Canadian officials were warned three weeks ago that Sudan was sliding towards a major civil conflict, raising questions about the Liberal government’s statements that the situation took the world by “surprise” amid concerns over the pace of evacuation efforts, multiple sources tell Global News.
While Canadian Armed Forces members and assets are already in the region, as of Wednesday they had yet to begin military evacuations for diplomatic personnel and Canadian nationals. The 180 Canadians that have been evacuated as of Wednesday have done so on aircraft operated by Canada’s allies.
On Tuesday, Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said “the situation in Sudan happened very quickly” and when the violence started “it took the world by surprise.”
But high-level national security sources told Global News that Canada was receiving detailed and frequent updates through CAF liaison officers working with U.S. Africa Command for weeks.
The sources, who have direct knowledge of the evacuation planning but were not authorized to speak publicly, said the Canadian military had both contingency plans and the assets needed for an evacuation effort well in advance of the crisis.
The sources instead pointed to two “failures” to secure speedy evacuations for Canadians trapped by the conflict: a failure to make timely decisions to pre-position military assets, and a failure to exert political influence to secure landing strips that would’ve allowed military aircraft to land.
One senior source faulted a “slow decision-making process that needlessly endangered embassy staff.”
Global News reported Wednesday that Canadian military personnel, including special forces operators, were already on the ground in Sudan planning evacuation efforts, citing three sources. Two sources said the task force was operating out of Djibouti on Wednesday afternoon, and there are concerns about dangerous conditions in Sudan.
Defence Minister Anita Anand said Wednesday that some 200 CAF members were in the region and prepared to assist in evacuation efforts, and the government says a Global Affairs task force is operating out of Djibouti.
Anand told reporters in Ottawa that two C-130 Hercules aircraft are also “in the region” and are ready to begin airlifts whenever “conditions on the ground permit” – but would not offer a timeline. Anand said the planes arrived in the region “recently.”
“There are conditions that we are monitoring very closely. One of which is the space at the airport. Another is to ensure that Canadians are able to get to the airport in a safe and secure manner,” Anand said.
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Government officials, speaking at a technical briefing in Ottawa Wednesday afternoon, said one military airlift planned for Wednesday was cancelled, but several flights are scheduled in the coming days.
More than 11 days into the crisis in Sudan, roughly 180 Canadians have been evacuated from the country out of 700 who have requested assistance, according to updated government figures.
Joly said that more than 1,800 Canadians in Sudan are registered with the federal government. As of Tuesday night, at least 1,700 had been contacted by the government.
Fighting broke out in Africa’s third largest country on April 15 between the Sudanese Armed Forces, led by Gen. Abdel Fattah Burhan, and a paramilitary organization known as the Rapid Support Forces, led by Gen. Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo.
The fighting has cast a shadow over hopes that Sudan could transition to democracy after decades of dictatorship and civil war.
Since the outbreak of the crisis, western governments – including Canada – have scrambled to evacuate diplomatic staff and nationals hoping to flee the hostilities. An uneasy three-day ceasefire brokered by the United States and Saudi Arabia was reached Monday, but previous attempts to halt the fighting to allow civilians and foreign nationals to flee have failed.
No Canadian military evacuation flights had taken place as of Tuesday night, with Canadians escaping the country on airlifts co-ordinated by Germany, France, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. Canadian diplomatic staff have also been evacuated by U.S. personnel.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau noted the Canadian Armed Forces do have two ships in the region – HMCS Montreal and MV Asterix – but told reporters the situation is “extremely difficult” and said there were “limited” places to conduct airlifts to get Canadians out.
The evacuation of foreign nationals has stoked fears that the two sides will resume all-out conflict once the evacuations are complete, with many Sudanese attempting to flee during the uneasy truce. The Associated Press reported that bus stations in Khartoum were packed on Tuesday morning, while drivers jacked up prices to transport civilians to Port Sudan or to the border crossing with Egypt.
Sudan also holds one of the largest refugee populations in Africa, according to the United Nations, and years of violent conflict have displaced many within the country’s borders.
According to the latest UN estimates, at least 421 people have been killed and more than 3,700 injured since the fighting began. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned a “catastrophic conflagration” could cover the region if hostilities don’t cease, and has urged members of the Security Council to “exert maximum leverage” to pull the country “back from the abyss.”
In the House of Commons Tuesday night, both Joly and the Opposition Conservatives acknowledged the need to help the Sudanese people after the immediate crisis passes.
Conservative MP Garnett Genuis, who pushed for the emergency debate, suggested authoritarian regimes like Russia are attempting to take advantage of the crisis – pointing to the presence of the Russia-backed Wagner mercenary group in the country.
“I think the great advantage we have as free democracies, when we are prepared to use it, is that we can always be on the side of the people. That’s what we should be focused on,” Genuis told the House of Commons.
“This is a truly all-hands-on-deck effort, and I encourage all members in this House to recognize the significant work being done,” Joly said, adding that her department was working with the Canadian Armed Forces, the immigration department and the Canada Border Services Agency to help both Canadians trapped in Sudan and Sudanese nationals trapped in Canada.
Joly said she was “very concerned” the conflict could lead to a larger humanitarian crisis in the region.
– with files from Global’s Sean Boynton and The Associated Press
VANCOUVER – Contract negotiations resume today in Vancouver in a labour dispute that has paralyzed container cargo shipping at British Columbia’s ports since Monday.
The BC Maritime Employers Association and International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 514 are scheduled to meet for the next three days in mediated talks to try to break a deadlock in negotiations.
The union, which represents more than 700 longshore supervisors at ports, including Vancouver, Prince Rupert and Nanaimo, has been without a contract since March last year.
The latest talks come after employers locked out workers in response to what it said was “strike activity” by union members.
The start of the lockout was then followed by several days of no engagement between the two parties, prompting federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon to speak with leaders on both sides, asking them to restart talks.
MacKinnon had said that the talks were “progressing at an insufficient pace, indicating a concerning absence of urgency from the parties involved” — a sentiment echoed by several business groups across Canada.
In a joint letter, more than 100 organizations, including the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Business Council of Canada and associations representing industries from automotive and fertilizer to retail and mining, urged the government to do whatever it takes to end the work stoppage.
“While we acknowledge efforts to continue with mediation, parties have not been able to come to a negotiated agreement,” the letter says. “So, the federal government must take decisive action, using every tool at its disposal to resolve this dispute and limit the damage caused by this disruption.
“We simply cannot afford to once again put Canadian businesses at risk, which in turn puts Canadian livelihoods at risk.”
In the meantime, the union says it has filed a complaint to the Canada Industrial Relations Board against the employers, alleging the association threatened to pull existing conditions out of the last contract in direct contact with its members.
“The BCMEA is trying to undermine the union by attempting to turn members against its democratically elected leadership and bargaining committee — despite the fact that the BCMEA knows full well we received a 96 per cent mandate to take job action if needed,” union president Frank Morena said in a statement.
The employers have responded by calling the complaint “another meritless claim,” adding the final offer to the union that includes a 19.2 per cent wage increase over a four-year term remains on the table.
“The final offer has been on the table for over a week and represents a fair and balanced proposal for employees, and if accepted would end this dispute,” the employers’ statement says. “The offer does not require any concessions from the union.”
The union says the offer does not address the key issue of staffing requirement at the terminals as the port introduces more automation to cargo loading and unloading, which could potentially require fewer workers to operate than older systems.
The Port of Vancouver is the largest in Canada and has seen a number of labour disruptions, including two instances involving the rail and grain storage sectors earlier this year.
A 13-day strike by another group of workers at the port last year resulted in the disruption of a significant amount of shipping and trade.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.
The Royal Canadian Legion says a new partnership with e-commerce giant Amazon is helping boost its veterans’ fund, and will hopefully expand its donor base in the digital world.
Since the Oct. 25 launch of its Amazon.ca storefront, the legion says it has received nearly 10,000 orders for poppies.
Online shoppers can order lapel poppies on Amazon in exchange for donations or buy items such as “We Remember” lawn signs, Remembrance Day pins and other accessories, with all proceeds going to the legion’s Poppy Trust Fund for Canadian veterans and their families.
Nujma Bond, the legion’s national spokesperson, said the organization sees this move as keeping up with modern purchasing habits.
“As the world around us evolves we have been looking at different ways to distribute poppies and to make it easier for people to access them,” she said in an interview.
“This is definitely a way to reach a wider number of Canadians of all ages. And certainly younger Canadians are much more active on the web, on social media in general, so we’re also engaging in that way.”
Al Plume, a member of a legion branch in Trenton, Ont., said the online store can also help with outreach to veterans who are far from home.
“For veterans that are overseas and are away, (or) can’t get to a store they can order them online, it’s Amazon.” Plume said.
Plume spent 35 years in the military with the Royal Engineers, and retired eight years ago. He said making sure veterans are looked after is his passion.
“I’ve seen the struggles that our veterans have had with Veterans Affairs … and that’s why I got involved, with making sure that the people get to them and help the veterans with their paperwork.”
But the message about the Amazon storefront didn’t appear to reach all of the legion’s locations, with volunteers at Branch 179 on Vancouver’s Commercial Drive saying they hadn’t heard about the online push.
Holly Paddon, the branch’s poppy campaign co-ordinator and bartender, said the Amazon partnership never came up in meetings with other legion volunteers and officials.
“I work at the legion, I work with the Vancouver poppy office and I go to the meetings for the Vancouver poppy campaign — which includes all the legions in Vancouver — and not once has this been mentioned,” she said.
Paddon said the initiative is a great idea, but she would like to have known more about it.
The legion also sells a larger collection of items at poppystore.ca.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.
