Bank that handles Infowars money appears to be cutting ties with Alex Jones' company, lawyer says

DAVE COLLINS
Thu, September 28, 2023 

- Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones takes the witness stand to testify at the Sandy Hook defamation damages trial at Connecticut Superior Court in Waterbury, Conn. Thursday, Sept. 22, 2022. A bank recently shut down the accounts of Jones' media company citing unauthorized transactions — a move that caused panic at the business when its balances suddenly dropped from more than $2 million to zero, according to a bankruptcy lawyer for the company.

 (Tyler Sizemore/Hearst Connecticut Media via AP, Pool, File)

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — A bank recently shut down the accounts of conspiracy theorist Alex Jones' media company, citing unauthorized transactions — a move that caused panic at the business when its balances suddenly dropped from more than $2 million to zero, according to a lawyer for the company.

The action last week by Axos Bank also exposed worry and doubt at the company, Free Speech Systems, about being able to find another bank to handle its money.

Jones, a conservative provocateur whose Infowars program promotes fake theories about global conspiracies, UFOs and mind control, is seeking bankruptcy protection as he and his company owe $1.5 billion to relatives of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Connecticut.

The debt is the result of the families winning lawsuits against Jones for his calling the massacre that killed 26 people a hoax and his supporters threatening and harassing the victims’ families.

A lawyer for Free Speech Systems, Ray Battaglia, told a federal bankruptcy judge in Houston on Tuesday that Axos Bank had shut down the company's accounts on Aug. 21 “without notice or warning.”

Battaglia said he and a court-appointed overseer of Free Speech Systems’ finances were both out of the country when they received “frantic” messages about the company’s bank balances dropping to zero.

Bank officials, he said, didn't provide much information.

According to Battaglia, Axos claimed it had contacted Free Speech Systems in July about a transaction and the company did not respond, which Battaglia disputed. The bank also indicated there were unauthorized transactions, but didn't go into detail, he said. He said the bank informed Jones' company that it would be sending a cashier’s check for the total balance.

“So we’re perplexed,” Battaglia told the bankruptcy judge. “We have no answers for the court. They (the bank) have not provided us with any.”

Battaglia said the media company will have to seek another bank or take Axos to court “because we just don’t know who will bank us.” At the request of Jones’ lawyers, Axos did agree to reopen the company’s accounts for 30 days but it appears it will not extend the relationship beyond that, he said.

Spokespeople for Axos did not return email messages seeking comment Wednesday. An email sent to Infowars also went unanswered, as have previous messages.

Jones and Free Speech Systems make the bulk of their money from selling nutritional supplements, survival gear, books, clothing and other merchandise, which Jones hawks on his daily web and radio show.

According to the company’s most recent financial statement filed in bankruptcy court, it had more than $2.5 million in its Axos accounts at the end of August after bringing in more than $3 million in revenue during the month. The company paid out over $2 million in expenses and other costs, leaving a net cash flow of $1 million.

The bankruptcy judge, Christopher Lopez, will be deciding how much money Jones and Free Speech Systems will have to pay creditors, including the Sandy Hook families. Jones is appealing the court awards, citing free speech rights and missteps by judges.

In 2018, social media companies including Facebook, YouTube and Apple banned Jones from their platforms

United States Customs and Border Patrol Releases 10 UFO Videos

If Resident Alien’s Harry Vanderspeigle (Alan Tudyk) really did crash land in Colorado a few years back, he and his craft might have been recovered by shadowy government agencies and whisked away to a secret facility that doesn’t officially exist. At least, that’s what might have happened if UFO conspiracy theorists are correct.

Over the last several months there’s been an uptick in UAP (unidentified anomalous phenomena) reports here in the real world, punctuated by whistleblower David Grusch testifying before congress about an alleged government-run UFO recovery and reverse engineering project. Now, we’ve got even more UAPs to mull over thanks to a release from Customs and Border Protections.
Customs and Border Patrol Releases UAP Documents

In early August and with little fanfare, the United States Customs and Border Patrol released 10 videos depicting reported UAPs along with 387 pages of supporting documents including testimony from eyewitnesses.

The videos, some of which leaked a few years back, have added fuel to the already raging fire of public discourse around flying saucers. One video in particular, from 2013, shows an unidentifiable spot flying over an airport. The video is black and white, and the footage is grainy. The object, whatever it is, cruises over the airport at what appears to be a consistent rate, on a path taking it toward the ocean.

It doesn’t look all that unusual. If you’d tell us it was a bird or a small UAV, we’d probably believe it. The trouble starts when it gets near the water and appears to change shape. Shortly thereafter, the object seems to disappear, reappear, then vanish for good.

Some viewers have interpreted that as the object having dipped beneath the water and emerged again, seemingly without losing any speed. That would be an impressive engineering achievement, but the video is so poor, it could just as easily be a digital artifact. The important thing is what we know, and that is not equivalent to extraterrestrials.

We’ve filled the space around us with a growing number of cameras and orbiting satellites, and they’re all recording all the time. More than that, we (humans) are creating more technology, some of which isn’t public knowledge. It was probably inevitable that we would start to catch things on camera that we can’t explain. But there’s a pretty big gap between “look at that weird thing” and “I bet it came from across the stars.” Still, there is some weird stuff going on in the sky and we should devote some resources to figuring out what it is.
Schumer Proposes UAP Transparency Bill

With that in mind, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Senator Mike Rounds (R-SD) introduced an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act which would establish a structure for how and when UAP documents would be released to the public.

“For decades, many Americans have been fascinated by objects mysterious and unexplained and it’s long past time they get some answers. The American public has a right to learn about technologies of unknown origins, non-human intelligence, and unexplainable phenomena. We are not only working to declassify what the government has previously learned about these phenomena but to create a pipeline for future research to be made public. I am honored to carry on the legacy of my mentor and dear friend, Harry Reid and fight for the transparency that the public has long demanded surround these unexplained phenomena,” Schumer said, in a statement.

The bill requires that government agencies turn over any UAP information they possess within 300 days of the act going into effect. Meanwhile, President Biden has 90 days to form a review board to investigate those documents. Finally, that board will have 180 days to review any information and an additional 14 days to publish their findings. All of which is to say we’re at least a year and a half out from seeing the extraterrestrial goods, if any goods should exist.

In the meantime, catch up on the first two seasons of SYFY's Resident Alien, streaming now on Peacock.

Sikh group protests outside Golden Temple over killing in Canada

Fri, September 29, 2023

FILE PHOTO: A sign outside the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara temple is seen after the killing on its grounds in June 2023 of Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar, in Surrey

By Manoj Kumar

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Hundreds of Sikh activists on Friday staged a demonstration outside the Golden Temple in Amritsar, in the northern Indian state of Punjab, demanding punishment for the killers of a Sikh separatist in Canada.

Earlier this month, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told parliament that there may be a link between New Delhi and the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June in British Columbia.

India has denied any role in the killing and described the allegations as "absurd". The accusations have sparked tensions between the two countries, with each nation expelling diplomats, and New Delhi suspending visas for Canadians.

Holding posters of Nijjar, the protesters outside the holiest of Sikh shrines shouted slogans asking New Delhi to stop extrajudicial operations against separatists seeking Punjab as an independent state.

Nijjar, who worked as a plumber, left the north Indian state of Punjab a quarter-century ago and became a Canadian citizen. He has supported the formation of a Sikh homeland. India designated him a "terrorist" in July 2020.

"It is time and opportunity for New Delhi to talk with Sikh leadership," said Paramjit Singh Mand, a leader of Dal Khalsa, the group, which is advocating for a separate Sikh homeland and organised the protest.

Sikhs make up just 2% of India's 1.4 billion people but they are a majority in Punjab, a state of 30 million where their religion was born 500 years ago.

Nearly 400 activists participated in the protest and later held prayers at the temple for the release of political prisoners and for the well-being of exiled separatists, said Kanwar Pal, political affairs secretary of the group.

"We thank the Canadian government for exposing the Indian design, how India is operating on foreign soil, intervening in Canadian affairs," he said.

Canadian Sikhs staged small protests outside India's diplomatic missions on Monday, burning an Indian flag, while waiving yellow flags marked with the word "Khalistan", referring to their support for making Punjab an independent state.

Separately, some farmer unions stopped trains and road traffic as part of a three-day protest in some parts of Punjab, demanding a high procurement price for crops, and compensation for those whose crops were damaged in recent rains and floods.

(Additional reporting by Sunil Kataria and Mayank Bhardwaj; Editing by Alison Williams)

Canada is serious about ties with India despite row - Trudeau

BBC
Fri, September 29, 2023 

Mr Trudeau's allegations have sparked a diplomatic row between India and Canada


Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said his country is serious about building closer ties with India despite an ongoing diplomatic row.

His latest remarks come at a time when ties between the two countries are at an all time low.

Tensions flared up when Mr Trudeau on 19 September said Canada was investigating credible allegations of India's involvement in the murder of a Sikh separatist leader.

Delhi dismissed the claim as "absurd".

Hardeep Singh Nijjar was murdered outside a temple in Canada in June.

On Thursday, the Canadian PM said it was extremely important to "constructively and seriously" engage with India.

"India is a growing economic power and important geopolitical player. And as we presented our Indo-Pacific strategy just last year, we're very serious about building closer ties with India," the National Post quoted him as saying.

Tensions between the two countries came to the fore during the G20 summit in Delhi on 9 September when Mr Trudeau skipped an official dinner of the leaders.

He held a short meeting with Indian PM Narendra Modi but experts described their body language as "frosty".

A few days later, Mr Trudeau told Canadian parliament they were pursing credible allegations of the involvement of Indian agents in Nijjar's murder.

Both countries have since expelled a diplomat each of the other nation. Last week, India also suspended visa services for Canadians citing security concerns at its diplomatic missions in the country.

On Thursday, Mr Trudeau talked about the importance of relations with India but added that the murder investigation would continue.

"At the same time, obviously, as a rule of law country, we need to emphasise that India needs to work with Canada to ensure that we get the full facts of this matter," he said.

How India-Canada ties descended into a public feud

Trudeau facing cold reality after lonely week on world stage

India has insisted that it had no role in the murder, adding that Nijjar had been designated a terrorist by Delhi in 2020 - an allegation his supporters vehemently deny.

The Indian government has often reacted sharply to demands by Sikh separatists in Western countries for Khalistan, or a separate Sikh homeland.

Nijjar vocally supported the Khalistan movement.

It peaked in India in the 1980s with a violent insurgency centred in Sikh-majority Punjab state.

It was quelled by force and has little resonance in India now, but is still popular among some in the Sikh diaspora in countries such as Canada, Australia and the UK.

The row between India and Canada, who have been close allies for decades, has also tested Western countries.

The US, UK and Australia have urged Delhi to cooperate in the investigation but stopped short of critising India, which is seen by them as bulwark against China's rise in Asia.

Mr Trudeau added that he had been assured by the US that foreign secretary Antony Blinken would raise the allegations when he met his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar in Washington.

The foreign ministers met on Thursday but made no mention of Canada in their press conference.

BBC News India is now on YouTube. Click here to subscribe and watch our documentaries, explainers and features.

Blinken raises Sikh leader’s murder in meeting with Indian foreign minister Jaishankar

Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Fri, September 29, 2023 

India says murdering separatists abroad is ‘not our policy’ amid Canada row
India has told Canada that it was not the government’s “policy” to be involved in acts such as the assassination of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar on foreign soil. Source: Council on Foreign Relations

US secretary of state Antony Blinken reportedly asked Indian foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar to cooperate with Canada's investigation into the killing of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

Ties between India and Canada plummeted after prime minister Justin Trudeau accused the Indian government of involvement in the killing of the Canadian national.

Nijjar – a designated terrorist in India – was assassinated in Surrey on 18 June by two masked men. He has been linked to the secessionist Khalistan movement, which calls for a separate homeland for the Sikh religious community to be carved out of India's Punjab state.

India vehemently denied what it called an "absurd" allegation, adding it was not New Delhi's "policy" to be involved in assassination on foreign lands.

“Blinken raised the Canadian matter in his meeting, (and) urged the Indian government to cooperate with Canada’s investigation,” Reuters quoted a US official as saying, though a State Department statement made no mention of the issue.

Mr Trudeau has been reportedly mounting pressure on Canada's "Five Eyes" intelligence-sharing allies to push India into cooperating with the investigation.

The prime minister on Thursday said he was certain that Mr Blinken would broach the issue with India's Jaishankar.

The US State Department’s formal statement on its website after Mr Blinken’s meeting with Mr Jaishankar made no mention of Nijjar’s murder or of Canada.

A readout from the State Department listed points like India's G20 presidency, the creation of an India-Middle East-Europe corridor, defence, space and clean energy as topics of conversation between the two.

Mr Jaishankar on Tuesday said New Delhi has told Canada it was open to looking into any "specific" or "relevant" information it provides on the killing.

Mr Trudeau, who is yet to publicly share any evidence, said last week he shared the "credible allegations" with India "many weeks ago".

Mr Blinken and national security adviser Jake Sullivan said last week the United States was “deeply concerned” about the allegations raised by Canada.

India has responded to the allegation by suspending visa services in all categories for Canadian nationals citing “security threats” to its consulates. Each country expelled one senior diplomat from the other in a tit-for-tat move.

A group of hackers called the “Indian Cyber Force” claimed responsibility for temporarily taking over the official website of the Canadian Armed Forces on Wednesday.

"That's a very common thing that happens, unfortunately, often. But our cyberofficials and security officials acted very, very quickly," defence minister Bill Blair told reporters.

With agency inputs

India raids 53 sites nationwide as crackdown on Sikh separatists deepens

Rhea Mogul, CNN
Thu, September 28, 2023 

ANI/Princess Ilvita/Reuters


India’s anti-terror agency has raided 53 sites across seven states and union territories in a crackdown on what it says are “terrorists” and “gangsters,” some of whom it alleges have links to Sikh separatist groups.

The National Investigative Agency (NIA) said Wednesday it had seized pistols, ammunition and a large number of digital devices during the raids, and that among those it had detained were several people with suspected links to “pro-Khalistan” groups.

“Khalistan” is a reference to a separatist movement that seeks to create a homeland for Sikhs in the Punjab region of India.

News of the raid comes as India remains in a tense diplomatic standoff with Canada, following allegations by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that India may have been involved in the killing in British Columbia of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Sikh Canadian who was a vocal advocate of Khalistan.


India, which has strenuously denied Trudeau’s claims, has previously accused Nijjar of being a terrorist with links to the Khalistan movement and of “trying to radicalize the Sikh community across the world.”

But it has long accused multiple foreign countries of harboring what it describes as Sikh militants within their diaspora communities.

The NIA said Wednesday the latest raids “relate to conspiracies of targeted killings, terror funding of pro-Khalistan outfits, extortion, etc. by the gangsters, many of whom are lodged in various jails or are operating from various foreign countries, including Pakistan, Canada, Malaysia, Portugal and Australia.”

“Many of the criminals and gangsters who were earlier leading gangs in India have fled abroad in recent years and are now pursuing their terror and violence related activities from there, as per NIA investigations,” the statement said.

“These criminals have been engaged in planning and commissioning serious crimes, including contract and revenge killings, in association with criminals lodged in jails across India,” it added.

The operation spanned the states of Punjab, Harayana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Uttarakhand, and also included the union territories of Delhi and Chandigarh.

New Delhi has responded angrily to Trudeau’s claims and the deepening spat has seen both nations expel senior diplomats in reciprocal moves, raising the prospect of an awkward rift between key partners of the US.

Things escalated further when India suspended visa services for Canadian citizens over what it said were “security threats” against diplomats in Canada.

Though Modi is yet to speak publicly about the growing dispute, Indian authorities last week announced an “intensified crackdown” on what it says is a “Khalistani terrorist campaign.”

Last week, the NIA promised a cash reward for five individuals who they accuse of “spreading terror” in the state of Punjab.

Digital vandals hit Canadian websites amid tensions with India

Thu, September 28, 2023


Digital vandals hit Canadian websites amid tensions with IndiaA message left by a group calling itself the "Indian Cyber Force" is seen on an archived version of a website of a Canadian dental clinic

By Raphael Satter

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A handful of Canadian websites were defaced and the site for the country's armed forces was briefly disrupted Wednesday amid simmering tensions with India.

The low-level hacks were claimed by an obscure pro-India group going by the name "Indian Cyber Force," whose logo includes an American bald eagle with orange and green wings, the colors of the Indian flag.

The hackers told Reuters via Telegram, "Everyone know" why they were targeting Canada but did not elaborate. The group has previously said it was retaliating against Canadian allegations that India had a hand in the killing of Sikh separatist leader outside Vancouver on June 18.

Indian officials have denied the charge and downsized the Ottawa's diplomatic presence in India, issuing travel warnings and freezing visa issuance to Canadians.

Digital vandalism is typical whenever tensions between two countries rise and intrusions of the kind claimed by the Cyber Force rarely deal lasting damage. Several targeted websites appeared to have been picked at random; among them was an Ontario dental clinic.

The Canadian Armed Forces said in an email Thursday that the disruption had been limited to a few hours and has since been "rectified." The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security said in a statement that "geopolitical events often result in an increase in disruptive cyber campaigns" and that it was keeping an eye out for developing threats.

(Reporting by Raphael Satter; Additional reporting by David Ljunggren in Ottawa; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)

Tire Dust Makes Up the Majority of Ocean Microplastics, Study Finds

Lewin Day
Thu, September 28, 2023

Tire Dust Makes Up the Majority of Ocean Microplastics, Study Finds photo

When contemplating the emissions from road vehicles, our first thought is often about the various gases coming out of the tailpipe. However, new research shows that we should be more concerned with the harmful particles that are shed from tires and brakes.

Scientists have a good understanding of engine emissions, which typically consist of unburnt fuel, oxides of carbon and nitrogen, and particulate matter related to combustion. However, new research shared by Yale Environment 360 indicates that there may be a whole host of toxic chemicals being shed from tires and brakes that have been largely ignored until now. Even worse, these emissions may be so significant that they actually exceed those from a typical car's exhaust output.

A research paper published in 2020 highlighted the impact of tire pollution by examining the plight of coho salmon in West Coast streams. Scientists eventually identified a chemical called 6PPD, typically used in tire manufacturing to slow cracking and degradation. When exposed to ozone in the atmosphere, the chemical transforms into multiple other species, including 6PPD-quinone—which was found to be highly toxic to multiple fish, including coho salmon. The same chemical has since been detected in human urine, though any potential health impacts remain unknown.

The discovery of 6PPD-q and its impact has brought new scrutiny to the pollution generated by particles shedding from tires and brakes. In particular, tire rubber is made up of over 400 different chemical compounds, many of which are known to have negative effects on human health

.

New research efforts are only just beginning to reveal the impact of near-invisible tire and brake dust. A report from the Pew Charitable Trust found that 78 percent of ocean microplastics are from synthetic tire rubber. These toxic particles often end up ingested by marine animals, where they can cause neurological effects, behavioral changes, and abnormal growth.

Meanwhile, British firm Emissions Analytics spent three years studying tires. The group found that a single car's four tires collectively release 1 trillion "ultrafine" particles for every single kilometer (0.6 miles) driven. These particles, under 100 nanometers in size, are so tiny that they can pass directly through the lungs and into the blood. They can even cross the body's blood-brain barrier. The Imperial College London has also studied the issue, noting that "There is emerging evidence that tire wear particles and other particulate matter may contribute to a range of negative health impacts including heart, lung, developmental, reproductive, and cancer outcomes.”

It's an emissions problem that won't go away with the transition to EVs, either. According to data from Emissions Analytics, EVs tend to shed around 20 percent more from their tires due to their higher weight and high torque compared to traditional internal combustion engine-powered vehicles.

Indeed, the scale of these emissions is significant. Particulate emissions from tires and brakes, particularly in the PM2.5 and PM10 size ranges, are believed to exceed the mass of tailpipe emissions from modern vehicle fleets, as per a study published in Science of the Total Environment this year.

This issue has largely flown under the radar until recently. Tailpipe emissions are easy to study, simply requiring the capture or sensing of gases directly at the engine's exhaust. Capturing the fine particulates emitted from tires and brakes is altogether more difficult. Doing so in a way that accurately reflects the quantity of those emissions is yet harder. Such pollution is perhaps unlikely to have a direct impact on issues like climate change, but the potential toxicity for humans, animals, and the broader environment is a prime concern.

Regulators are already scrambling to tackle this issue, heretofore largely ignored by governments around the world. In the EU, the Euro 7 standards will regulate tire and brake emissions from 2025. In the U.S., the California EPA will require tire manufacturers to find an alternative chemical to 6PPD by 2024, to help reduce 6PPD-q entering the environment going forward. In turn, manufacturers are exploring everything from alternate tire compositions to special electrostatic methods to capture particulate output.

Expect this issue to gain greater prominence in coming years as regulators have more accurate data to act upon. There is great scope to slash this form of pollution if we properly understand the impacts of our cars in full.

OTD In Space - September 28: 

Canada Launches Its 1st Satellite

Space

Thu, September 28, 2023 

On Sept. 28, 1962, Canada launched its first satellite, Alouette 1. This made Canada the third country to build and launch its own satellite after the U.S. and the Soviet Union. Alouette 1 was designed to study Earth's ionosphere, which is a region in the upper atmosphere that is ionized by solar and cosmic radiation. The mission lasted 10 years before the satellite was decommissioned, but the derelict satellite is still orbiting the Earth.

UK
Energy secretary blames eco ‘zealots’ for climate change failures

Daniel Martin
Thu, September 28, 2023 

Claire Coutinho, who recently replaced Grant Shapps as Energy Secretary - SIMON WALKER/NO 10 DOWNING STREET


Eco “zealots” are the biggest threat to tackling climate change, the Energy Secretary has said.

In her first interview since taking the role last month, Claire Coutinho said voters in many European countries were “revolting” against net-zero policies because their leaders had pushed the issue too hard.

She told the Spectator, however, that she does not have a heat pump or an electric car and drives a second-hand Fiesta instead.

Ms Coutinho, a former aide to Rishi Sunak, was brought in as Energy Secretary to water down some of the more onerous net-zero commitments.

Last week, the Prime Minister announced he was delaying the 2030 petrol and diesel car ban by five years, as well as slowing down the phasing-out of gas boilers – while recommitting to the net-zero target of 2050.

Mainstream pushback

Earlier this week French president Emmanuel Macron followed suit, ruling out the banning of gas boilers in residential buildings.

Ms Coutinho said she believed her reforms would help save the net-zero commitment.

“The biggest threat to the cause isn’t the climate change deniers, it’s the zealots who are turning people off,” she said.

“Look at what’s happening in Europe: you can see the AfD [Alternative for Germany], a climate-sceptic party in Germany, at its highest point in decades.

“In the Netherlands, you have got the farmers’ party and in France, just yesterday, Macron said he is not going to ban boilers.”

She said her agenda was part of a mainstream pushback against climate hardliners – ensuring that the UK “won’t see some of the revolts that we’ve seen in the rest of Europe”.

Safeguarding the future

Ms Coutinho added: “I’ve worked with Rishi for a long time and I’ve talked to him about the environment and climate change.

“We are actually safeguarding the future of climate change policy. What you see in Europe is that lots of people are losing faith, they see it as something that politicians are doing to them.

“Clobbering them in their personal finances for a cause that they don’t completely understand because they see their emissions as much lower than other countries.”

The new Energy Secretary said she has not yet invested in an electric car herself, saying “I drive a second-hand Ford Fiesta.”

Similarly, she does not own a heat pump, though she did previously live in an off-gas grid home.

UAW President Fain says automakers are enabling attacks & hiring scabs; Stellantis ‘appalled’ by claims

DETROIT (FOX 2) - We are now two weeks into the UAW strike and President Shawn Fain says recent outbursts of violence where striking members have been hurt is the fault of General Motors and Stellantis, two of Detroit's Big Three automakers.

In a recorded message posted to YouTube and titled 'Corporate Violence', Fain cited three recent outbursts where union members have been hurt or threatened.

The first was a Flint-area GM plant where a non-union contractor hit five striking members, sending two people to the hospital. The second was in Massachusetts where a member and state senator were hit by cars outside of a Stellantis parts depot. The third was in Ontario, California, where two members reported having guns pulled on them by non-union members who were crossing the line.

"These members and allies are in our thoughts and we condemn this violence that GM and Stellantis are enabling. These attacks on our members exercising their constitutional rights to strike and picket will not be tolerated," Fain said. "Shame on these companies for hiring violent scabs to try to break our strike."

Fain said this is an attack on every worker who chooses to stand up and fight for a better future.

"Fighting for economic and social justice isn't a crime. It's our civic duty. It's our sacred right. That's why we are inviting the public to join us in the picket lines in this fight," he said.

As the days mount on the strike, tensions between the UAW and automakers are growing.

Striking UAW members fight man outside Stellantis plant claiming he yelled racial slurs

Stellantis said it was appalled by the allegations and that violence has escalated from UAW picketers to non-union workers.

"We are appalled by the UAW’s characterization of the incidents occurring on the picket lines. Since the UAW expanded its strike to our parts distribution centers last Friday, we’ve witnessed an escalation of dangerous, and even violent, behavior by UAW picketers at several of those facilities, including slashing truck tires, jumping on vehicles, following people home and hurling racial slurs at dedicated Stellantis employees who are merely crossing the picket line to do their jobs. The fact is, Stellantis has not hired any outside replacement workers, who Shawn Fain calls "scabs". Only current employees who are protecting our business and third parties making pick-ups and deliveries as they normally would are entering our facilities," the company said.

Stellantis said that the union was aware of all of this and called his statements inflammatory, which will only escalate things further.

"We are extremely disappointed in the UAW leadership’s lack of ownership in this area, and we call on Shawn Fain and the entire UAW leadership to do its part to help ensure the safety of all Stellantis employees, including those on the picket line. Words matter. The deliberate use of inflammatory and violent rhetoric is dangerous and needs to stop," Stellantis said. "The companies are not ‘the enemy and we are not at ’war'. We respect our employees' right to advocate for their position, including their right to peacefully picket. But the violence must stop. We have put a record offer on the table and are working hard to reach an agreement as quickly as possible, which will enable us to go back to work... together. Let's make every effort to de-escalate our words and our actions until then."

The UAW and Fain have called on, so far, more than 18,000 UAW workers across 41 facilities to strike against Detroit's Big Three. Many of those 41 facilities are GM and Stellantis plants, which were announced last Friday by Fain due to those two companies not making "serious progress" in talks with the union.

Fain will speak Friday morning at 10 and is widely expected to announce more striking locations unless serious progress is made in talks.

Ford, on the other hand, has come to an agreement with the union on job security and reinstated cost of living adjustments that were suspended in 2009. Because of this, the UAW will not call on more Ford employees to strike.

UAW strike update: These plants joined the picket line Friday

After General Motors and Stellantis failed to make sufficient progress with the UAW, the union called on all the automakers' parts distribution facilities to strike. This includes 38 facilities across 20 states.

"To be clear, we're not done at Ford. We still have serious issues to work through, but we do want to recognize Ford is showing its serious about reaching a deal. At GM and Stellantis, it's a different story," he said.

After Fain's announcement, Ford issued a statement saying that there was still a lot of work to do.

"Ford is working diligently with the UAW to reach a deal that rewards our workforce and enables Ford to invest in a vibrant and growing future. Although we are making progress in some areas, we still have significant gaps to close on the key economic issues. In the end, the issues are interconnected and must work within an overall agreement that supports our mutual success," Ford said.

Ford has come to an agreement with the union on job security and reinstated cost of living adjustments (COLA) that were suspended in 2009. Because of this, the UAW will not call on more Ford employees to strike.

Canada Nazi row puts spotlight on Ukraine's WWII past

Nadine Yousif - BBC News, Toronto
Fri, September 29, 2023 

A photo of Heinrich Himmler meeting soldiers in the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS

When Canada's parliament praised a Ukrainian war veteran who fought with Nazi Germany, a renewed spotlight was put on a controversial part of Ukraine's history and its memorialisation in Canada.

Yaroslav Hunka, the Ukrainian veteran who was applauded in parliament this week, served with a Nazi unit called the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS - also known as the Galicia Division - that was formed in 1943.

His appearance was criticised by Jewish groups and other parliamentarians alike. MP Anthony Rota, who invited him, has since resigned as the Speaker of the House of Commons, saying he deeply regretted the mistake.

Praise for Nazi veteran 'embarrassing' - Trudeau

But this is not the first time that Ukraine's role in WWII has sparked a debate in Canada, which is home to the largest Ukrainian diaspora outside of Europe.

Several monuments dedicated to Ukrainian WWII veterans who served in the Galicia Division exist across the country. Jewish groups have long denounced these dedications, arguing soldiers in the Galicia Division swore allegiance to Adolf Hitler, and were either complicit in Nazi Germany's crimes or had committed crimes themselves.

But for some Ukrainians, these veterans are viewed as freedom fighters, who only fought alongside the Nazis to resist the Soviets in their quest for an independent Ukraine.
A contentious history

The Galicia Division was a part of the Waffen-SS, a Nazi military unit that on the whole was found to have been involved in numerous atrocities, including the massacring of Jewish civilians.

During the war, more than one million Jews in Ukraine were killed, mostly between 1941 and 1942. Most of them were shot to death near their homes by Nazi Germans and their collaborators.

The Galicia Division has been accused of committing war crimes, but its members have never been found guilty in a court of law.

Jewish groups have condemned Canadian monuments to Ukrainian veterans who fought in the Waffen-SS, saying they are "a glorification and celebration of those who actively participated in Holocaust crimes".

A controversial sculpture of Ukrainian soldier Roman Shukhevych, located near the Ukrainian Youth Association in Edmonton

One such monument sits in a private Ukrainian cemetery in Oakville, Ontario, and features the insignia of the Galicia Division. Another was put up by Ukrainian WWII veterans in Edmonton, Alberta.

A third, also in Edmonton, depicts the bust of Roman Shukhevych, a Ukrainian nationalist leader and Nazi collaborator, whose units are accused of massacring Jews and Poles.

Shukhevych's involvement, however, is a matter of debate and he was not a member of the Galicia Division.

The monuments, which date back to the 1970s and 80s, have all been vandalised in recent years, with the word "Nazi" painted across them in red.
Why is there disagreement on what the monuments stand for?

It goes back to Ukraine's history in the war, as well as the make-up of Canada's large Ukrainian diaspora, said David Marples, a professor of eastern European history at the University of Alberta.

During WWII, millions of Ukrainians served in the Soviet Red Army, but thousands of others fought on the German side under the Galicia Division.

Those who fought with Germany believed it would grant them an independent state free from Soviet rule, Prof Marples said.

At the time, Ukrainians resented the Soviets for their role in the Great Ukrainian Famine of 1932-33, also known as Holodomor, which killed an estimated five million Ukrainians.

Far-right ideologies were also gaining traction in most European countries in the 1930s - including the UK - and Ukraine was no exception, said Prof Marples.

Following the defeat of Germany, some of the Galicia Division soldiers were allowed entry to Canada after surrendering to the Allied forces - a move that was resisted by Jewish groups at the time.

Some Canadians of Ukrainian descent view these soldiers and the broader Galicia Division as "national heroes" who fought for the country's independence.

They also argue that their collaboration with Nazi Germany was short-lived, and that they, including Shukhevych, had eventually fought both the Soviets and the Germans for a free Ukraine.

But the Jewish community views this differently.

"The bottom line is that this unit, the 14th SS unit, were Nazis," B'nai Brith Canada leader Michael Mostyn told the BBC.

Canada has reckoned with this history in the past through a commission in 1985, which was tasked with investigating allegations that Canada had become a haven for Nazi war criminals.

A report released by the commission the following year concluded that there is no evidence tying Ukrainians who fought with Nazi Germany to specific war crimes.

And the "mere membership in the Galicia Division is insufficient to justify prosecution," the report added.

The report's findings have since been contested by Jewish groups and some historians.

Roman Shukhevych (sitting, second from left) shown in Bataillon 201 in 1942

Prof Marples said that at the time of the report, some WWII archives in Ukraine and Russia were not accessible and have since become public, prompting renewed research on the issue.

It was then revealed through this additional research that some of those who served within the Galicia Division were involved in war crimes, he said, although none were ever convicted.

Russian disinformation targets Ukraine's history

As this historical debate entered the 21st century, it was made more complicated by modern Russian propaganda, which falsely labelled the Ukrainian government as Nazis to justify its invasion of the country.

Prof Marples said that while far-right extremism still exists in Ukraine, it is much smaller than what Russian propaganda tries to make people believe.

And Ukrainian elected officials are not tied to any far-right group in the country.

"Russia has greatly simplified the narrative," Prof Marples said.

Ukrainian groups in Canada say the row over monuments and Mr Hunka's appearance in parliament is the result of this propaganda.

As far back as 2017, before the invasion but when Russia-Ukraine tensions were high, the Russian embassy in Canada criticized the existence of Ukrainian monuments in Canada, accusing them of paying tribute to "Nazi collaborators".

Taras Podilsky, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian Youth Unity Complex in Edmonton that houses the bust of Shukhevych, said Mr Hunka's swift renunciation by Canadian politicians is the latest effect of Russia's disinformation campaign.

He added there is no evidence linking the veteran to war crimes.

"Without any due process, this person is a victim of a Russian narrative that has now been successful," Mr Podilsky said.

Mr Mostyn of B'nai Brith said he acknowledged the complicated nature of this history, especially to some within the Ukrainian diaspora.

But he said any ties to Nazism "is not something that we can allow future generations to celebrate or whitewash".

More broadly, Holocaust scholars have called out several eastern European countries in recent years for downplaying their role in the massacre of Jewish people during WWII.

Both Jewish groups in Canada and Canadians of Ukrainian descent behind these monuments said they have had conversations about the issue.

However, both said they were unable to agree on a path forward.

"It is on our own private property, it is not on public property, and it is for us to have a symbol of Ukrainian freedom," Mr Podilsky said of the Shukhevych bust in Edmonton. "We know there was no wrongdoing."

Mr Mostyn said that, to him, the recent episode in Canada's House of Commons shows that there are gaps when it comes to Canada's knowledge of Nazi history.

"We have a situation in Canada where we don't know our own history when it comes to Nazi perpetrators that made their way into this country," he said.

He and others within the Jewish community in Canada have called for a renewed examination of this history.

"It really is important that leadership be shown at the highest level by our prime minister, to finally open this up, because this is something that Jewish community has been demanding for decades."

‘Canada has a dark history with Nazis’: political scandal prompts reckoning

Leyland Cecco in Toronto

THE GUARDIAN
Fri, September 29, 2023

Photograph: AFP/Getty Images


Standing in the House of Commons this week, Canada’s prime minister, Justin Trudeau, apologized after a war veteran who fought alongside the Nazis was invited into the country’s parliament, called a “hero” and celebrated with two standing ovations.

Trudeau said all lawmakers “regret deeply” having stood and clapped – “even though we [did] so unaware of the context”, adding that the event was a disservice to the memory of millions “targeted by the Nazi genocide”.

Related: Canada parliament speaker resigns after calling Ukrainian Nazi veteran a ‘hero’

“Every year there are fewer and fewer Holocaust survivors to share firsthand the horrors of what they experienced,” said Trudeau. “And it is therefore incumbent upon us all to ensure that no one ever forgets what happened.”

But the momentary amnesia – a forgetfulness seemingly shared by all lawmakers who applauded that day – has transformed into a costly political scandal and prompted a broader re-examination of the legacy of Nazi-linked Ukrainian groups in Canada.

During the second world war, Ukraine was one of the main battlefields of the eastern front. About 4.5 million Ukrainians fought in the Red Army; far fewer – approximately 250,000 – aligned themselves with Nazi Germany. Some factions at different times fought both Soviet and German forces; some were involved in the mass killing of Ukrainian Jews.

Yaroslav Hunka, the 98-year-old veteran lauded in Canada’s parliament, was a member of the SS 14th Waffen Division, a volunteer unit also known as the “Galicia Division”.

Towards the end of the second world war, the group was also known as the First Ukrainian Division of the Ukrainian National Army, which in the following years had the effect of obscuring its links to the Nazi regime.

Yaroslav Hunka, the 98-year-old veteran who was lauded in Canada’s parliament. Photograph: Patrick Doyle/AP

After the war, thousands of Ukrainians moved to Canada, and many who had lived through Stalin’s terror and the ensuing mass starvation held strongly anti-Soviet views. But possible links and sympathies to the Nazis were largely overlooked as the cold war set in, said Ivan Katchanovski, a political scientist at the University of Ottawa.

Despite the Galicia Division’s links to war crimes, a cenotaph celebrating the unit was erected in Canada’s largest Ukrainian cemetery. The memorial has long been source of frustration for Polish and Jewish groups. In June 2020 the words “Nazi war monument” were spray-painted on the cenotaph.

“The group, and the memorials to the fighters, have really escaped scrutiny because so few people know the First Ukrainian Division was just a different name for the SS 14th Waffen Division. And this was one of the reasons, unfortunately, why no one raised the issue in the parliament last week,” said Katchanovski.

When he took the stage of Canada’s parliament a week ago, Zelenskiy praised the city of Edmonton for being the first place in the world to erect a commemoration of the Holodomor famine, a deliberate policy from the Soviet Union which killed millions of Ukrainians.

Five miles north, a bust of the Ukrainian military leader Roman Shukhevych atop a stone plinth has long outraged Jewish and Polish groups. Shukhevych, who fought for Ukrainian independence, served with the Nazis and is believed to have been a perpetrator of massacres in Volhynia and eastern Galicia.

Diplomats from Poland and Israel condemned a similar memorial in Ukraine recently, alleging Shukhevych was responsible for the murder of tens of thousands “by bullets, fire, rape, torture and other beastly methods – only because they prayed to God in Polish or Hebrew”.

While many Canadians may have been surprised to learn of statues venerating such figures, these monuments have long been a “painful source of tension” for the Jewish community, said Dan Panneton at the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Centre.

“I feel like a lot of people are only now learning truly how deep this pain goes. But the reality is, the monuments are on private property. And over the years, we’ve seen a reluctance with specific, nationalistic facets of the community to engage with negative aspects of Nazi collaboration and participation in the Holocaust.”

The row over Hunka’s invitation has also reopened debate over the hundreds of suspected war criminals who settled in the country.

“Canada has a really dark history with Nazis in Canada,” the immigration minister, Marc Miller, told reporters ahead of the prime minister’s apology. “There was a point in our history where it was easier to get [into Canada] as a Nazi than it was as a Jewish person. I think that’s a history we have to reconcile.”

Prominent Jewish groups, including the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Centre, have called for all records about the admittance of former Nazi soldiers to be made public, including the entirety of a landmark 1986 report on war criminals evading justice within Canada.

The 1985 Commission of Inquiry on War Criminals in Canada, colloquially known as the Deschênes Commission, probed whether the country was a haven for war criminals and Nazi sympathizers. The commission was prompted in part, by reports that the Nazi doctor Josef Mengele had attempted to immigrate to Canada in the early 1960s.

But only redacted portions of the report have been released over the years, omitting an appendix with the names of 240 alleged Nazi war criminals who might be living in Canada.

“Charges of war crimes against members of the Galicia Division have never been substantiated,” said the final report. The federal government has only prosecuted four individuals of war crimes – but none of those attempts have ended in conviction. Due to the secretive nature of the report’s contents, it remains unclear how much the government investigated other individuals suspected of war crimes.

“Remembering the Holocaust means not just remembering the victims,” David Matas of B’nai Brith Canada wrote in a recent editorial. “It means also remembering their murderers.”

The scandal over a standing ovation for a Nazi veteran is now raising questions about a cemetery monument in Canada that honors his Waffen SS unit

Matthew Loh
Fri, September 29, 2023 at 2:24 AM MDT·3 min read
107



The scandal over a standing ovation for a Nazi veteran is now raising questions about a cemetery monument in Canada that honors his Waffen SS unit


Canada's parliament accidentally applauded a 98-year-old Nazi veteran on Friday.

The gaffe rekindled calls for a monument honoring his unit to be removed from a Canadian cemetery.

Yaroslav Hunka served in the 14th Waffen SS Division, a voluntary unit of mostly Ukrainians.

The Canadian parliament's standing ovation for a Ukrainian war veteran who turned out to be a former fighter for Nazi Germany has reignited calls to take down a monument honoring his unit.

Yaroslav Hunka, 98, who served in the voluntary 14th Grenadier Division of the Waffen SS, was applauded as a war hero by Canadian leaders on Friday without them realizing he actually fought in a Nazi unit.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has since apologized for the gaffe, calling it "deeply embarrassing." Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was visiting Canada's parliament at the time of the standing ovation.

Now a monument honoring Hunka's unit in Oakville's St Volodymyr Ukrainian Cemetery is under fire again after his appearance made headlines.

"It's unacceptable to have monuments dedicated to a unit affiliated with the SS because they were complicit in the Holocaust," Dan Panneton, director of allyship and community engagement from the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies, told the Canadian media outlet Global News.

The monument, located around 25 miles from Toronto, is a centograph that was erected in remembrance of those who fought for the 14th SS Division, also known as the Galicia Division.

It was vandalized with graffiti in 2020, when someone spray-painted the words "Nazi war monument" on its face, reported The Ottawa Citizen.

The monument was one of several brought up by the Russian Embassy in Ottawa in 2017, which complained that the structures honored "Nazi collaborators in Canada and nobody is doing anything about it."


These monuments in Canada have been controversial. Jewish groups like B'nai Brith Canada are lobbying to have them removed, calling them "Nazi-glorifying monuments."

But some Ukrainians who moved to Canada believe those who joined the Galicia Division were doing so because they thought they were fighting to free their country from Soviet rule, David Marples, professor of Eastern European history at the University of Alberta, told the BBC.

Jewish groups in Canada disagree. "The bottom line is that this unit, the 14th SS unit, were Nazis," B'nai Brith Canada leader Michael Mostyn told the outlet.

Marples noted that modern Russia has seized upon the narrative of some Ukrainian allyship with Nazi Germany to incorrectly say that modern Ukraine is now run by Nazis. "Russia has greatly simplified the narrative," Marples said, per the BBC.

The Galicia Division, of which Hunka was a part of, has been accused of committing war crimes, including the slaughter of hundreds of Polish civilians. Its members have not been convicted in court, though records continue to surface of the slaughter.

It was a voluntary unit formed in 1943 by Nazi Germany and mainly consisted of men of Ukrainian or Slovak descent.

Meanwhile, a Polish minister said on Tuesday that he has "taken steps" to extradite Hunka from Canada and to prosecute him in Poland.

Trudeau apologises for inviting Waffen-SS Galicia Division veteran to Canadian Parliament

Ukrainska Pravda
Wed, September 27, 2023



Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau apologised on Wednesday, 27 September, on behalf of the state for inviting a veteran of the SS Galicia division to the Canadian Parliament during the visit of Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Source: European Pravda, referring to CBC

Details: In a brief statement to reporters, Trudeau said he and all those present in Canada's parliament "deeply regret having stood by and applauded" 98-year-old SS Galicia veteran Yaroslav Hunka.

"It was a horrendous violation of the memory of the millions of people who died in the Holocaust," he said, adding that Yaroslav Hunka's celebration was "deeply, deeply painful" to Jews, Poles, Roma, the LGBT community, and other groups that were exterminated by the Nazi regime during the Second World War.

In addition, Zelenskyy, who was on a visit to Ottawa, was pictured applauding for Hunka, and Russian propagandists have used this image to their advantage. Trudeau added that "Canada is deeply sorry" for the incident.

Earlier, Anthony Rota, the Speaker of the House of Commons, the lower house of the Parliament of Canada, announced his resignation over the scandal involving the invitation of the 98-year-old veteran.

Reference: The Waffen-SS Galicia Division was formed in 1943 by German troops who recruited Ukrainians to fight against the Red Army. The Nuremberg trials and the so-called Deschênes Commission, set up in Canada in the 1980s, did not confirm the involvement of the division's members in war crimes. Nevertheless, the division has been blamed for punitive Wehrmacht operations against Poles and Jews.

Trudeau Apologizes to Zelenskiy Over Parliament’s Nazi Invite

Brian Platt
Wed, September 27, 2023 at 12:48 PM MDT·1 min 



(Bloomberg) -- Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his country is “deeply sorry” for putting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in the position of unknowingly applauding a veteran who served in a Nazi unit.

“This was a mistake that has deeply embarrassed parliament and Canada,” Trudeau told reporters on Wednesday.

“I also want to reiterate how deeply sorry Canada is for the situation this put President Zelenskiy and the Ukrainian delegation in,” he said. “It is extremely troubling to think that this egregious error is being politicized by Russia and its supporters to provide false propaganda about what Ukraine is fighting for.”

The veteran, 98-year-old Yaroslav Hunka, had been invited to sit in the parliamentary gallery during Zelenskiy’s speech on Friday. Anthony Rota, the speaker of the House of Commons, issued the invitation and introduced Hunka as a Ukrainian Second World War veteran “who fought for Ukrainian independence against the Russians.”

It was later revealed Hunka served with the 1st Galician division, a unit of the German military’s Waffen-SS.

The story was quickly pounced on by Russian diplomats and state-controlled media. Russian President Vladimir Putin has sought to justify his invasion of Ukraine as aiming to “de-Nazify” the country, even though Zelenskiy himself is Jewish.

Rota profusely apologized for the invitation, stressing that neither Trudeau nor Zelenskiy was aware of it ahead of time. On Tuesday, Rota announced he would resign as speaker over the fiasco.

Trudeau said everyone who stood and applauded Hunka “did so unaware of the context.”

“It was a horrendous violation of the memory of the millions of people who died in the Holocaust, and it was deeply, deeply painful for Jewish people.”

Trudeau apologizes for recognition of Nazi unit war veteran in Canadian Parliament

ROB GILLIES
Updated Wed, September 27, 2023 at 3:05 PM MDT·2 min read
33

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau apologizes for the events surrounding Ukraine President Volodomyr Zelenskyy's visit at a media availability in Ottawa, Ontario, on Wednesday, Sept. 27, 2023. Trudeau apologized Wednesday for Parliament’s recognition of Yaroslav Hunka, who fought alongside the Nazis during last week’s address by Zelenskyy.

 (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)


TORONTO (AP) — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau apologized Wednesday for Parliament’s recognition of a man who fought alongside the Nazis during last week’s address by Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Trudeau said the speaker of the House of Commons, who resigned Tuesday, was “solely responsible” for the invitation and recognition of the man but said it was a mistake that has deeply embarrassed Parliament and Canada.

“All of us who were in the House on Friday regret deeply having stood and clapped, even though we did so unaware of the context,” Trudeau said before he entering the House of Commons. “It was a horrendous violation of the memory of the millions of people who died in the Holocaust, and was deeply, deeply painful for Jewish people.”

Trudeau repeated the apology in Parliament.

Just after Zelenskyy delivered an address in the House of Commons on Friday, Canadian lawmakers gave 98-year-old Yaroslav Hunka a standing ovation when Speaker Anthony Rota drew attention to him. Rota introduced Hunka as a war hero who fought for the First Ukrainian Division.

Observers over the weekend began to publicize the fact that the First Ukrainian Division also was known as the Waffen-SS Galicia Division, or the SS 14th Waffen Division, a voluntary unit that was under the command of the Nazis.

“It is extremely troubling to think that this egregious error is being politicized by Russia, and its supporters, to provide false propaganda about what Ukraine is fighting for," Trudeau said.

In Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said earlier this week that the standing ovation for Hunka was “outrageous," and he called it the result of a “sloppy attitude" toward remembering the Nazi regime. Russian President Vladimir Putin has painted his enemies in Ukraine as “neo-Nazis,” although Zelenskyy is Jewish and lost relatives in the Holocaust.

Speaker of the House Anthony Rota stepped down on Tuesday after meeting with the House of Commons’ party leaders, and after all of the main opposition parties called on him to resign.

House government leader Karina Gould said that Rota invited and recognized Hunka without informing the government or the delegation from Ukraine, and that his lack of due diligence had broken the trust of lawmakers.

In an earlier apology on Sunday, Rota said he alone was responsible for inviting and recognizing Hunka, who is from the district that Rota represents. The speaker’s office said it was Hunka’s son who contacted Rota’s local office to see if it was possible if he could attend Zelenskyy’s speech.

The Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies has called the incident "a stain on our country’s venerable legislature with profound implications both in Canada and globally.”

Trudeau apologizes for ‘embarassing’ celebration of Ukrainian veteran who fought for Nazi unit in World War II

Paula Newton, CNN
Wed, September 27, 2023 at 5:26 PM MDT·2 min read


Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau formally apologized on behalf of Canada’s parliament Wednesday, referring to the “deeply embarrassing” incident last week that saw the chamber applaud a Ukrainian veteran who fought for a Nazi military unit during World War II.

“This was a mistake that has deeply embarrassed parliament and Canada. All of us who were in this House on Friday regret deeply having stood and clapped, even though we did so unaware of the context,” said Trudeau in a media briefing in Ottawa Wednesday.

Trudeau also recognized diplomatic damage done to the visiting Ukrainian delegation in attendance that day, which included Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

“I also want to reiterate how deeply sorry Canada is for the situation this put President Zelensky and the Ukrainian delegation in. It is extremely troubling to think that this egregious error is being politicized by Russia and its supporters to provide false propaganda about what Ukraine is fighting for,” he said.

On Friday, following an address by Zelensky, House of Commons speaker Anthony Rota lauded veteran Yaroslav Hunka as a Ukrainian-Canadian war hero who “fought for Ukrainian independence against the Russian aggressors then, and continues to support the troops today.”

Hunka, 98, received an extended standing ovation.

But in the days since, human rights and Jewish organizations have said that Hunka served in a Nazi military unit known as the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS.

The 14th Waffen Grenadier Division was part of the Nazi SS organization declared a criminal organization by the International Military Tribunal in Nuremberg in 1946, which determined the Nazi group had committed war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Jewish human rights organization B’nai Brith Canada in a statement condemned the Ukrainian volunteers who served in the unit as “ultra-nationalist ideologues” who “dreamed of an ethnically homogenous Ukrainian state and endorsed the idea of ethnic cleansing.”

Rota has resigned his post amid the fallout, and Poland’s Minister of Education has published a letter saying that he is taking steps towards Hunka’s possible extradition.

Poland's Foreign Ministry calls SS Galicia veteran's appearance at Canadian Parliament shameful
Ukrainska Pravda
Wed, September 27, 2023 



Polish Deputy Foreign Minister Arkadiusz Mularczyk has described the honouring of Yaroslav Hunka, a 98-year-old veteran of the Waffen-SS Galicia division, by the Canadian Parliament as shameful.

Source: European Pravda, citing the Polish press agency PAP

Details: "The Canadian parliament's honouring of a Ukrainian who fought in the ranks of the SS Galicia division was shameful and indicates a great lack of knowledge about the Second World War," Mularczyk said.

"It is shameful that the officials of the Canadian Parliament were not aware of the historical facts regarding the Waffen-SS. This is a clear demonstration of gaps in the knowledge of the history of the Second World War," he added.


Mularczyk said that when he travels abroad, he often encounters a lack of understanding of what went on in Eastern Europe during the Second World War.

"Few people know about Poland's losses and the fact that Poland did not receive compensation for them," the diplomat said.

"I am saddened by the lack of knowledge that has occurred in Canada," Mularczyk said. He noted, however, that the overall situation could help Canada become an ally of Poland in seeking reparations from Germany.

Reminder:

Anthony Rota, the Speaker of the House of Commons, the lower house of the Parliament of Canada, announced his resignation on Tuesday amid the scandal involving the invitation of 98-year-old Yaroslav Hunka to Parliament for President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s speech last week.

The Speaker was called on to resign by colleagues and members of the government after it emerged that he had invited 98-year-old Yaroslav Hunka to Parliament during Zelenskyy's visit to Canada last week. Rota presented him as a World War II veteran who fought against the Russians.

Ukrainska Pravda is the place where you will find the most up-to-date information about everything related to the war in Ukraine. 

Canada House Speaker resigns after celebrating Ukrainian veteran who fought for Nazi unit in World War II
Paula Newton, CNN
Wed, September 27, 2023

Speaker of the Canadian House of Commons Anthony Rota resigned his post Tuesday, days after he praised a Ukrainian veteran who fought for a Nazi military unit during World War II.

On Friday, following a joint address to parliament by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Rota lauded Yaroslav Hunka, 98, as a Ukrainian-Canadian war hero who “fought for Ukrainian independence against the Russian aggressors then, and continues to support the troops today.”

But in the days since, human rights and Jewish organizations have condemned Rota’s recognition, saying Hunka served in a Nazi military unit known as the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS.

“This house is above any of us, therefore I must step down as your speaker,” Rota said in parliament Tuesday afternoon, reiterating his “profound regret for my error.”

“That public recognition has caused pain to individuals and communities, including the Jewish community in Canada and around the world, in addition to survivors of Nazi atrocities in Poland, among other nations,” Rota, who is a member of the Liberal party, added. “I accept full responsibility for my actions.”

Rota’s recognition of Hunka last week prompted a standing ovation. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has called the incident “deeply embarrassing.”

The 14th Waffen Grenadier Division was part of the Nazi SS organization declared a criminal organization by the International Military Tribunal in Nuremberg in 1946, which determined the Nazi group had committed war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Jewish human rights organization B’nai Brith Canada in a statement condemned the Ukrainian volunteers who served in the unit as “ultra-nationalist ideologues” who “dreamed of an ethnically homogenous Ukrainian state and endorsed the idea of ethnic cleansing.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky shakes hands with House of Commons Speaker Anthony Rota as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau looks on last Friday in Ottawa.

 - Dave Chan/AFP via Getty Images

Recognizing Hunka was “beyond outrageous,” B’nai Brith Canada CEO Michael Mostyn said, adding, “We cannot allow the whitewashing of history.”

“Canadian soldiers fought and died to free the world from the evils of Nazi brutality,” he said.

Rota apologized in a statement Sunday and on the floor of parliament Tuesday, when he said he had “become aware of more information which causes me to regret my decision to recognize this individual.”

Rota took full responsibility, saying it was his decision alone to acknowledge Hunka, who Rota said is from his electoral district.

“No one – not even anyone among you, fellow parliamentarians, or from the Ukrainian delegation – was privy to my intention or my remarks prior to their delivery,” he said.