Canada will give the families of individuals killed in the downing of UIA Flight PS752 thousands of dollars to help with their immediate needs, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said today — stressing it’s only a first step toward getting Iran to compensate those grieving families.
“I want to be clear, we expect Iran to compensate these families,” Trudeau said during a news conference in Ottawa Friday morning.
“But I have met them. They can’t wait weeks. They need support now.”
Of the 176 passengers and crew killed, 57 were Canadian citizens and 29 were permanent residents, said the prime minister.
He said the government will give those families $25,000 per victim to help cover the cost of immediate needs such as funeral arrangements and flights. Earlier this week, the government announced it also would waive fees and speed up visa processing times for those affected by the tragedy.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announces that the government will give $25,000 to the families of every Canadian victim of Flight PS752 to help them with living expenses as they await compensation from the Iranian government. 0:44
About 20 families have asked for their loved ones’ remains to be returned to Canada, with others have said they want their family members buried in Iran, said Trudeau.
No bodies have been returned yet, added the prime minister, but he said the first remains will begin their trip home in the coming days.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau responds to a questions about when we can expect the remains of Canadian victims to be repatriated to Canada. 0:13
Trudeau’s latest update comes as Foreign Affairs Minister François-Philippe Champagne is in Oman for a rare face-to-face meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif following last week’s disaster near Tehran. Canada cut diplomatic ties with the country in 2012.
“Minister Zarif conveyed his profound regret for this terrible tragedy and Minister Champagne noted that he had met with families of victims this week who are deeply hurt and angry,” says a readout of the meeting from Champagne’s office.
According to his office, Champagne pushed for concrete action after Canada — along with four other nations that lost citizens in the crash — gathered earlier this week to discuss Iran’s role in shooting down the flight.
“That is what we continue to push on. That is what the international community is pushing on,” said Trudeau. “So far, the people we’ve engaged with in Iran have been aligned with that wish, for now.”
A list of demands
Ministers from five nations affected by the crash — Canada, Ukraine, Sweden, Afghanistan and the United Kingdom — listed their demands of Iran during a meeting in London on Thursday. They include a full investigation of the crash and an independent criminal probe.
Their other demands are:
Full access within Iran to allow them to provide consular services to relatives of the victims.
Assurance that the victim identification process is conducted with “dignity, transparency and to international standards, and to ensure families’ wishes are respected.”
A commitment from Iran that it will continue to assume full responsibility for the disaster and co-operate with compensation talks.
Under international law, Iran is leading the latest aviation investigation because the crash occurred within its borders, but there are precedents for handing that responsibility over to another country that suffered losses.
Trudeau said the flight’s black box recorders were “significantly” damaged, adding there are only a few laboratories in the world, including one in France, that can process broken flight recorders quickly.
In a rare sermon during Friday prayers, Iran’s supreme leader called the destruction of the civilian airliner a bitter accident that saddened Iran and made its enemies happy.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Iran’s international enemies have seized on the crash to question the country and its armed forces.
EDMONTON – RCMP say a second suspect has been arrested in the killing of an Alberta county worker.
Mounties say 28-year-old Elijah Strawberry was taken into custody Friday at a house on O’Chiese First Nation.
Colin Hough, a worker with Rocky View County, was shot and killed while on the job on a rural road east of Calgary on Aug. 6.
Another man who worked for Fortis Alberta was shot and wounded, and RCMP said the suspects fled in a Rocky View County work truck.
Police later arrested Arthur Wayne Penner, 35, and charged him with first-degree murder and attempted murder, and a warrant was issued for Strawberry’s arrest.
RCMP also said there was a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Strawberry, describing him as armed and dangerous.
Chief Supt. Roberta McKale, told a news conference in Edmonton that officers had received tips and information over the last few weeks.
“I don’t know of many members that when were stopped, fuelling up our vehicles, we weren’t keeping an eye out, looking for him,” she said.
But officers had been investigating other cases when they found Strawberry.
“Our investigators were in O’Chiese First Nation at a residence on another matter and the major crimes unit was there working another file and ended up locating him hiding in the residence,” McKale said.
While an investigation is still underway, RCMP say they’re confident both suspects in the case are in police custody.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
RICHMOND, B.C. – The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team says the 26-year-old son of a man found dead on British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast has been charged with his murder.
Police say 58-year-old Henry Doyle was found badly injured on a forest service road in Egmont last September and died of his injuries.
The homicide team took over when the BC Coroners Service said the man’s death was suspicious.
It says in a statement that the BC Prosecution Service has approved one count of first-degree murder against the man’s son, Jackson Doyle.
Police say the accused will remain in custody until at least his next court appearance.
The homicide team says investigators remained committed to solving the case with the help of the community of Egmont, the RCMP on the Sunshine Coast and in Richmond, and the Vancouver Police Department.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
VANCOUVER – Mediated talks between the union representing HandyDART workers in Metro Vancouver and its employer, Transdev, have broken off without an agreement following 15 hours of talks.
Joe McCann, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1724, says they stayed at the bargaining table with help from a mediator until 2 a.m. Friday and made “some progress.”
However, he says the union negotiators didn’t get an offer that they could recommend to the membership.
McCann says that in some ways they are close to an agreement, but in other areas they are “miles apart.”
About 600 employees of the door-to-door transit service for people who can’t navigate the conventional transit system have been on strike since last week, pausing service for all but essential medical trips.
McCann asks HandyDART users to be “patient,” since they are trying to get not only a fair contract for workers but also a better service for customers.
He says it’s unclear when the talks will resume, but he hopes next week at the latest.
The employer, Transdev, didn’t reply to an interview request before publication.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
