Canada ‘abandoning’ international law with support for U.S. strikes on Iran, say former diplomats - The Hill Times

"They make you feel that it is a mistake to be a woman in Afghanistan. " Those are the words of a young woman in Kabul describing life in the Afghan capital five years after the chaotic exit of U. S.-led NATO troops made way for the return of Taliban rule in August 2021. Since then, under the fundamentalist dictates of the self-declared Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, roughly 22 million women and girls have witnessed what rights they did enjoy stripped away. "It started with a ban on schools, then going to markets, going to travel, then jobs, universities," said the woman. "[It feels] like you have to get permission to breathe even. " To protect her from any potential repercussions from this interview or for her previous work for Canadian-funded projects in Afghanistan, I will refer to her as X. Over the past five years, the Taliban have issued dozens of edicts aimed at suppressing women.  They are forbidden from being outside without a male guardian, from holding most jobs and studying beyond primary school. They're not allowed to visit parks or playgrounds or gyms or salons or even raise their voices in public.

, /CNW/ -- The questions surrounding Havana Syndrome continue to demand answers. New reporting by The Globe and Mail has revealed previously unreported information about Canadian intelligence activities in Havana during the same period that Canadian diplomats began experiencing serious and unexplained neurological injuries. Havana Syndrome: Cuban and Canadian flags displayed side by side, representing the Canada-Cuba connection and the work of Howie, Sacks & Henry LLP.

OTTAWA – As Canada plans an ambitious expansion of defence and economic activity in the Arctic, regional experts are asking whether it has enough diplomats to build the ties it wants in the North. “The Arctic is a geopolitical hot spot,” said Natan Obed, president of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami. “The (Global Affairs) department does not have huge bench strength when it comes to Arctic diplomacy.”Here’s a look at how the Liberals have both cut back and restaffed positions across the North in recent years. Closing an expert centreIn 2023, the government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau closed the Canadian International Arctic Centre, a hub for diplomacy across the region that had been operating within Canada’s embassy in Norway since 2009. In a briefing note obtained by The Canadian Press, Global Affairs Canada cited “high costs in Oslo” and anticipated savings of $550,000 per year. Story continues below advertisement