement authorities in Finland and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police all provided valuable assistance as did the Cook County Sheriff’s Office in Illinois and the Swampscott Police Department in Massachusetts.

The HRVWCC is led by HSI and leverages the expertise of criminal investigators, attorneys, historians, intelligence analysts and federal partners to provide a whole of government approach to prevent the United States from becoming a safe haven for individuals who commit war crimes, genocide, torture and other human rights abuses around the globe. Currently, HSI has more than 180 active investigations into suspected human rights violators and is pursuing more than 1,945 leads and removals cases involving suspected human rights violators from 95 different countries. Since 2003, the HRVWCC has issued more than 79,000 lookouts for potential perpetrators of human rights abuses, and stopped over 390 human rights violators and war crimes suspects from entering the U.S.

MIL OSI USA News –

February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Governor Lamont Announces 2025 Legislative Proposal: Reduce Prescription Drug Costs
Source: US State of Connecticut

(HARTFORD, CT) – Governor Ned Lamont today announced that the package of legislative proposals he is presenting to the Connecticut General Assembly for consideration this session includes comprehensive reforms to improve healthcare affordability and mitigate out-of-pocket costs for patients, particularly those related to prescription drugs.

“Families across America are simply paying too much for essential prescription drugs, and these rising costs make accessing health coverage a barrier for far too many people,” Governor Lamont said. “I am urging the state legislature to make lowering prescription drug costs a priority this session. The proposals I’ve presented to them contain wide-ranging steps to lower prescription drug costs and put limits on future price increases.”

Recently, through an initiative launched between the Lamont administration and Comptroller Sean Scanlon, Connecticut joined the ArrayRx prescription drug discount card program, which enables all residents in Connecticut to receive a discount card at no cost that gives them discounts at the pharmacy on certain medications. Working in collaboration with Comptroller Scanlon, Governor Lamont is proposing to expand the use of this card in Connecticut, enabling consumers to receive credit for “cash” prescription drug purchases toward their annual deductible if they paid a lower price than they would have under their insurance coverage.

“Skyrocketing drug prices are forcing too many people into impossible choices, like skipping doses or cutting pills in half,” Comptroller Scanlon said. “That’s just wrong, and it must end. If drug makers and pharmacy benefit managers won’t lower prices for the people of our state, we will. I am proud to be working with Governor Lamont on innovative solutions that will rein in costs and improve healthcare affordability in Connecticut.”

“It’s nearly impossible for someone to follow their healthcare provider’s treatment plan if they can’t afford the out-of-pocket cost for the prescriptions they need,” Dr. Deidre Gifford, commissioner of the Connecticut Office of Health Strategy and Governor Lamont’s senior advisor for health and human services, said. “This proposal focuses on making prescription drugs more affordable for Connecticut residents. It’s good healthcare and it’s good public policy.

Governor Lamont’s proposal, House Bill 6870 (An Act Addressing Patients’ Prescription Drug Costs), contains the following actions:
- Permits patients to claim low-cost drug purchases toward deductibles: Establishes a patient’s right to receive credit for out-of-pocket and out-of-network prescription drug expenses toward their annual deductible if they paid a lower price than they would have at an in-network pharmacy with insurance.
- Limits annual generic drug price increases to inflation: Limits price increases for generic and off-patent drugs to the annual rate of inflation and authorizing the Connecticut Department of Revenue Services to levy a civil penalty on manufacturers that raise prices above that threshold. By focusing on generic drugs and those that drugs that are coming off patent, Connecticut can respect and encourage innovation yet help clamp down on unfair price spikes for many commonly used drugs.
- Establishes a pathway for safe Canadian prescription drug importation: Requires the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection to assess feasibility of establishing a Canadian prescription drug importation program within Connecticut after reviewing quality, safety, and operational needs.
**Download: Fact sheet on Governor Lamont’s proposed legislation (House Bill 6870)

MIL OSI USA News –
February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: Grand Falls-Windsor — Grand Falls-Windsor RCMP investigates theft of snowmobile from residence in Bishops Falls

Source: Royal Canadian Mounted Police

Grand Falls-Windsor RCMP is investigating the theft of a snowmobile from a residential property in Bishops Falls that occurred sometime between December 25, 2024 – January 28, 2025.

The snowmobile, a red/burgundy 2023 Polaris Indy 550 LXT NorthStar Edition, was stolen while parked on a residential property on Furey’s Lane in Bishops Falls. Images of the snowmobile, including a stock image, are attached.

The investigation is continuing.

Anyone having information about the current location of the snowmobile, the person(s) responsible for the theft or information about this crime is asked to contact Grand Falls-Windsor RCMP at 709-489-2121. To remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers: #SayItHere 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), visit www.nlcrimestoppers.com or use the P3Tips app.

MIL Security OSI –

February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI Canada: Government of Yukon releases Rapid Response to Homelessness report

Government of Yukon releases Rapid Response to Homelessness report
jlutz
February 5, 2025 – 2:42 pm

The Government of Yukon has released its Rapid Response to Homelessness report, outlining the initiatives undertaken by the Government of Yukon from March 2023 to September 2024. This report provides an opportunity to take account of actions completed since March 2023, identify lessons learned and chart a path forward with community partners.

The report details actions taken by the Government of Yukon to help reduce the number of people experiencing homelessness, improve housing and wellness outcomes, meet the immediate needs of Yukoners who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness and help to create stable and accessible housing options.

Homelessness is a complex issue that requires a multi-year, multi-sectoral approach supported by governments, non-governmental organizations and industry.

The Government of Yukon will continue to work with all partners towards a future where all Yukoners have a safe place to call home.

MIL OSI Canada News –

February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: Canadian Businessman Sentenced for Obstruction of Justice for Hiding and Laundering Millions After His 2020 Money Laundering Conviction

Source: Office of United States Attorneys

           WASHINGTON – Firoz Patel, 50, of Montreal, Canada, was sentenced to 41 months in federal prison today in connection with his efforts to conceal and launder 450 Bitcoin, currently valued at over $43 million, that he hid from the U.S. District Court handling his 2020 conviction and sentencing for conspiring to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business and to commit money laundering.

           The sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin, Jr., HSI Acting Special Agent in Charge Kai Wah Chan of Homeland Security Investigation’s Washington, D.C., Field Office.

           Patel plead guilty on September 17, 2024, to one count of obstruction of an official proceeding. In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Dabney L. Friedrich ordered three years of supervised release, a forfeiture money judgment in the amount of $24,020,699.83, and forfeiture of 450 Bitcoin plus interest currently restrained at a virtual currency exchange in the United Kingdom.

           In 2020, Patel was convicted and sentenced to 36 months for operating Payza, an illegal financial payments platform that processed cryptocurrency payments.

           According to court documents, in 2004 Patel began operating his payment processing company AlertPay, which evolved into Payza. The Montreal company offered its services to customers across the United States, even though the business lacked a license to operate in any state or the District of Columbia.

            Throughout Payza’s existence, the company partnered with various money services businesses, such as OboPay in 2012, another online money services business. At Patel’s direction, merchants were not removed from Payza’s platform for being involved in high-risk activities such as Ponzi schemes, money laundering activities, multilevel-marketing (MLM) scams, money-cycler scams, pyramid schemes, and steroid distributors. Payza did not have a Bank Secrecy Act Officer, it did not conduct legally required Bank Secrecy Act/anti-money-laundering audits, and it operated in the United States at various times without registering with the U.S. Department of Treasury Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) or state authorities.

           On July 16, 2020, Patel pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money-transmitting business and to launder monetary instruments, based on his operation of Payza. As a condition of his plea, he was required to identify and forfeit any property involved in the offense to which he pleaded guilty. Although Patel had control over more than 450 Bitcoin in Payza’s illicit proceeds—valued at approximately $24,000,000 at the time—he provided false information to the U.S. Probation Office and the Court in an attempt to hide his illicit Bitcoin wealth, including by claiming his only assets were $30,000 in a retirement savings account.

           On November 10, 2020, then-District Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson sentenced the defendant to 36 months in prison and two years of supervised release and entered an agreed-upon order requiring Patel to forfeit any property involved in his offense, as well as any property traceable to such property. Rather than comply, shortly after his sentencing but before reporting to prison, Patel began consolidating Payza’s illicit cryptocurrency proceeds and attempted to deposit them with Binance, a virtual currency exchange. On April 22, 2021, Binance informed Patel that his account was being closed for violating Binance’s terms of service and being flagged by a third-party compliance tool. Forced to withdraw 450 Bitcoin, Patel opened an offshore virtual currency account in his father’s name, listed an address in Belize linked to Payza’s operations, and transferred the same 450 Bitcoin in illicit proceeds into the account shortly before he reported to the Bureau of Prisons. This second virtual currency exchange also deemed the deposit suspicious and froze the funds.

            Patel contacted the exchange in June 2021 stating “[i]f this is about me, then realize that I am not beholden to any actions by the USA or any other government authorities. I have paid my dues and I owe nothing to anybody.” Patel tasked a Payza business associate to work on providing false Know Your Customer (KYC) information to the virtual currency exchange in an effort to unfreeze the illicit funds. Had the scheme succeeded, Patel would have successfully hid and laundered the funds and been released from prison with 450 BTC in criminal proceeds awaiting him. The Department of Justice restrained Patel’s Bitcoin through a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty request to the United Kingdom during the course of the investigation.

             According to the Government’s sentencing memo, Patel became aware of the investigation while serving his 36-month sentence for the 2020 conviction. As Patel neared his release date, he enlisted the assistance of C.A. to impersonate an attorney and engage in sham negotiations with the U.S. Attorney’s Office. C.A. and Patel planned to string along the assigned Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA) long enough for Patel to be released on his 2020 conviction and flee the United States to Canada to avoid prosecution. The AUSA and investigators discovered the false impersonation in advance of Patel’s release date and returned an Indictment of Patel in May 2023. He has been in Bureau of Prisons custody or detained pre-trial since June 2021.

           This case was investigated by the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Washington, D.C. Field Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kevin L. Rosenberg and Special Assistant United States Attorney Christopher B. Brown of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, and Trial Attorney Jonas Lerman of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team. Valuable assistance was also provided by Scott Meisler and Josh Handell of the Criminal Division’s Appellate Section, and by Trial Attorney Erin Mikita and former Trial Attorney Roberto Iraola of the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs. The case was originally investigated by former Assistant United States Attorney Arvind K. Lal.

23cr166

MIL Security OSI –

February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Canadian supply chains are at the epicentre of Trump’s potential trade war

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Hassan Wafai, Associate Professor, Faculty of Management, Royal Roads University

United States President Donald Trump has temporarily halted his trade war with Canada and Mexico, agreeing to pause his proposed tariffs for at least 30 days.

Regardless of whether Trump will impose the tariffs once the 30 days are up, Canadian supply chains have become the epicentre of these looming disruptions. The country urgently needs to strengthen its supply chain resilience.

If the tariffs were to go into effect, they would reshape the geo-political ecosystem of North America and beyond by disrupting global supply chains. These supply chains are a direct reflection of the geo-political ecosystem in which they operate, and they require stability to establish and thrive.

With approximately $3.6 billion in trade crossing the U.S.-Canada border daily, a sweeping 25 per cent tariff on non-energy goods would have catastrophic effects on the Canadian economy, including shaving 2.6 per cent off Canada’s GDP.

Read more:
U.S. tariff threat: How it will impact different products and industries

While the list of affected goods and services would be long, the auto industries are likely to be among the hardest hit sectors. Businesses on both sides of the border would be seriously hurt, including major U.S. automakers General Motors, Ford and Stellantis.

The outlook is equally bleak for Mexico, where 83 per cent of exports go to the U.S.

Canadian supply chain resilience

Trump’s potential trade war represents an unconventional, top-down approach to redesigning North American supply chains, which took decades to establish. His aggressive trade policies are disrupting the status quo with devastating and irreversible effects.

Canadian supply chains have historically been prone to major disruptions. Past responses to these disruptions have focused on helping firms build resilience. While this is important, insufficient attention has been given to establishing effective provincial and national governance structures to support and guide supply chain resilience.

There is growing recognition that supply chain resilience should be addressed at the system level. This resilience emerges from both the actions of individual organizations and from the relationships and interactions between them.

System-level supply chain resilience is influenced by governmental or regulatory bodies that set policies to manage long-term supply risks. These are known as governance structures or mechanisms.

Canada’s long-term strategic response must go beyond helping Canadian companies integrate into alternative global supply chains outside the U.S. The country must also explore new governance structures that can strengthen the collective resilience of Canadian firms.

Improving supply chain resilience

Trump has been a destabilizing force for international trade and free trade agreements, particularly the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement, which may have a shorter lifespan than initially agreed upon.

One of the most effective ways for Canada to strengthen its supply chain resilience is to reduce its heavy trade reliance on the U.S., which can be done through free trade agreements. Despite this, Canada has been slow to diversify beyond the U.S., which remains its largest trading partner, accounting for 76 per cent of exports and 64 per cent of imports.

Read more:
Trump’s tariff threat is a sign that Canada should be diversifying beyond the U.S.

Canada is currently part of 15 free trade agreements that collectively cover 61 per cent of the world’s GDP and provide access to 1.5 billion consumers globally. However, it’s not yet clear how free trade agreements can enhance supply chain resilience.

Canada must look beyond its existing free trade agreements and pursue new markets such as the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) and the Pacific Alliance. Expanding into these regions would allow Canadian companies and supply chains to join global value chains, creating opportunities for knowledge spillovers and productivity boosts.

As Canada diversifies its trade, it must do so with a supply chain mindset, carefully considering the implications of specific trade policies and how they will enhance the resilience of Canadian supply chains.

Future free trade agreements should incorporate clear and specific clauses that anticipate disruptions and help with swift supply chain recovery. A prime example of such an agreement is the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity, which came into effect in October 2024.

Beyond international trade, Canada should also eliminate interprovincial trade barriers to facilitate easier business operations across Canadian provinces and territories.

Stronger supply chain governance

More research is needed to determine exactly which governance structures should be put in place to support Canada’s supply chain resilience.

The Canadian government may need to establish a multi-level governance structure encompassing sectoral, provincial and national levels, such as supply chain councils.

Supply chain councils could connect supply chains with small and medium-sized enterprises, leverage existing networks, co-ordinate resilience strategies and address supply chain and trade policy issues of national significance.

With Trump back in the White House, Canada must be prepared to protect its supply chains against an evolving trade war. Whether his policies are driven by his imperialist ideology, a protectionist agenda, border security concerns or the pursuit of more revenue from slapping tariffs on America’s closest allies, the threat to Canadian supply chains is real.

To withstand these pressures, Canada must build resilience at the systemic level, where top-down governance ensures the private sector can respond quickly and effectively to disruptions. It is never too late to start, but waiting any longer is no longer an option for Canada.

Juan Navarro is the president and principal researcher of CMX Partnerships, a business and research consultancy that provides advice and conducts studies for companies, institutions, and governments.

Kimberly Tholl consults for Nexus Insights Consulting Ltd. and is a member of the non-profit Association for Supply Chain Management (ASCM).

Hassan Wafai does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Canadian supply chains are at the epicentre of Trump’s potential trade war – https://theconversation.com/canadian-supply-chains-are-at-the-epicentre-of-trumps-potential-trade-war-248987

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: The hidden truth about migrant deaths at the Canada-U.S. border

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Julie Young, Canada Research Chair in Critical Border Studies and Associate Professor of Geography and Environment, University of Lethbridge, University of Lethbridge

The return of Donald Trump as United States president has sparked new security measures along the Canada-U.S. border.

After Trump threatened to slap tariffs on Canadian imports if irregular migration and illegal drugs were not curtailed, Canadian federal and provincial governments pledged new border enforcement resources. Trump may still go ahead with his tariff threats despite a reprieve.

Research shows that tighter border policies don’t deter migration. Policing borders pushes migrants into more remote and dangerous crossing points, and difficult crossings lead migrants to rely more heavily on human smuggling operations. One outcome of heightened border security is clearly an increase in human suffering and death.

Asylum-seekers from Congo cross the border at Roxham Road into Québec in February 2023 in Champlain, N.Y.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz

Our work documenting deaths at the Canada-U.S. border shows that irregular crossings have taken the lives of at least 38 people. The actual number of migrant fatalities is likely much higher.

We’re concerned that additional border security measures will lead to more danger and death for migrants attempting to cross between the two countries. Recent incidents lend weight to these concerns: one migrant died in a car chase with RCMP on Feb. 4, while another nine people were arrested as they tried to cross into Canada in dangerous winter conditions on Feb. 3.

Crossing the Canada-U.S. border

People from around the world cross the Canada-U.S. border daily. Most people enter Canada and the United States formally through official ports of entry. Still, some migrants also travel across the border, in both directions, without official permission.

Because irregular border crossings are hidden by nature, we will never know how many people enter Canada or the U.S. unofficially. Agencies charged with border security track “encounters” and “apprehensions” in the U.S. and the “interception” of asylum-seekers in Canada. But there is no common measurement used to estimate irregular crossing in either country.

Irregular border crossing cases are affected by policy changes in both countries. In recent years, they appear to have been affected by migrants’ perceptions of American immigration policy and changes to the Canada-U.S. Safe Third Country Agreement.

Read more:
Tragedies, not accidents: Tougher Canadian and U.S. border policies will cost more lives

Death at the border

Our research identified 15 deaths at the Canada-U.S. border between 2020 and 2023, and another 23 deaths going back to 1989. Given the lack of official records, the actual number is likely higher.

We filed access-to-information requests on both sides of the border. The RCMP acknowledged just one death in Canada, and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) produced no results. Instead, we systematically collected media reports on border deaths and analyzed that data.

Roughly three-quarters of migrants whose deaths were covered in news reports were travelling towards the U.S. Their remains were mainly recovered on the Canadian side of the border.

Read more:
Roxham Road: Asylum seekers won’t just get turned back, they’ll get forced underground — Podcast

Migrants face a range of dangers when crossing the Canada-U.S. border irregularly, but drowning represents the most significant threat, followed by hypothermia — 23 and six of the 38 recorded deaths, respectively.

Three people died in encounters with border patrol agents, with two fatally shot on the American side and one dying in a car crash while being chased by Canadian agents.

An RCMP officer stops people as they enter Canada via Roxham Road near Hemmingford, Que., hours after amendments to the Safe Third Country agreement enabled authorities to turn asylum-seekers away from unofficial border crossings.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes

Invisible deaths

Our requests for official data on border deaths in both the U.S. and Canada came up empty-handed. After more than a year and the conclusion of an independent complaint investigation into the RCMP’s lack of response to our Canadian request, we were provided with information on one single death. The request filed in the U.S. returned no information.

Researchers in both countries regularly report frustration with slow processes and a lack of results from such requests.

This experience led us to believe that border enforcement agencies do not track deaths along the Canada-U.S. border in either country. This is a problem. The public is left in the dark, while potential migrants are not provided with information about the dangers of irregular crossings.

It is particularly odd that American authorities don’t provide information on deaths at this border, given that deaths along the U.S.-Mexico border are tracked and publicly reported.

If there’s been a policy decision not to track deaths at the Canada-U.S. border, it reveals a lack of concern and a willingness to obscure the full picture from the public. Both the Canadian and American governments need to change their approach to documenting border deaths, detailing all known cases publicly.

More death on the horizon

Trump’s return to the American presidency might lead to an increase in irregular migration between Canada and the U.S. The Canadian government’s move to beef up border security enforcement, in turn, makes it more likely that migrants will perish after choosing dangerous crossing points.

Even when migrants die amid human smuggling operations, a lot of the responsibility lies with government decisions.

As Public Safety Canada warned in 2023, more difficult border crossings lead to increased criminality in human smuggling. Government decisions drive people away from safer crossing points and into the influence of criminal organizations.

The governments of Canada and the United States have a moral obligation to inform the public about deaths — and do everything in their power to prevent further tragedies.

Julie Young receives funding from the Canada Research Chairs Program.

Daniel E. Martinez, Dylan Simburger, and Simon Granovsky-Larsen do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. The hidden truth about migrant deaths at the Canada-U.S. border – https://theconversation.com/the-hidden-truth-about-migrant-deaths-at-the-canada-u-s-border-247782

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 7, 2025

MIL-OSI: Real Matters Announces Election of Directors

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

TORONTO, Feb. 06, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Real Matters Inc. (“Real Matters”), a leading network management services platform for the mortgage and insurance industries, today announced that all of the nominees listed in Real Matters’ management information circular dated December 13, 2024, were elected as directors of Real Matters. The detailed results of the vote for the election of directors held at Real Matters’ Annual Meeting of Shareholders are set out below:

Each of the following six nominees proposed by management was elected as a director of Real Matters:

Nominee	Votes For	% Votes For	Votes Against	% Votes Against
Kay Brekken	42,303,499	84.11%	7,994,373	15.89%
Garry Foster	41,379,919	82.27%	8,917,953	17.73%
Brian Lang	50,252,277	99.91%	45,595	0.09%
Karen Martin	50,282,787	99.97%	15,085	0.03%
Frank McMahon	41,488,620	82.49%	8,809,252	17.51%
Peter Vukanovich	50,262,177	99.93%	35,695	0.07%

Final voting results on all matters voted on at the Annual Meeting of Shareholders held earlier today will be published on www.realmatters.com, and filed with the Canadian securities regulators.

About Real Matters
Real Matters is a leading network management services provider for the mortgage lending and insurance industries. Real Matters’ platform combines its proprietary technology and network management capabilities with tens of thousands of independent qualified field professionals to create an efficient marketplace for the provision of mortgage lending and insurance industry services. Our clients include top 100 mortgage lenders in the U.S. and some of the largest banks and insurance companies in North America. We are a leading independent provider of residential real estate appraisals to the mortgage market and a leading independent provider of title services in the U.S. Headquartered in Markham (ON), Real Matters has principal offices in Buffalo (NY) and Middletown (RI). Real Matters is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol REAL. For more information, visit www.realmatters.com.

For more information:
Lyne Beauregard
Vice President, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications
Real Matters
lbeauregard@realmatters.com
416.994.5930

The MIL Network –

February 7, 2025

MIL-OSI Canada: Company penalized for workplace injuries
Source: Government of Canada regional news (2)
Graham Construction and Engineering Inc., as an employer, pleaded guilty to one count under the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Code for failing to ensure that a temporary cover used to protect an opening was clearly marked to indicate the nature of the hazard. The company was sentenced on Jan. 31 in the Calgary Court of Justice. The Crown withdrew six other charges under OHS legislation. The Crown also withdrew seven charges each against two other Graham-related entities.

The charges stem from an incident at a Calgary construction site on Dec. 10, 2021. A worker was on a roof and plywood that covered an opening had been removed. The worker fell 4.5 metres through the opening, suffering serious injuries.

Graham Construction and Engineering Inc. was ordered to pay $110,000 in total penalties, including a $1,000 fine inclusive of the 20 per cent victim fine surcharge. Under a creative sentence, the company was ordered to pay $109,000 to the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) to subsidize safety-related construction courses.

The OHS Act provides a creative sentence option in which funds that would otherwise be paid as fines are directed to an organization or project to improve or promote workplace health and safety.

Both the company and the Crown have up to 30 days to appeal the conviction or penalties.

Alberta’s OHS laws set basic health and safety rules for workplaces across the province. They provide guidance for employers to help them ensure their workplaces are as healthy and safe as possible while providing rights and protections for workers. Charges under OHS laws may be laid when failing to follow the rules results in a workplace fatality or serious injury.

Quick facts
- Jobs, Economy and Trade does not provide sentence documents. These are available through the Calgary Court of Justice.
- Victim fine surcharges apply to fines payable to the Crown.
- Surcharges are not applied to payments to other entities, in this case the $109,000 paid to SAIT, under creative sentences.
Related information
- Convictions under OHS legislation
- Charges under OHS legislation
- OHS incident investigations
MIL OSI Canada News –
February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: Harbour Breton — Man charged with drugs offences by Harbour Breton RCMP
Source: Royal Canadian Mounted Police

Following an investigation conducted by Harbour Breton RCMP, 46-year-old Sheldon Cribb is charged with a number of criminal offences.

The investigation began in September, 2024. In continuing with the investigation, a search warrant, obtained under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, was obtained and vehicle associated to Cribb was searched in October, 2024. Inside the vehicle, officers located a quantity of cocaine, cash, contraband tobacco and other items consistent with drug trafficking.

On February 4, 2025, in support of evidence gained during the course of this investigation, the following charges were laid against Cribb:
- Possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking – Controlled Drugs and Substances Act
- Possession of unstamped tobacco – Excise Act 2001
- Possession of contraband tobacco – Revenue Administration Act
He is set to appear in court to answer to all of these charges on February 18, 2025.

The investigation is continuing.

Harbour Breton RCMP thanks the public for continuing to report suspected drug-trafficking and other illegal activities in the community. If you have information about illegal drug activities in your community, please contact your local police or crime stoppers to make a report.

RCMP NL continues to fulfill its mandate to protect public safety, enforce the law, and ensure the delivery of priority policing services in Newfoundland and Labrador.

MIL Security OSI –
February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI Canada: Electric vehicle tax begins
Source: Government of Canada regional news (2)
Starting Thursday, Feb. 13, Albertans will be charged a $200 tax when they register their electric vehicles. This amount is in line with what drivers of a typical internal combustion engine vehicle would be expected to pay each year in fuel tax.

“This is a fair way for all drivers to contribute to public services, and to help keep roads and highways safe and smooth. Alberta is joining a growing number of places across North America introducing this tax so that drivers of both electric and gas vehicles are treated the same.”

Nate Horner, President of Treasury Board and Minister of Finance

The tax will be collected by registry agents, and online via MyAlberta eService, when the vehicles are registered and each year when the owners renew their registrations. Electric motorcycles and electric off-highway vehicles, such as ATVs, are exempt, as are hybrid vehicles.

“Owners of electric vehicles use the same roads as other Albertan drivers. It’s only fair they contribute to public services including those that ensure the continued safety and upkeep of Alberta’s roads. I’m pleased that Alberta registries have stepped up and made it easier for Albertans to comply by providing convenient locations to pay.”

Dale Nally, Minister of Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction

These amendments were announced in Budget 2024 and passed in the Alberta Legislature last fall as part of the Financial Statutes Amendment Act. The legislative amendments also include other provisions, including rules for refunds and exemptions for the federal government, diplomats, and First Nations bands and individuals with a registered address on reserve.

Related news
- Updated Fiscal Statutes Benefit Albertans (Nov. 4, 2024)
MIL OSI Canada News –
February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: Lower Sackville — Update: Woman charged with fraud offences faces additional charges
Source: Royal Canadian Mounted Police

RCMP Halifax Regional Detachment has charged Alissa Kathryn MacGillivary with additional fraud offences.

Officers reviewed hundreds of documents seized during the execution of a search warrant in August 2024. This led investigators to identify a further eight organizations and individuals who had been defrauded by MacGillivary.

To date, RCMP officers have found more than 15 aliases and real identities used by MacGillivary, and the investigation indicates that she used forged documents to obtain financial benefits dating back to 1995.
1. currently estimated that MacGillivary has fraudulently obtained more than $100,000 since 2014.
On January 17, at the request of investigators, MacGillivary attended the Cole Harbour RCMP detachment where she was safely arrested. She has been charged with more than 100 other offences:
- Failure to Comply with a Release Order
- Extortion
- Possession of Property Obtained by Crime (4 counts)
- Forgery (21 counts)
- Use of Forged Documents (28 counts)
- Possession of Forged Documents (32 counts)
- Using Mails to Defraud (4 counts)
- Fraud (2 counts)
- Identity Theft (10 counts)
- Identity Fraud (4 counts)
MacGillivary appeared in court and was remanded into custody. She will return to Dartmouth Provincial Court on February 7, at 9:30 a.m.

The investigation, led by RCMP Halifax Regional Detachment with assistance from the RCMP/HRP Integrated Criminal Investigation Division and the RCMP Halifax Regional Detachment Street Crime Enforcement Unit, is ongoing.

Anyone who thinks they could be a victim, knows someone who could be a victim, is encouraged to contact police at 902-490-5020. Should you wish to remain anonymous, call Nova Scotia Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-tips (8477) or submit a secure web tip at www.crimestoppers.ns.ca.

File#: 24-111120

MIL Security OSI –
February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI: Digital Assets Backoffice Tech Company Formidium Launches CryptoTax360 For Tax Data Calculations and Forms

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

CHICAGO, Feb. 06, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — A pioneer in accounting and tax reporting solutions for digital assets, Formidium Corp, based in Chicago, Illinois has launched its portal CryptoTax360.io. It’s an extensive platform designed to simplify digital asset and cryptocurrency tax reporting. With its powerful automated tools, seamless integrations, and robust reporting, CryptoTax360.io makes capital gain/loss calculations and tax forms preparation quick and effortless for crypto traders, enthusiasts, and industry professionals.

Crypto tax reporting has long been a headache for investors and traders, largely due to the complexity of digital asset transactions. From navigating multiple wallets and exchanges to calculating capital gains and losses across varied transaction types—staking, margin trading, and DeFi activities—the process can be overwhelming. Adding to the challenge, tax reporting requirements leave no room for error. Manual reporting increases the risk of mistakes, consumes hours of effort, and leaves users frustrated, especially during tax season.

CryptoTax360.io steps in to streamline this process. Designed with simplicity and comprehensive coverage in mind, the platform eliminates the tedious aspects of crypto tax reporting through automated tools and seamless integrations. Users can consolidate data across exchanges, wallets, and DeFi protocols effortlessly. The platform offers capital gain/loss calculations using multiple methods like FIFO, LIFO, HIFO, and more.

CryptoTax360.io offers an instant generation of forms like Schedule D and Form 8949, streamlining the tax preparation process. Its robust dashboard provides insights into portfolio performance, helping users stay organized without stress.

“Crypto tax reporting has always been a daunting task due to the complexity of digital asset transactions’ bookkeeping, financial reporting and tax reporting. Managing multiple wallets, exchanges, and varied transaction types, can feel overwhelming. Our goal with CryptoTax360 is to eliminate this frustration by providing a seamless and effortless reporting solution for everyone.” said Nitin Somani, Co-Founder of Formidium.

Crypto Tax Reporting with CryptoTax360 in 3 Easy Steps:

1️. Effortless Trade Imports – Seamlessly connect wallets and exchanges via API, public addresses, or by uploading files directly.

2️. Comprehensive Portfolio Insights – Review auto-synced transactions, dashboards, and gain and loss breakdowns for complete transparency.

3️. Quick Report Generation – Instantly generate and export tax-filing-ready reports in PDF or Excel formats, making tax preparation smooth and stress-free.

About CryptoTax360.io

Cryptotax360.io is a technology platform developed by Formidium Corp, provides a 360-degree view of cryptocurrency trades, transactions, tax and portfolio reporting. Whether you’re an individual investor, professional trader, or CPA, CryptoTax360.io provides seamless integrations, automated tax data calculations, and portfolio reporting. CryptoTax360 transforms tax season into a stress-free experience. Visit www.cryptotax360.io for more information and to sign up.

About Formidium

Formidium is a pioneer in digital assets accounting and tax reporting. Since 2016, the firm has built a global presence with offices in the U.S., India, Canada, and Singapore, supporting over 600 client relationships. It’s cloud-native, scalable SaaS platform enables automated workflows, real-time data access, and modular capabilities for seamless growth.

Media Contact

Krishna Priya Gupta
info@cryptotax360.io

The MIL Network –

February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI Canada: More support for Jasper’s recovery
Source: Government of Canada regional news (2)
Alberta’s government is committed to ensuring Jasper residents and businesses are supported as the community recovers from last summer’s wildfire. Since the beginning of the wildfire, more than $170 million has been provided from across the provincial government to support Jasper residents and businesses as the community recovers and rebuilds.

To further the province’s commitment to support the recovery of the Municipality of Jasper, Alberta’s government is providing an additional $8 million to fund property tax relief for residents and businesses, to develop regional transit services and to help cover lost municipal revenues.

“Wildfires don’t just destroy homes and businesses. They change lives in ways that last much longer than the flames. That’s why we are providing an additional $8 million to the more than $170 million that has already been provided to the Municipality of Jasper during and after the wildfire. Our additional support will provide residents and business owners with some much-needed relief, help maintain public services and connect communities through transit services for workers and residents who are still displaced.”

Ric McIver, Minister of Municipal Affairs

With more than $8 million in additional support for the Municipality of Jasper, Alberta’s government has now provided a total assistance package of more than $178 million. Of this additional support, more than $3 million will provide tax relief for property lease holders of both residential and business properties in Jasper. Property taxes will be forgiven for everyone, for the one-month period when the town was evacuated last summer. For lease holders of properties that were destroyed or are still uninhabitable, the property tax relief period will be extended from the evacuation in July until the end of 2024.

“The Municipality of Jasper is grateful for the Government of Alberta’s announcement confirming much-needed funding for tax relief, revenue stabilization and support for transit. These commitments are critical to our community’s ongoing recovery and will provide essential relief as we rebuild and move forward. We appreciate the province’s recognition of the unique challenges Jasper faces and its continued investment in our future. We look forward to ongoing collaboration in our recovery efforts.”

Richard Ireland, mayor, Municipality of Jasper

In addition to the tax relief provided to residents and businesses, a further $3.1 million will help the Municipality of Jasper cover municipal revenue lost due to the wildfire to help the town continue delivering essential services to residents. Alberta’s government will also provide the municipality with a one-time grant of $2 million for regional transit services between Jasper and Hinton. This regional transit service will create pathways for workers and displaced residents to maintain their connection to Jasper.

“Our government is committed to supporting the municipality and its residents and businesses in recovering after the wildfires. This additional $8 million builds upon the $170 million we have provided for Jasper and its residents during and after the wildfires. This extra support will ensure that the Municipality of Jasper can continue to provide quality services to its residents while also providing residents and business owners with some much-needed relief.”

Martin Long, MLA for West Yellowhead

The province’s total assistance package of over $178 million during and after the wildfire includes:
- Up to $149 million in Disaster Recovery Program funding.
- $7.5 million in emergency evacuation payments to more than 6,500 Jasperites.
- $12.9 million in matching funds to support the Canadian Red Cross in providing support to residents and business owners in Jasper.
- $2.5 million in tourism support.
- $121,400 in food, financial and operating support to the Jasper Food Bank.
- $3.02 million in tax relief for lease holders of residential and business properties.
- $3.1 million in revenue stabilization for the municipality of Jasper.
- $2 million one-time grant to support contracted transit services.
Quick facts
- The tax relief and revenue stabilization package is worth approximately $6.12 million, including:
  
  $1.9 million in property tax relief.
  
  $1.12 million in education tax levy offset.
  
  $3.1 million for 2024 revenue losses for the Municipality of Jasper.
- The one-time $2-million transit grant is to support contracted transit services, not capital costs.
Related information
- Municipality of Jasper – Wildfire Recovery Information
MIL OSI Canada News –
February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI Canada: More sheriffs will safeguard court visitors

A graduating class of 24 B.C. sheriffs will soon begin their careers keeping people safe at courthouses throughout the province.

Niki Sharma, Attorney General, welcomed the graduates from the Justice Institute of British Columbia’s winter class at a ceremony on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025. They will be assigned to work in courthouses throughout the Province, including Victoria, Nanaimo, Penticton, Oliver, Quesnel, Dawson Creek, Terrace, Fort St. John and the Lower Mainland.

Without sheriffs, court matters cannot proceed. Sheriffs maintain a safe environment for everyone delivering justice services in 90 court locations throughout B.C. They are highly trained peace officers who provide protective services for the Crown, judiciary, defence, court staff, the public and all participants in the justice system. Sheriffs also protect court users, transport accused and convicted people to and from correctional institutions, and perform other duties.

The winter class will continue training until March 6, 2025. Their first day on duty will be March 7. The next sheriff-recruit training class will start in the spring.

The BC Sheriff Service (BCSS) is recognized as an international leader in providing protective and enforcement services for the justice system. The BCSS is the oldest-law enforcement agency in B.C.

The Province is collaborating with the BCSS to enhance recruitment, retention and training. The BCSS is focusing on deployment and growth opportunities, and implementing a more-competitive pay and benefits framework for sheriffs.

Learn More:

To watch a video about working as a B.C. sheriff, visit: https://youtu.be/rdhf8trOoSM

To explore career opportunities with the BCSS, visit:
https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/careers-myhr/job-seekers/featured-careers/deputy-sheriff

MIL OSI Canada News –

February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI: QXO Urges Beacon Roofing Supply to Let Shareholders Decide on Premium All Cash Offer of $124.25 per Share

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

GREENWICH, Conn., Feb. 06, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — QXO, Inc. (NYSE: QXO) today issued the following statement in response to the announcement by Beacon Roofing Supply, Inc. (Nasdaq: BECN) that its Board of Directors has rejected QXO’s all-cash $124.25 per share offer.

On January 27, 2025, QXO commenced a tender offer to purchase all outstanding shares of Beacon for $124.25 per share in cash, for an aggregate enterprise value of approximately $11 billion, representing a 37% premium to Beacon’s 90-day unaffected volume-weighted average price of $91.02 per share as of November 15, 2024. QXO’s offer price is also higher than Beacon’s shares have ever traded. Beacon’s Board offers no basis for its assertion that QXO’s premium offer undervalues Beacon’s shares, and the trading price of Beacon’s shares indicates that Beacon’s Board is wrong.

“Our offer provides certainty, a significant premium in cash and the ability to close quickly with no regulatory delays, financing risks or diligence conditions,” said Brad Jacobs, chairman and chief executive officer of QXO. “Beacon’s filing shows no indication of an actionable third-party alternative. We have made a very compelling offer, and Beacon should let its shareholders decide what is in their best interest.”

Notably, Beacon confirmed today it would wait to announce newly constructed 2028 financial projections until March 13, more than a month from today and more than three months from its Board’s initial rejection of QXO‘s offer. There is no reason for Beacon to introduce yet another delay by waiting to disclose its newly formulated projections.

QXO’s tender offer will be outstanding until 12:00 midnight, New York City time, at the end of February 24, 2025, and it is prepared to complete the acquisition shortly after the tender expires, subject to the terms of the offer. The transaction is not subject to any financing conditions or due diligence conditions, and QXO expects that the waiting periods under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act and the Canadian Competition Act will have expired or been waived by the time the tender offer expires.

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC is acting as lead financial advisor to QXO, and Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP is acting as legal counsel.

About QXO

QXO provides technology solutions, primarily to clients in the manufacturing, distribution and service sectors. The company provides consulting and professional services, including specialized programming, training and technical support, and develops proprietary software. As a value-added reseller of business application software, QXO offers solutions for accounting, financial reporting, enterprise resource planning, warehouse management systems, customer relationship management, business intelligence and other applications. QXO plans to become a tech-forward leader in the $800 billion building products distribution industry. The company is targeting tens of billions of dollars of annual revenue in the next decade through accretive acquisitions and organic growth. Visit QXO.com for more information.

Forward-Looking Statements

This communication contains forward-looking statements. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about beliefs, expectations, targets, goals, regulatory approval timing and nominating directors are forward-looking statements. These statements are based on plans, estimates, expectations and/or goals at the time the statements are made, and readers should not place undue reliance on them. In some cases, readers can identify forward-looking statements by the use of forward-looking terms such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “expect,” “opportunity,” “intend,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “predict,” “potential,” “target,” “goal,” or “continue,” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terms. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties and readers are cautioned that a number of important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any such forward-looking statements. Such factors include but are not limited to: the ultimate outcome of any possible transaction between QXO, Inc. (“QXO”) and Beacon Roofing Supply, Inc. (“Beacon”), including the possibility that the parties will not agree to pursue a business combination transaction or that the terms of any definitive agreement will be materially different from those proposed; uncertainties as to whether Beacon will cooperate with QXO regarding the proposed transaction; the ultimate result should QXO commence a proxy contest for election of directors to Beacon’s board of directors; QXO’s ability to consummate the proposed transaction with Beacon; the conditions to the completion of the proposed transaction, including the receipt of any required shareholder approvals and any required regulatory approvals; QXO’s ability to finance the proposed transaction; the substantial indebtedness QXO expects to incur in connection with the proposed transaction and the need to generate sufficient cash flows to service and repay such debt; that operating costs, customer loss and business disruption (including, without limitation, difficulties in maintaining relationships with employees, customers or suppliers) may be greater than expected following the proposed transaction or the public announcement of the proposed transaction; QXO’s ability to retain certain key employees; and general economic conditions that are less favorable than expected. QXO cautions that forward-looking statements should not be relied on as predictions of future events, and these statements are not guarantees of performance or results. Forward-looking statements herein speak only as of the date each statement is made. QXO does not assume any obligation to update any of these statements in light of new information or future events, except to the extent required by applicable law.

Important Additional Information and Where to Find It

This communication is for informational purposes only and does not constitute a recommendation, an offer to purchase or a solicitation of an offer to sell Beacon securities. QXO and Queen MergerCo, Inc. (the “Purchaser”) filed a Tender Offer Statement on Schedule TO with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on January 27, 2025, and Beacon filed a Solicitation/Recommendation Statement on Schedule 14D-9 with respect to the tender offer with the SEC on February 6, 2025. Investors and security holders are urged to carefully read the Tender Offer Statement (including the Offer to Purchase, the related Letter of Transmittal and certain other tender offer documents, as each may be amended or supplemented from time to time) and the Solicitation/Recommendation Statement, as these materials contain important information that investors and security holders should consider before making any decision regarding tendering their common stock, including the terms and conditions of the tender offer. The Tender Offer Statement, Offer to Purchase, Solicitation/Recommendation Statement and related materials are filed with the SEC, and investors and security holders may obtain a free copy of these materials and other documents filed by QXO and Beacon with the SEC at the website maintained by the SEC at www.sec.gov. In addition, the Tender Offer Statement and other documents that QXO and the Purchaser file with the SEC will be made available to all investors and security holders of Beacon free of charge from the information agent for the tender offer: Innisfree M&A Incorporated, 501 Madison Avenue, 20th Floor, New York, NY 10022, toll-free telephone: +1 (888) 750-5834.

QXO and the other participants intend to file a preliminary proxy statement and accompanying WHITE universal proxy card with the SEC to be used to solicit proxies for, among other matters, the election of its slate of director nominees at the 2025 annual meeting of stockholders of Beacon. QXO strongly advises all stockholders of Beacon to read the preliminary proxy statement, any amendments or supplements to such proxy statement, and other proxy materials filed by QXO with the SEC as they become available because they will contain important information. Such proxy materials will be available at no charge on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov and at QXO’s website at investors.qxo.com. In addition, the participants in this proxy solicitation will provide copies of the proxy statement, and other relevant documents, without charge, when available, upon request. Requests for copies should be directed to the participants’ proxy solicitor.

Certain Information Concerning the Participants

The participants in the proxy solicitation are anticipated to be QXO, Brad Jacobs, Ihsan Essaid, Matt Fassler, Mark Manduca and the individuals nominated by QXO (the “QXO Nominees”). QXO expects to determine and announce the QXO Nominees prior to the nomination deadline for the 2025 annual meeting of stockholders of Beacon. As of the date of this communication, other than 100 shares of common stock of Beacon beneficially owned by QXO, none of the participants that have been identified has any direct or indirect interest, by security holdings or otherwise, in Beacon.

Media Contacts

Joe Checkler
joe.checkler@qxo.com
203-609-9650

Steve Lipin / Lauren Odell
Gladstone Place Partners
212-230-5930

Investor Contacts

Mark Manduca
mark.manduca@qxo.com
203-321-3889

Scott Winter / Jonathan Salzberger
Innisfree M&A Incorporated
212-750-5833

The MIL Network –

February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Loving the world could address the climate crisis and help us make sense of changes to come

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Barbara Leckie, Professor, English and the Institute for the Comparative Study of Literature, Art, and Culture; Academic Director, Re.Climate: Centre for Climate Communication and Public Engagement, Carleton University

This January, the world watched as Los Angeles burned. “I’ve never seen anything like this,” one police chief told reporters, a sentiment echoed by front-line firefighters.

Last fall, hurricanes Helene and Milton swept through North Carolina and Florida.

The storms’ intensity and record-breaking fatalities, exacerbated by climate change, blindsided many inhabitants. “Never in a million years,” one nurse said, “did I think [a storm like that] would happen in my own backyard.”

As a researcher focused on how language and storytelling contribute to social cohesion and social change, I noticed people repeatedly felt they had “no words to describe” what they saw.

Their experience captured what happens when stories and words to fail describe our world.

‘Between past and future’

After the Second World War, for example, philosopher Hannah Arendt, born into a German and Jewish family, wrote about not just the impact of the war on a personal level, but also its impact on how people make meaning.

What did it mean, Arendt asked, not to have the conceptual frames through which the world had once made sense? What did it mean to live in the strange interval of time “between past and future” when old forms of understanding the world had eroded and new forms had not yet been found?

Read more:
Hannah Arendt wanted political thinking to be urgent and engaged. She is a philosopher for our times

Her response was bracing and unexpected. She called for everyone — not just philosophers or scholars but the general public as a whole — to step up and contribute to the work of making meaning at a time when meaning-making was grievously fractured. Her phrase for this was amor mundi or “for love of the world.”

Now, as many people seek to understand and respond to the climate crisis, they are again experiencing a sense of personal loss and a larger sense of not having the conceptual tools to make sense of this moment. How does one love the world in difficult times?

Learning to love the world

Love is complicated and messy. Like hurricanes and fires, it often defies the categories available to describe it.

Hannah Arendt, seen here in 1958, wrote about making meaning for the love of the world.
(Barbara Niggl Radloff/Wikipedia), CC BY-SA

And as Stephanie Lemenager, professor in American literature and environmental studies, illustrates, love of fossil fuel culture, and the conveniences it provides, makes it difficult to respond to the climate crisis.

Love also evades measurement, and metric-oriented value structures can’t count it. As William Shakespeare asks, tragically, in King Lear: “How does one measure love?”

Love won’t run out in 2030 or 2050. It doesn’t have a parts per million, and despite the many hot and cold words to describe it, it doesn’t have a temperature. Still, as climate emotions professor Sara Jacquette Ray notes, love of this world powers climate action.

I was talking to a friend recently, the Canadian poet Ken Victor, and he suggested “giving priority to the climate crisis as a multi-faceted relationship to be repaired rather than as a problem to be solved.” Indigenous thinkers like Leanne Betasamosake Simpson,
the renowned Michi Saagiig Nishnaabeg scholar, also emphasizes “deep reciprocity” and “relationship” to resist the injustices imposed by colonialism.

Global North climate responses have much to gain from Indigenous thinking and Arendt, of course, is not alone in animating the power of collective, participatory storytelling and loving the world.

Learning to ‘restory’ the climate

The idea of “restorying” has been taken up by Indigenous writers to speak in diverse and powerful ways to dynamic and relational forms of oral storytelling, leadership and theatre.

Walter Benjamin wrote that the trauma of war weakened the stories his world relied upon for coherence.
(Wikipedia)

My research on time and climate develops German Jewish philosopher Walter Benjamin’s relevance to storytelling, and what I am calling “restorying” here.

Like Arendt, Benjamin wrote that the trauma of war — in this case, the First World War — weakened the stories upon which his world relied for social coherence. Where Arendt suggests loving the world, Benjamin endorses amplified, dynamic forms of storytelling.

Here I build on the tradition from Benjamin to Arendt that invests in the collective practice of making sense of the world one inhabits through sharing, revising and building stories. For Benjamin, stories are in dialogue with other stories; they are participatory and inconclusive. They are also “effective,” meaning they produce effects and invite a response. Above all, they are meant to be repeated and passed on.

Benjamin’s account of stories, however, also includes a cautionary note: people stop telling stories, as he defines them, when the world no longer fills them with wonder or surprise; when they think they know where they stand. They stop asking questions and no longer believe they can benefit from sharing their dilemmas and concerns with others. They stop thinking, in Arendt’s sense.

When people isolate themselves in silos of like-minded others, they avoid being challenged or provoked. As Arendt notes, facts are fragile. When lies proliferate and the ability to distinguish those lies from factual truth is eroded, reality wobbles and political action becomes near impossible.

People can’t act, Arendt believes, when they stop sharing a world in common, however divided by different customs it will always be.

Relationship rebuilding

Environmental justice asks us to rethink the systems and practices that created today’s climate impacts. Addressing the climate crisis only from the perspective of a problem to be solved means that we continue on the path, and with the infrastructure, that created the problem in the first place.

Now, poised between another past and future, I’m interested in, as writer and activist Astra Taylor puts it, “coming together as things fall apart.” Coming together, as a relational practice, can animate what’s missing in the problem-solution models that dominate Global North responses to the climate crisis.

Arendt and Benjamin offer me stories that “work” and stories that “wonder.”
Stories that “work” mobilize equitable climate action. Stories that “wonder” are stories that keep open questions, conversation and thinking.

As international assemblies like COP29 fail to realize their goals, as global carbon emissions continue to rise and as extreme weather everywhere makes many people feel that the frameworks available for understanding no longer serve them, a different response is required. We could call it, following Arendt and Benjamin, restorying the climate and loving the world.

Barbara Leckie receives funding from SSHRC.

– ref. Loving the world could address the climate crisis and help us make sense of changes to come – https://theconversation.com/loving-the-world-could-address-the-climate-crisis-and-help-us-make-sense-of-changes-to-come-240766

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Trump Tariffs, Trade War Concerns Heard During Welch’s Roundtable with Vermont Businesses and Farmers

US Senate News:

Source: United States Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont)

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Wednesday afternoon, U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.), a member of the Senate Finance Committee, convened Vermont businesses for a virtual roundtable to hear about the chaos caused by President Trump’s misguided tariff policies and his Trade War. Earlier this week, the president agreed to pause new 25% tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico for 30 days, as well as 10% tariffs on imports of oil from Canada—which he had announced days prior, prompting immediate retaliation by Canada and Mexico. President Trump did not pause new 10% tariffs on imports from China. He has also threatened tariffs on imports from the European Union.
“These Trump Tariffs are of enormous concern because of their real practical impacts on enterprises, your companies, on your ability to do your work,” said Senator Welch during the event. “The concerns that I’ve seen and expressed to me by Vermonters are concerns that are being expressed to my Republican colleagues…I think that helps put us in a position to push back and be successful.
“Every single day, I’m going to be thinking about how this impacts you, and on Vermont, because each of you represent a significant part of the Vermont economy, and you certainly represent the Vermont spirit….I want to do everything I can to allow you to continue being successful doing what you’re doing.”
After President Trump’s decision to pause tariffs Canada and Mexico on Monday for 30 days, Senator Welch released the following statement:

“President Trump temporarily backtracking on his Trade War does nothing to give Vermont families, businesses, and farms the economic stability they deserve. Tariffs are taxes, and Trump just made it clear he’s fine with raising taxes on American families,” said Sen. Welch.

Senator Welch was joined by Vermont business owners, dairy and vegetable farmers, maple sugar makers, manufacturers, craft brewers, home heating and energy importers, home construction manufacturing, retailers, bankers, technology leaders, health care experts, transportation industry experts, local and state leaders, and others impacted by tariffs and the president’s reckless economic policies.
During the virtual roundtable, he heard clear concerns from Vermonters, including:
“It feels like death by a thousand cuts.” – Stoni Tomson, a small-scale vegetable farmer in Huntington, VT
“Adding a tariff will either lead to drug shortages in the short term, or long-term significant price increases.” – Jason Williams, University of Vermont Health Network
“If the 25% tariff was applied in full, it would be about a $130,000 – $150,000 unbudgeted hit to our food procurement efforts. And as a charitable organization, we don’t have a consumer to pass along that cost to.” – Jason Maring, Vermont Foodbank
“The ripple-effects that this could have on energy markets, and of course manufacturing, is very heavy.” – Catherine de Ronde, Agri-Mark
“We’re grateful for the pause, and hopeful you can do what you can do to make sure it never comes back.” – Matt Cota, Meadow Hill Consulting
“I’m just concerned in general that it’s going to further stagnate the ability for some of these much-needed construction projects to move forward.” – Matt Cook, PC Construction
“We would be strongly affected by the tariffs in terms of equipment costs for U.S. producers… I’m very concerned with the possible effects of this.” – Dave Folino, Vermont maple producer
“I can foresee this making homes unaffordable—which they already are.” – Denis Bourbeau, Bourbeau Custom Homes
“Our industry has grown in production almost 500% over the last 20 years, and these tariffs would go a long way towards potentially slowing that production.” – Alison Hope, Vermont Maple Sugar Makers Association
“That kind of jolt to our budget—there’s just not room.” – Peter Kahn, Sienna Construction
“There’s just so much unknown, and I’m concerned about the impact on our customers—I’m worried that we’ll lose customers…All of this hurts everyone. It makes everything more expensive.” – Ashley Adams, P.G. Adams
“That would basically squeeze us out of the marketplace.” – Melanie Harrison, a small organic dairy farmer in Addison, VT
“Even though the tariffs aren’t in effect, we’re definitely already feeling the effects.” – Elise Magnant, small organic vegetable farmer in Plainfield, VT
“We’re all working on a very slim margin.” – Steve Parkes, Drop In Brewing
Today, Senator Welch will take these stories and the voices of Vermonters to the confirmation hearing for President Trump’s pick for U.S. Trade Representative, Jamieson Greer, who will lead the President’s tariff strategy.
On Tuesday, Senator Welch took to the Senate floor to blast the proposed tariffs, which would be a tax on Vermonters. Attendees and constituents are invited to share how President Trump’s economic policies will impact their family, farm, or community by sharing their story on Senator Welch’s website.
This event follows a roundtable Senator Welch held in St. Albans on Monday, January 27th, where he heard from businesses and state and local leaders about the President’s threats to reignite a trade war with Canada, Mexico, and China.
In many cases, Vermont manufacturers buy imports from Canada to manufacture into products. However, the ability of Vermont’s small manufacturing businesses to absorb a 25% increase in costs on parts or raw materials is limited. Tariffs on Canada and Mexico could result in layoffs or higher homebuilding costs, increased costs of grain for farmers, and more expensive equipment for maple producers, among other costs that will get passed on to the consumer.

MIL OSI USA News –

February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI: Clean Core Thorium Energy Raises $15.5M in Series Seed

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

CHICAGO, Feb. 06, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Clean Core Thorium Energy (CCTE) has raised a $15.5M Series Seed round of financing to advance the ANEEL fuel – a patented blend of thorium & HALEU designed to be seamlessly deployed into existing reactors. With plans to commercialize in 2026, the capital will be used towards solidifying the company’s technical partnerships, such as the irradiation test at Idaho National Laboratory (INL), the further validation work at Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL), a planned Demonstration Irradiation, and more. Further, this financing will be used to fund activities related to the company’s hiring, supply chain partnerships, and regulatory and licensing requirements.

The syndicate of investors participating in this round are led by a Singapore-based family office and notable business leaders including Sumant Sinha, CEO and Founder of ReNew, Lakshmi Narayanan, former CEO of Cognizant Technologies, and Deepak Parekh, former Chairman of HDFC Bank.

Mehul Shah, CCTE’s CEO and Founder, said:

“We are not only excited to have fresh capital infused in the business for critical growth, but also ecstatic to invite those with deep ties to the global energy industry as advisors and investors to accelerate our progress. This announcement marks the next chapter in CCTE’s growth to revolutionize nuclear energy.

By demonstrating thorium’s ability to deliver immediate and substantial operational benefits, we can accelerate the renewed momentum of nuclear. This new fuel cycle enhances reactor economics, strengthens energy security, improves safety, and ensures proliferation resistance—all within an existing and proven reactor system.”

In 2024, CCTE achieved major milestones to advance the ANEEL fuel, including:

About Clean Core Thorium Energy
Clean Core Thorium Energy is a nuclear fuel company exploring thorium-driven nuclear innovations. Clean Core’s patented nuclear fuel technology (called the ANEEL™ fuel) is comprised of thorium and high assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) and is capable of improving the safety and cost-efficiency of pressurized heavy-water reactors. The ANEEL™ fuel is a novel solution to safety, waste, and proliferation concerns in today’s nuclear plants. Learn more at https://cleancore.energy/. Follow us on social media: LinkedIn and X.

Contact: info@cleancore.energy

The MIL Network –

February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: Saskatchewan — Saskatchewan RCMP SERT Year in Review: 230 firearms and more than 17,000 grams of illicit drugs seized in 2024
Source: Royal Canadian Mounted Police

In 2024, Saskatchewan RCMP’s Saskatchewan Enforcement Response Teams (SERT) continued to work diligently with frontline RCMP officers from detachments across the province to remove harms from communities and help keep Saskatchewan residents safe.

Saskatchewan RCMP’s SERT – which includes Crime Reduction Teams (CRT), the Human Trafficking and Counter Exploitation Unit (HTCEU), Offender Management Unit (OMU), Saskatchewan Trafficking Response Teams (STRT) and Warrant Enforcement and Suppression Teams (WEST) – helps protect community well-being by tackling serious and gang-related crimes, and take dangerous drugs and weapons off the streets.

Removing harms from Saskatchewan communities

Illicit drugs continue to harm people across the province. In 2024, Saskatchewan RCMP’s SERT teams seized:
– 6,572 grams of cocaine;
– 4,732 grams of methamphetamine;
– 130 grams fentanyl;
– 6,349 grams of other illicit drugs; and
– 86 tablets.

From 2014 to 2023, violent firearms offences in Saskatchewan RCMP jurisdiction increased 271 per cent – rising from 126 in 2014 to 467 in 2023.

Saskatchewan RCMP’s SERT removed 230 firearms from the hands of criminals across the province in 2024.

Investigational highlights

In July 2024, Yorkton STRT seized approximately 161 grams of methamphetamine and 14 firearms, along with other items, from a business, a rural property and a vehicle in the Yorkton area. During a subsequent search of the rural property, RCMP officers located a severely injured, forcibly confined adult male inside a barn. Investigation determined the man had been kidnapped. Two adult males faced kidnapping, drug and firearms charges, among others.
- Swift Current STRT laid charges against two individuals after seizing 31 firearms from a residence in Lafleche, SK and a rural yard site south of the town in November 2024.
- In October 2024, North Battleford Crime Reduction Team – Gang Task Force (CRT-GTF) executed search warrants at two residences in North Battleford. At the residences, officers located and seized a loaded handgun, a rifle, approximately 81 grams of methamphetamine, approximately 58 grams of crack cocaine, ammunition, a sum of cash and drug trafficking paraphernalia. As a result of investigation, two adult males and an adult female were arrested.
- While executing a search warrant at an apartment building in La Ronge in February 2024, La Ronge CRT seized a loaded handgun, 60 grams of cocaine, 31 grams of methamphetamine, a sum of cash and other drug paraphernalia. Two adults were arrested and charged.
- In August 2024, Swift Current STRT executed two search warrants in Swift Current as part of an ongoing investigation. Officers located and seized 503 grams of methamphetamine, 52 grams of fentanyl and 105 grams of cocaine, among other evidence. An adult male was arrested at the business and charged.
What is SERT?

Saskatchewan RCMP SERT is made up of 108 RCMP officers and 31 civilian support staff. With different teams located in 10 Saskatchewan communities, SERT is readily mobile and able to quickly deploy to surrounding areas. Teams are also assisted every single day by over 1,500 RCMP employees, including more than 1,000 sworn officers at 80 plus detachments across the province.

MIL Security OSI –
February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI: Questrade celebrates seventh consecutive DALBAR Seal of Service Excellence recognition

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

TORONTO, Feb. 06, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Questrade (www.questrade.com) — Canada’s #1 rated* online brokerage — is thrilled to announce that it has repeated in receiving the DALBAR Seal of Service Excellence for Telephone Service for the seventh consecutive year. Awarded by DALBAR, Inc., the DALBAR Seal of Service Excellence celebrates exceptional customer service and best-in-class standard of care provided by firms across the financial services industry.

“Receiving this honour again is incredibly humbling as it demonstrates our team’s consistency in setting high benchmarks for the service experience we provide to our customers year after year,” said Jason Grieve, Chief Client Officer, Questrade. “As we look further into 2025, our customers can expect a whole host of new low-fee investment products and capabilities alongside our unmatched customer service offerings – all of which stand true to our standard of disrupting the status quo of the financial services ecosystem in Canada.”

“For seven consecutive years, Questrade has upheld an exceptional standard of customer service that sets it apart in the financial services industry,” said Shelley Eramo, Director at DALBAR, Inc. “Achieving the DALBAR Seal of Service Excellence is no small feat – it requires unwavering dedication to delivering a consistently superior customer experience. Questrade’s commitment to innovation and client care is evident year after year, and we are pleased to recognize their ongoing success in raising the bar for service excellence.”

Questrade continues to provide trusted and established alternatives to the high-fee investment products currently available on the market with award-winning digital platforms, ultra-low managed portfolio fees, and commission-free ETF purchases in its self-directed accounts. Building on its mission to help Canadians become much more financially successful and secure, the company is accelerating the speed at which it brings new capabilities and services to its customers in 2025 and beyond.

In addition to Questrade’s recognition, Questrade Financial Group (QFG) subsidiary Community Trust Company (CTC) has also been recognized with the DALBAR Seal of Service Excellence for the second straight year. The notable, repeat achievement underscores the consistently high standard of service and care provided across the group’s entire portfolio.

About DALBAR, Inc.

DALBAR, Inc. is the financial community’s leading independent expert for evaluating, auditing, and rating business practices, customer performance, product quality and service. Launched in 1976, DALBAR has earned recognition for consistent and unbiased evaluations. As the nation’s leading financial services market research firm, it performs a variety of ratings and evaluations of practices and communications that are committed to raising the standards of excellence in the financial services and healthcare industries. With offices in both the US and Canada, DALBAR develops standards and measurement systems that improve the quality of products, service and compliance for the retirement, mutual fund, broker/dealer, discount brokerage, life insurance, healthcare, and banking industries.

About Questrade

Questrade, Inc. (“Questrade”) is changing the Canadian financial services industry by leveraging technology to lower fees while providing a viable alternative to traditional financial investment options, thereby allowing Canadians to Keep More of their Money. As a leader and innovator in financial services, Questrade is a trusted ally that advocates for consumers, focused on improving value. With 25 years of challenging the status quo as one of Canada’s leading, non-bank online brokerages and over $50 billion in assets under administration, Questrade and its affiliates provide financial products and services, including securities and foreign currency investments. For more information, visit www.questrade.com or on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter) @Questrade. Questrade, Inc. is a registered investment dealer, a member of the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO), and a member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund (CIPF). Questrade is a wholly owned subsidiary of Questrade Financial Group Inc.

*MoneySense 2024

Media Contact

For more information, contact Susan Willemsen at The Siren Group Inc. Tel: 416-461-1567 or M: 416-402-4880, or email: susan@thesirengroup.com.

The MIL Network –

February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI Canada: Tariff Response Survey, Hotline
Source: Government of Canada regional news

The Province has created channels for Nova Scotian business owners dealing with the United States to get quick access to the latest information related to tariffs.

“Now more than ever, we need to be Nova Scotia loyal. Our local businesses know this, and they’re looking for ways to grow their business across Canada and internationally. They’ll have questions, and we’re here to help,” said Premier Tim Houston. “If the Trump Tax returns, it will raise costs for everyone on both sides of the border. Our hope is the United States will not reinstate this harmful policy. In the meantime, we are fighting for Nova Scotian businesses, and we’ll take strong action to help them stay strong and competitive.”

A survey is at https://novascotia.ca/tariffs . Business people who fill out the online survey will be able to share information about barriers to expanding into interprovincial or international markets. The Province will take that information into account as it moves forward with its tariff response.

There is also a tariff information line at: 1-800-670-4357. If a business person calls and needs follow up, a business navigator will contact them. Other Nova Scotians with questions that require follow up should leave their name, email address and phone number.

Quick Facts:
- in 2023, Nova Scotia exports to the U.S. were $4.4 billion and imports were $682.7 million; the leading exports were tires, fish/prepared seafood, forest products, aerospace products, and plastics
- Nova Scotia exports to Mexico were $28.5 million in 2023, and imports were $47.6 million
- Canada is the largest export market for 36 U.S. states and ranks among the top three for 46 states; 43 states export more than $1 billion annually to Canada
- nearly 70 per cent of Canadian goods exported to the U,S, are integral to manufacturing other products, directly supporting American manufacturing
- more than 29,000 Nova Scotian jobs depend on exports to the U.S. – about one in every 16 jobs and more than half (54 per cent) of all jobs in Nova Scotia that are supported by international exports
Additional Resources:

Producers and retailers can register for Nova Scotia Loyal by visiting https://www.nsloyal.ca

Other than cropping, CNS photos are not to be altered in any way

MIL OSI Canada News –
February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI Canada: February Oil And Gas Public Offering Generates $3.0 Million In Revenue

Source: Government of Canada regional news

Released on February 6, 2025

The Government of Saskatchewan’s Crown oil and natural gas public offering, held on Tuesday, February 4, 2025, raised $3,039,589.20 for the province, with the Estevan area generating most of the revenue.

Twenty-nine parcels were put up for sale in this offering and 25 parcels received acceptable bids, covering an area of 2,753.836hectares.

In the southeast, the Estevan area generated the most financial interest, bringing in $2,747,969.25 for 16 leases totalling 1,684.452 hectares.

The Lloydminster area generated $156,195.20 in bonus bids, while the Kindersley area generated $135,424.75.

Millennium Lands (111) Ltd. made the highest bonus bid and dollars-per-hectare bid, $997,962.23, an average of $6,158.55 per hectare. This was for a 162.045-hectare lease in the Estevan Area, northeast of Midale.

This is the sixth and final oil and gas public offering for the 2024-25 fiscal year, over which time the Government of Saskatchewan has raised $51,814,614.76.

Several factors affect public offering activity, including changes in oil and gas prices, land availability, geological and technological constraints and various market conditions.

For more information about oil and gas public offerings in Saskatchewan, please visit: Schedule of Public Offerings webpage on saskatchewan.ca.

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For more information, contact:

MIL OSI Canada News –

February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: Colombian Smuggler Extradited in Connection with Pregnant Woman’s Border-Crossing Death

Source: Office of United States Attorneys

PLATTSBURGH, NEW YORK – A Colombian man was extradited from Canada to the United States and arraigned today for charges arising from the drowning of a pregnant woman. The woman, a citizen of Mexico, died in December 2023 while trying to illegally enter the United States by wading across the Great Chazy River in Champlain, New York.

United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman; Special Agent in Charge Erin Keegan of Homeland Security Investigations, Buffalo, New York Field Office; and Chief Patrol Agent Robert N. Garcia of United States Border Patrol, Swanton Sector, made the announcement.

Jhader Augusto Uribe-Tobar, age 36, is a citizen of Colombia who resides in Quebec, Canada.

According to the indictment and an earlier-filed criminal complaint, Uribe-Tobar smuggled a pregnant woman, A.V.-F., from Canada into the Northern District of New York for $2,500, by instructing her to wade through the frigid Great Chazy River in darkness. The smuggling attempt ended in A.V-F.’s death.

United States Attorney Carla Freedman stated: “This tragedy highlights the dangers of illegal migration and how, as alleged, smugglers deliberately put people in harm’s way for profit. By vigorously prosecuting human smuggling networks, we are deterring and reducing the number of dangerous crossings like the one that took the lives of this young woman and her unborn child.”

HSI Buffalo Special Agent in Charge Erin Keegan stated: “We will not stand by as lives are tragically lost by the deception of human smugglers profiting off the vulnerability of migrants. HSI Buffalo and our partners vigorously pursue justice for the victims who are exploited and endangered by the people whom they are trusting to move them across borders.”

Border Patrol Chief Patrol Agent Robert Garcia stated: “Effective border security enforcement hinges on tangible penalties for criminal actions. The U.S. Border Patrol continues to enforce the laws of the United States, and this prosecution by the U.S. Attorney’s Office demonstrates that those who violate the law will be held accountable.”

The charges in the complaint and indictment are merely accusations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

On December 7, 2023, A.V-F.’s relative contacted Uribe-Tobar on TikTok where Uribe-Tobar advertised himself as a smuggler. Uribe-Tobar advised A.V-F.’s relative, “It costs $2500 American, it is worked through Montreal and they are left in the City of Plattsburgh, NY.” A few days later, on December 11, 2023, A.V-F.’s relative sent Uribe-Tobar proof that he had wired $2,500 to Uribe-Tobar. Shortly after receiving that message, Uribe-Tobar traveled with A.V-F. to the immediate area of the United States-Canada border.

At approximately 6:21 that evening, Uribe-Tobar told A.V-F.’s relative, “Friend we are at the river crossing.” At 6:22 p.m., Uribe-Tobar told A.V-F.’s relative, “She is crossing friend” to which her relative replied, “I’m very nervous.” At 7:06 p.m., Uribe-Tobar messaged A.V-F’s relative, “Bro hello, I think she got wet or turned off her cell phone. Bro, I told her to hold it while she was crossing.” Uribe-Tobar followed that message with a screenshot of messages he exchanged with A.V-F., which showed that he had sent her three messages at 6:17 p.m. The screenshot indicates that the last message was never read.

Uribe-Tobar and A.V-F’s relative continued to exchange messages throughout the night of December 11, 2023. Uribe-Tobar claimed that he had people searching for A.V-F. and that “I already sent them a pin to see if they see her, I told them what happened and that she is pregnant.”

On December 12, 2023, A.V-F.’s relative told a Border Patrol Agent in Champlain that she was supposed to illegally enter the United States on December 11, but that he had not heard from her. He reported her last known location as the edge of the Great Chazy River in Champlain, and that the smuggler had told A.V-F. the river was wadable. Multiple law enforcement agencies immediately began to search for A.V-F. On December 14, 2023, they found A.V-F.’s body in the Great Chazy River.

The charges against Uribe-Tobar carry a minimum term of 3 years and a maximum term of life in prison. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statutes the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other factors.

At his initial appearance today in Plattsburgh, Uribe-Tobar was ordered detained pending a trial scheduled before Senior United States District Judge David N. Hurd in Utica, New York.

The Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations and United States Border Patrol are investigating the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Katherine Kopita and Carling Dunham are prosecuting the case. The Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs assisted in securing the arrest and extradition of Uribe-Tobar.

MIL Security OSI –

February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Trump plans to ‘permanently resettle’ Palestinians outside Gaza – the very reason Unrwa was originally created

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Anne Irfan, Lecturer in Interdisciplinary Race, Gender and Postcolonial Studies, UCL

Donald Trump shocked much of the world when he announced plans for the US to “take over” Gaza. Speaking at a press conference with the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, the US president outlined a plan to “resettle” Gaza’s population of nearly 2.2 million Palestinians elsewhere in the Arab world. Several officials later added that this resettlement would be temporary while Gaza was rebuilt.

Governments around the world were quick to condemn the plan – with politicians and human rights advocates pointing out that it would amount to ethnic cleansing.

Conversely, Netanyahu praised Trump for “thinking outside the box with fresh ideas”. Yet while there is no question that this plan violates international law, it is not as unprecedented as these responses suggest.

Successive Israeli governments, often with clandestine US support, have long sought a similar “solution” for Gaza’s Palestinians, 66% of whom are already refugees from the Nakba (catastrophe) of 1948. At that time, Zionist militias and the Israeli army displaced and expelled 750,000 Palestinians before and during the First Arab-Israeli war.

In fact, that’s the very reason the US supported the creation of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (Unrwa) in 1949. Though its purpose today is very different, it was originally intended as a tool to permanently resettle the Palestinians outside Palestine.

The idea for Unrwa was inspired by the experience of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), a US government agency established during the Great Depression. It promoted resource development through large public works programmes in the deep south.

US officials considered the TVA a prototype for managing the Palestinian refugee crisis and pushed the newly established United Nations to set up an agency that would similarly create jobs and economic development.

This was the “works” in Unrwa’s title. As they saw it, employment opportunities would encourage the Palestinians to integrate into their places of exile. Meanwhile, the resulting economic development would lessen resistance in the host state to the refugees’ permanent resettlement.

In four of the five territories where Unrwa operates – Lebanon, Jordan, Syria and the West Bank – it spent its first few years designing large public works projects. But in Gaza, the large concentration of refugees in a tiny territory with limited natural resources did not lend itself to public works projects.

Instead US officials pushed Unrwa to resettle Palestinians outside of the Strip, in Sinai, Libya and further afield.

Yet Unrwa’s efforts on this front quickly ran into a major obstacle: the Palestinians themselves. The refugees clearly understood that the “integration” projects and jobs schemes were intended to make their exile permanent – despite the UN having officially recognised their right to return home.

By the late 1950s, the refugees’ persistent refusal participate in these programmes led Unrwa to shift its focus to education.

Repeated expulsions

The desire to forcibly transfer Gaza’s population never really disappeared. Gaza has been home to Palestinian refugees from across the country, with a huge political significance as a result, and its demographics have repeatedly been deemed unacceptable by elements of the Israeli state.

Soon after it began occupying Gaza and the West Bank in 1967, the Israeli military forcibly expelled 200,000 Palestinians from Gaza to Jordan. Four year later, Shimon Peres, then the Israeli minister of transport and communications, sought to forcibly transfer more Palestinians into the Sinai. And around the same time, the Israeli government looked into relocating Gaza’s population to sites as far away as Iraq, Canada and Brazil.

Such ideas persist in Israel. Shortly after Israel began its war on Gaza in response to the Hamas attacks of October 7 2023, there was also evidence in the form of a leaked intelligence report that the government was considering forcibly transferring Palestinians to Sinai.

More recently, the White House administration floated the possibility of transferring Gaza’s population to Indonesia. And Trump spoke in alarming terms shortly after his inauguration of “cleaning out” the Strip.

There’s no connection between the US president’s plan, as outlined this week, and the early US-backed idea to found Unrwa as an agency to oversee resettlement of Gaza’s population. Unrwa had abandoned its resettlement policy by the mid-1950s – and, in any case, Trump has long been one of Unrwa’s most virulent opponents.

In 2018, he became the first US president to fully defund the agency. More recently he has been a vocal supporter of the Israeli Knesset’s ban on its operations.

In the same press conference where Trump announced his plans for ethnic cleansing in Gaza, he also confirmed that he will extend the Biden administration’s ban on funding Unrwa.

Yet Trump’s current plan is not a million miles away from the US government’s original intention for Unrwa. His apparent ignorance of this history suggests he is also unaware of the biggest likely obstacle to “permanent resettlement”.

But he cannot ignore the historical resistance of the Palestinian people themselves to the seemingly endless plans to displace, dispossess and deny them their homeland.

As Unrwa officials learned decades ago, the only “solution” for the question of the future of the Gaza Strip is a just and durable political process that accounts for the Palestinian people’s rights as well as Israeli security.

Anne Irfan has received funding from the British Academy.

Jo Kelcey has received funding from the Spencer Foundation.

– ref. Trump plans to ‘permanently resettle’ Palestinians outside Gaza – the very reason Unrwa was originally created – https://theconversation.com/trump-plans-to-permanently-resettle-palestinians-outside-gaza-the-very-reason-unrwa-was-originally-created-249185

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 7, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Time to act on UK’s expiring trade remedy measures
Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

Some UK anti-dumping and anti-subsidy measures will expire in 2026. Affected UK producers can apply for an expiry review if they want the measures to be kept.
In 2026, some anti-dumping and countervailing trade remedy measures that currently defend UK businesses from unfair trading practices will expire. The window for affected domestic producers to apply for an expiry review has now opened.

The period for industry to request an expiry review for the measures listed below runs from January 2025 to end October 2025. We are already contacting the industries affected by the measures, but producers should be ready to consider now if they will request an expiry review to TRA.

The measures that expire in January 2026 cover the following goods:

Welded steel tubes and pipes

Rainbow trout

Biodiesel

Glass fibre

Wire rods

UK producers of these goods that believe the expiry of these measures could lead to a resurgence of dumping or subsidisation that would cause injury to their industry can apply for an expiry review. To complete the application process, producers will need to provide sufficient evidence that allowing the measures to lapse would be likely to result in continued or recurring harm to their business.

Requests for expiry reviews for the measures listed above must be submitted between January and October 2025. Interested UK producers should consider if they need to act now to ask the TRA to investigate if there is a case for extending the measure.

If a request is not submitted between January to October 2025 for these measures, this would result in the relevant measure expiring automatically in January 2026 and potentially leave domestic producers vulnerable to imports at unfair prices.

The TRA ‘s Pre-Application Office offers support in explaining the review process, reviewing submitted information, and checking draft applications and requests for reviews. The TRA operates as an independent body, so it cannot source information or complete applications on behalf of industry members.

For those looking to understand the expiry review process further, comprehensive guidance is available online. This resource is designed to help UK producers understand the necessary steps to submit a successful application and ensure that their interests are adequately protected in the face of potentially unfair trading practices.

All UK producers who have a current trade remedy measure protecting their goods can keep up to date with the expiry date of their measure and when the expiry window opens using the Trade Remedies Service. The TRA will publish information on other measures that will expire as the expiry window approaches, specifying the deadlines when producers must submit any request for an expiry review.

The UK’s steel safeguard measure which covers certain steel products also ends in summer 2026. Unlike anti-dumping and anti-subsidy measures, it cannot be renewed or extended. Any relevant UK producers who would like to know more about the options available to protect their industry should contact the TRA’s Pre-Application Office.

Email: Contact@traderemedies.gov.uk

Expiry notices for measures expiring in January 2026:

Welded tubes and pipes: Welded Tubes and Pipes from Belarus, China and Russia – Trade Remedies Service – GOV.UK

Rainbow trout: Rainbow Trout from Turkey – Trade Remedies Service – GOV.UK

Biodiesel AS: Biodiesel from United States and Canada – Trade Remedies Service – GOV.UK

Biodiesel AD: Biodiesel from United States and Canada – Trade Remedies Service – GOV.UK

Glass fibre AD: Continuous Glass fibre from China – Trade Remedies Service – GOV.UK

Gass fibre AS: Continuous Glass fibre from China – Trade Remedies Service – GOV.UK

Wire rod: Wire Rod from China – Trade Remedies Service – GOV.UK

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Published 6 February 2025
MIL OSI United Kingdom –
February 7, 2025

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Repeated expulsions

Expiry notices for measures expiring in January 2026:

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