'Moderate Saudi Arabia': crown prince shakes up kingdom

Yahoo – AFP, Anuj Chopra, October 25, 2017

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman attends the Future Investment Initiative
conference in Riyadh on October 24, 2017 (AFP Photo/FAYEZ NURELDINE)

Riyadh (AFP) - Unveiling blueprints for a futuristic landscape with robots and driverless cars, Saudi Arabia's young crown prince outlined his most emphatic vision yet to transform the ultra-conservative kingdom as he sought to charm investors.

In a rare public appearance Tuesday at an investor summit in Riyadh -- dubbed "Davos in the desert" -- Mohammed bin Salman pledged a "moderate" Saudi Arabia, long seen as an exporter of a brand of puritanical Islam espoused by jihadists worldwide.

The speech came as the 32-year-old prince oversees reforms that mark the biggest cultural and economic shake-up in the kingdom's modern history, while sidelining powerful clergy who have long dominated the public discourse.

"We will not spend the next 30 years of our lives dealing with destructive ideas. We will destroy them today and at once," Prince Mohammed told global business titans gathered in a chandelier-studded ballroom for the Future Investment Initiative.

MBS, as he is well known, promised his kingdom will return to "what we were before -- a country of moderate Islam that is tolerant of all religions and to the world".

His comment, while unveiling plans for a $500 billion development zone spread on the kingdom's western coast, chimes with his public image of a bold liberal reformer in a conservative country where more than half the population is under 25.

"I think this is the clearest articulation we've heard so far about where the crown prince plans to take Saudi," Lori Boghardt, from the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, told AFP.

"It's clear the crown prince is set on dramatically transforming the kingdom. This especially includes a quieter and less influential ultraconservative religious sphere."

Participants watch a film advertising Saudi Arabia's Red Sea project on the sidelines 

of the three-day Future Investment Initiatives conference in Riyadh, on October 25, 

2017 (AFP Photo/FAYEZ NURELDINE)

'Laggards and reactionaries'

The vision of creating a "moderate Saudi Arabia" is fraught with risks and could trigger a backlash from conservatives.

Last month a royal decree said women would be allowed to drive. The kingdom is also expected to lift a public ban on cinemas and has encouraged mixed-gender celebrations -- something unseen before.

The government recently set up an Islamic centre tasked with certifying the sayings of the Prophet Mohammed in a stated bid to curb extremist texts.

The government appears to have clipped the wings of the once-feared religious police -- long accused of harassing the public with rigid Islamic mores -- who have all but disappeared from big cities.

Some conservative clerics -- who for years staunchly opposed more social liberties for women -- have backpedalled and come out in favour of the decree allowing them to drive.

"MBS has been working hard behind the scenes to bring the conservatives along and he has succeeded with a material number of them," said Ali Shihabi, director of the Washington-based Arabia Foundation think tank.

"There will always be laggards and reactionaries but his drive and strength combined with a substantial constituency among the young for change has created the space for him to move down this road."

'Only dreamers are welcome'

In tandem with reforms, Prince Mohammed has been shoring up power and over the summer carried out a wave of arrests in a crackdown on dissenters, including influential clerics and some liberals.

"One element that's not part of the transformation drive is more tolerance of political differences and differences in opinion about the directions Saudi should take," said Boghardt.

"The crown prince has made this clear."

Foreign and Saudi investors attended the Future Investment Initiative conference

in Riyadh, on October 24, 2017 (AFP Photo/FAYEZ NURELDINE)

But a common refrain among his proponents is that it is impossible to attain consensus as he carries out reforms on a scale that are unprecedented in the country's modern history.

Inside the Future Investment Initiative at Riyadh's Ritz Carlton, a palatial hotel originally planned as a palace for guests of the royal family, the kingdom sought to display its massive transformation as it opens up its economy and seeks to diversify away from oil.

The $500 billion economic zone straddling Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt will be spread over 26,500 square kilometres, Prince Mohammed said, in a slick marketing pitch to investors.

In a promotional video featuring the project -- dubbed NEOM, women were seen jogging in sports bras and working alongside men in laboratories, an image that contrasts with the country's notorious dress code.

At the conference itself, some delegates including foreigners marvelled at how many of the female participants were dressed in business attire and no headscarf -- something not commonly seen in public spaces in Riyadh two years ago.

Some government officials have likened Saudi Arabia's reform drive to a fast-moving bus -- either people get on board or risk being left behind.

"Only dreamers are welcome to join," Prince Mohammed said as he unveiled plans for NEOM.

Some experts say his reforms symbolise too much change happening too quickly.

"Or you might say he is doing too little too late?" said Stephen Potter, vice president of the Chicago-based Northern Trust Company, who attended the presentation.

"We all agree change is necessary. Some change is better than no change."

Obama returns to political arena for key governor races

Yahoo – AFP, Sébastien BLANC, October 19, 2017

Former US president Barack Obama is making a return to the political arena with
planned appearances at campaign rallies for two Democratic gubernatorial
candidates (AFP Photo/Pablo Gasparini)

Richmond (United States) (AFP) - Barack Obama is returning to the political arena for the first time in months after keeping a low profile and avoiding direct confrontation with his White House successor.

The 56-year-old former president is scheduled to attend campaign rallies in New Jersey and Virginia on Thursday to support Democratic party candidates for governor.

Voters in both states will decide the gubernatorial contests on November 7, one year after Donald Trump defeated Democrat Hillary Clinton and stormed into the White House on a wave of anti-establishment fury.

The races are a potential indicator of voter sentiment ahead of the 2018 midterm elections, which will be a major test for Trump and his Republican party.

Political science professor Larry Sabato said the New Jersey and Virginia governor races are the only "big elections" for 2017.

"What's at stake is bragging rights headed into the 2018 midterm elections," Sabato told AFP.

It is unclear what Obama's message will be. The former US leader has remained largely detached from the political debate since leaving office on January 20, in keeping with presidential tradition.

Trump has meanwhile used his first nine months in the White House to methodically demolish key Obama administration policies.

After three months of vacation Obama began writing his memoirs. He has said little in public and granted almost no interviews.

The few times Obama broke his silence was to comment on issues of national importance, such as immigration, health care and climate change.

But the 44th president may be tempted on Thursday to take aim at Trump, who has frequently and publicly excoriated his predecessor.

Test for Trump

In New Jersey, the post of governor will almost certainly go to Democrat Philip Murphy, who would succeed Chris Christie, a Trump ally whose popularity has plummeted to record lows.

New Jersey "is a runaway win for the Democrats, so Virginia is the only competitive contest. Obama is needed much more in Richmond than Trenton," said Sabato, referring to the capitals of the two states.

Virginia is a pivotal state and the only southern US state that Clinton won in 2016. Its importance is amplified by its proximity to the US capital.

"If the GOP loses in Virginia, Trump will be widely blamed since he is so unpopular in a state carried by Hillary Clinton," Sabato said.

"Should the Republicans win Virginia's governorship, then Trump will not be viewed as such a liability for the GOP in 2018."

In Richmond, Obama will back Ralph Northam, a former military doctor who was credited Wednesday with a slight lead over Republican Ed Gillespie in a Quinnipiac poll.

Obama's impending arrival in the city of over 220,000 people sparked long lines of people seeking tickets.

More than six hours ahead of the event, Washington student Lucas Anderton was in the queue.

"It's important for me, he's my hero and so it's nice to see him out in the battle again," Anderton said.

"The Hillary Clinton era lost a lot of the Democratic base that Obama had built up, so hopefully having Obama campaigning for him will help build that base back up."

Well aware of the vote's importance, Trump has backed Gillespie and accused Northam of "fighting for the violent MS-13" Hispanic gang, as well as "sanctuary cities" that offer shelter to illegal immigrants.

Gillespie, a former advisor to president George W. Bush who has become a millionaire lobbyist, has so far kept a cautious distance from the mercurial Trump, whose backing recently failed to ensure the election of his pick in a Republican Senate race in Alabama.

United cause: Five US former presidents attend benefit concert in Texas to raise money for hurricane victims https://t.co/8csRlAxYj2 pic.twitter.com/zknWY6oref

— AFP news agency (@AFP) October 22, 2017

Hamas, Fatah sign deal on Palestinian reconciliation

Yahoo – AFP, Emmanuel Parisse with Adel Zaanoun in Gaza City, October 12, 2017

Palestinians wave flags as they gather in Gaza City to celebrate after rival
Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah reached an agreement on ending a
decade-long split following talks mediated by Egypt on October 12, 2017 (AFP
Photo/MAHMUD HAMS)

Cairo (AFP) - Rival Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah signed an agreement Thursday on ending a decade-long split following talks mediated by Egypt in Cairo, with president Mahmud Abbas calling it a "final" accord.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu strongly condemned the deal, saying it would make peace with his country "much harder to achieve".

Under the agreement, the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority (PA) is to resume full control of the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip by December 1, according to a statement from Egypt's government.

Abbas welcomed the deal and told AFP he considered it a "final agreement to end the division" -- though many details remain to be resolved and previous reconciliation attempts have repeatedly failed.

Israel says Islamist movement Hamas, with whom it has fought three wars since 2008, must disarm and recognise the Jewish state as part of any Palestinian reconciliation deal.

US President Donald Trump is currently seeking to restart frozen peace talks between the Palestinians and Israel.

"Reconciling with mass murderers is part of the problem, not part of the solution," Netanyahu said in a statement.

The agreement was signed in Cairo by new Hamas deputy leader Salah al-Aruri and Azzam al-Ahmad, head of the Fatah delegation for the talks, at the headquarters of Egypt's intelligence service, which oversaw the negotiations.

Celebrations broke out in the Gaza Strip after the announcement of the deal, with residents waving flags of Egypt, Palestine, Fatah and Hamas.

"We hope they won't disappoint our people and break the joy," said Rahaab Kanaan, 55.

Negotiations are now expected to be held on forming a unity government, with the various Palestinian political movements invited to another meeting in Cairo on November 21.

Fatah's Azam al-Ahmad (R) and Saleh al-Aruri (L) of Hamas sign a reconciliation deal 

at the Egyptian intelligence services headquarters in Cairo on October 12, 2017 (AFP

Photo/KHALED DESOUKI)

Sanctions to end

An official from Abbas's Fatah movement said the Palestinian president was planning to soon travel to the Gaza Strip as part of the unity bid, in what would be his first visit in at least a decade.

Sanctions taken by Abbas against Gaza will also soon be lifted, the Fatah official said.

The deal includes 3,000 members of the West Bank-based PA's police force redeploying to Gaza, a member of the negotiating team told AFP on condition of anonymity.

The figure is however a fraction of the more than 20,000 police officers employed separately by Hamas.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres spoke to Abbas to congratulate him on the deal and said the United Nations "stands ready" to support the PA "take up its responsibilities in Gaza", a UN statement said.

Guterres also underlined the "continuing need to urgently address the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, particularly with regard to the electricity crisis, and improved access to and from the territory".

One of the key issues has been punitive measures taken by Abbas against Gaza in recent months, including reducing electricity payments that left the territory's residents with only a few hours of power a day.

"All the measures taken recently will end very shortly," Zakaria al-Agha, a senior Fatah leader in the Gaza Strip, told AFP.

The Arab League also hailed the agreement saying it represented an "essential guarantee" toward achieving the aspirations of the Palestinian people to set up their own state.

A man holds a portrait of the Palestinian president among Palestinians waving flags as they 

gather in Gaza City to celebrate after rival Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah reached an 

agreement on ending a decade-long split on October 12, 2017 (AFP Photo/MAHMUD HAMS)

Egypt's role

The two sides began meeting in Cairo on Tuesday with the aim of ending the crippling split between the rival factions.

Hamas seized Gaza from Fatah in a near civil war in 2007 and the two factions have been at loggerheads ever since.

Egypt has been keen to improve security in the Sinai Peninsula which borders Gaza and where jihadist rebels have fought a long-running insurgency.

An Egyptian source close to the talks said intelligence chief Khaled Fawzi had followed the negotiations closely.

Last month, Hamas agreed to cede civil power in Gaza to the PA but the fate of its vast military wing remains a significant issue for the two sides.

Hamas is blacklisted as a terrorist organisation by the United States and the European Union.

The blockaded Gaza Strip has seen deteriorating humanitarian conditions.

Faced with increasing isolation and a severe electricity shortage, Hamas has reached out to Cairo for help, hoping to have the Rafah border with Egypt -- largely closed in recent years -- opened.

Azzam al-Ahmad said that, as part of the deal, Gaza's border crossings with Israel will be handed back to the PA by November 1 with Rafah to follow shortly afterwards.

Egypt has also agreed to provide fuel to the Gaza Strip for electricity generation.

In return, Cairo pressed Hamas to move forward on reconciliation with Fatah.

Palestinians in the Gaza Strip watch a television broadcast of the signing of a 

reconciliation deal in Cairo between rival factions Hamas and Fatah on 

October 12, 2017 (AFP Photo/SAID KHATIB)

Fate of armed wing

Previous attempts at reconciliation have repeatedly failed, and many analysts are treating the latest bid with caution, waiting to see if actual change will occur on the ground.

Last week, PA prime minister Rami Hamdallah visited Gaza for the first time since 2015 and his ministers took formal control of government departments in the territory.

But the move was seen as mainly symbolic, with Hamas still effectively in charge in the Palestinian enclave of two million people.

One of the key sticking points will be the fate of Hamas's 25,000-strong military wing, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades.

Peace activists arrive in Jerusalem after two-week march

Yahoo – AFP, October 8, 2017

Israeli and Palestinian activists from the Women Wage Peace movement demonstrate
 in Jerusalem on October 8, 2017 at the end of a two-week march to demand a
 peace deal (AFP Photo/MENAHEM KAHANA)

Jerusalem (AFP) - Thousands of Israeli and Palestinian women arrived in Jerusalem Sunday at the end of a two-week march through Israel and the West Bank to demand a peace deal.

The Women Wage Peace movement organised the march, which began on September 24 and included participants who have themselves been affected by violence in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Several thousand activists joined the march over the two weeks.

Several thousand women, mostly Israelis, arrived in Jerusalem late on Sunday, mostly dressed in white and carrying placards calling for peace.

One of the organisers, Marie-Lyne Smadja, said the march was meant to "give voice to those tens of thousands of Israeli Jewish and Arab women of the left, centre and right, and their Palestinian partners, who hand in hand together took this road towards peace."

"Israeli women want to prevent the next war if possible and try as soon as possible to reach an agreement between Israelis and Palestinians," she said.

Israeli and Palestinian activists from the Women Wage Peace movement demonstrate 

in Jerusalem on October 8, 2017 at the end of a two-week march to demand a 

peace deal (AFP Photo/MENAHEM KAHANA)

Huda Abuarquob, another organiser and a Palestinian from Hebron in the occupied West Bank, said: "This march is not just another protest, but a way of saying that we want peace, and together we can obtain it."

The march comes at a time when many analysts see little hope for an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal.

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas is 82 and unpopular, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leads what is seen as the most right-wing government in his country's history.

In 2015, Women Wage Peace members fasted in relays over 50 days, the length of the 2014 war between Israel and Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip.

"The men who have power believe only in war, but with the strength of women we can bring something else, something new," said Amira Zidan, an Arab Israeli mother of one of the organisation's founders.

Sunday's arrival in Jerusalem coincides with the week-long Jewish holiday of Sukkot, which commemorates the Jews' journey through the Sinai after their exodus from Egypt.

Earlier Sunday, thousands of Jews gathered at Jerusalem's Western Wall for a priestly blessing held during the holiday each year.

Israeli and Palestinian activists of the Women Wage Peace movement march in Jerusalem to demand a peace deal https://t.co/mLRu1fy3Ci pic.twitter.com/O7SYchG9Xi

— AFP news agency (@AFP) October 8, 2017

Nobel Prize sends a nuclear message to Trump

Yahoo - AFP, Francesco FONTEMAGGI, 6 October 2017

The Nobel Peace Prize award to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear
Weapons (ICAN) is seen as a message to US President Donald Trump

The Nobel committee spurned an opportunity to celebrate the Iran nuclear deal, but still found a way to send a message to US President Donald Trump.

Trump is a stern critic of the 2015 accord, and US officials say that he intends to tell the US Congress next week that Tehran is not honoring its side of the bargain.

He is also engaged in a perilous game of brinksmanship with nuclear-armed North Korea, threatening "fire and fury" and exchanging insults with young dictator Kim Jong-Un.

Some supporters of the deal had hoped the jury would honor the architects of the Iran deal and in doing so send a message to Trump about the power of diplomacy.

In the end the committee chose not to provoke Trump by handing prizes to Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif or former US secretary of state John Kerry.

But in celebrating the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) they sent a strong message about the world's concerns over nuclear escalation.

"The message that has been communicated is a more subtle indirect messaging," said Melissa Dalton, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

"It's potentially a message and an encouragement to uphold the JCPOA as a commitment that the US has made with allies to non-proliferation," she said, referring to the Iran deal.

ICAN is a global civil society movement pushing for a global treaty to ban nuclear arms, one that was signed by 122 countries -- although none with such weapons -- in July.

The US reacted coolly to the award, and a State Department spokesman said Washington has no plans to sign the treaty.

"This treaty will not make the world more peaceful, will not result in the elimination of a single nuclear weapon, and will not enhance any state's security," he told AFP.

Speaking in Geneva, ICAN head Beatrice Fihn made an explicit link between the award and concerns about Trump's attitude to the Iran deal and non-proliferation efforts.

Next week, Trump is expected to announce he is "decertifying" Iran's compliance with the 2015 agreement it signed to limit its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.

Officials insist this will not sink the deal itself but open the way for Congress to possibly develop new measures to punish other aspects of Iran's behavior.

Global opinion

Trump has called the deal an "embarrassment to the United States" but rather than scrap it he is exploring a risky middle path to turn up the pressure on Iran.

Ever scornful of the record of his Nobel laureate predecessor Barack Obama, the US leader is unlikely at this stage to be influenced by a Norwegian committee.

But the timing of the award underlines the extent to which his hostility to the pact is out of step with global opinion, including with US allies in Europe.

And even if, as is now expected, the accord survives Trump's Washington maneuvers, his position may have weakened his ability to negotiate with another foe: North Korea.

The US strategy to deal with Kim's nuclear bravado is to use sanctions and diplomacy -- backed by a credible military posture -- to bring him to the negotiating table.

But doubts hanging over the Iran deal make success less likely, say observers, including Jung Pak of the Center for East Asia Policy Studies at the Brookings Institution.

"Even if North Korea and the US came to an agreement, Kim has no reason to think that an agreement would stick from one US administration to the next," he warned.

"The message is loud and clear, the US cannot be trusted."

Washington's European allies are also nervous that Trump's criticism of the deal will encourage US hardliners to undermine the entire agreement.

"We told the administration: certification or not, that's not our problem, this is an American domestic issue," one Western diplomat told reporters.

"But beware of a demarche that would endanger the agreement. Our concern now is what the Congress will do if Trump doesn't certify," he said.

There are some hawks in Washington who will seize on any opportunity to toughen the US stance -- despite the international solidarity symbolized by the Nobel award.

Influential conservative Senator Tom Cotton is known to have Trump's ear and he advises pushing ahead with both decertification and new sanctions.

"If anything, certifying the disastrous deal with Iran will show the North Koreans that we lack the will to confront them," he said, arguing that Kim would respect a strong stance.

"Isn't it curious that North Korea's nuclear and missile tests have accelerated so rapidly since we agreed to the Iran deal?"

World map showing organisations in the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) pic.twitter.com/Lq3CpSSEQP

— AFP news agency (@AFP) October 7, 2017

A huge dome is shown in 1980 covering a crater left by one of the 43

nuclear blasts on Runit Island, in the Marshall Islands, the fallout from

which is expected to last 25,000 years (US Defence Nuclear Agency/AFP)

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"Fast-Tracking" - Feb 8, 2014 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) - (Reference to Fukushima / H-bomb nuclear pollution and a warning about nuclear  (> 20 Min)

"Recalibration of Free Choice"–  Mar 3, 2012 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Caroll) - (Subjects: (Old) Souls, Midpoint on 21-12-2012, Shift of Human Consciousness, Black & White vs. Color, 1 - Spirituality (Religions) shifting, Loose a Pope “soon”, 2 - Humans will change react to drama, 3 - Civilizations/Population on Earth,  4 - Alternate energy sources (Geothermal, Tidal (Paddle wheels), Wind), 5 – Financials Institutes/concepts will change (Integrity – Ethical) , 6 - News/Media/TV to change, 7 – Big Pharmaceutical company will collapse “soon”, (Keep people sick), (Integrity – Ethical)  8 – Wars will be over on Earth, Global Unity, … etc.) - (Text version)

“…  8 - The End of War

The last one is the best. For thousands of years on this planet, Human Beings have warred with each other. If you take a look at the reasons they warred with each other, you will quickly see there aren't any good ones - land, resources, greed. Those are not reasons. That is a description of old energy. Those are not reasons. Reasons would be perhaps defense against an aggressor. But what if there is no longer the consciousness of the aggressor?

When I appeared in my partner's life more than 20 years ago, I said to him privately that the first messages we're going to give will be unbelievable. There would be laughter. We told him that Human nature and consciousness itself would change, and that the seeds of peace would be planted and there would come a time where there is no more war. Indeed, the laughter was great because humans look at history and they see patterns based on an absolute energy called Human Nature. "Impossible! There always has to be war. There always has been. Therefore, there always will be." This is you, in a box, in a black and white potential, where you can only see the black and white of what is and the black and white of what has been. You have no idea the shades of color that are there in your consciousness and the beauty of the love of God.

North Korea is on the edge of change, as we told you it might be. What did this require? The death of the old energy, and I want you to watch this take place. The advisors of the young leader are going to do their best to pull him back into an old energy. This free choice of his will be far different than his father, for he sees some color. Watch for these things. They'll take longer than you want, but it is the beginning of the beginning.

You'll see a fresh unification of South America sooner than not, for what is going to take place potentially this year in Venezuela. You'll see Iran changing. We have no clock. These are the potentials. These can change with free choice. These are not prophecies. This is a reality shift, dear ones, so number eight becomes the propensity not to war again. This is what Humans are going to want. This is what governments are going to want. There is a wisdom factor that will begin to happen on the planet that is grander than what you think is possible. For when you look at government, what do you think about? You see dysfunction, and there is an axiom that says the more people that try to do something together, the worse it gets. It all settles to the lowest common denominator. I'm telling you even those things are going to become old energy concepts. Instead, you're going to watch wisdom become the top potential.

I have no clock. I cannot tell you when. I can just tell you it is in the works, and there will be the seeds of it for you to observe soon - right now, in every single of the eight categories I showed you.

There are those who will say, "Well, Kryon, you're doing a lot more predictions than you used to." I want to tell you what's going on, dear one. I am not predicting anything. I am just telling you what's already there in the potential soup of your reality. That's what Humans are doing on this planet, and for those who believe this communication, you should breathe a sigh of relief and say, "It's about time." ….”

Canada to compensate indigenous children taken from families

Yahoo – AFP, Michel COMTE, October 6, 2017

A Canadian flag flies in front of the peace tower on Parliament Hill in Ottawa,
Canada (AFP Photo/GEOFF ROBINS)

Ottawa (AFP) - An estimated 20,000 indigenous children taken from their families starting in the 1960s and placed for adoption or fostering will share in a Can$800 million (US$640 million) payout, the government announced Friday.

The so-called "Sixties Scoop" saw them placed with primarily white middle-class families in Canada, the United States and overseas.

In recent years, as the children grew into adults and became aware of their past, several lawsuits and class actions were filed over their loss of aboriginal identity, claiming in court documents that it resulted in psychiatric disorders, substance abuse, unemployment, violence and suicides.

"People affected by the '60s Scoop have told us that the loss of their culture and language are among the worst kinds of harm that they suffered," Indigenous Relations Minister Carolyn Bennett told a press conference, flanked by Scoop survivors.

"That is why our government is responding directly to remedy the ill-advised (policies) of the past."

Stolen identities

A visibly moved Bennett introduced four Scoop survivors who were raised in the United States, another who now speaks with a Scottish accent and a sixth who had been taken from her home in the Arctic and placed with a family in Nova Scotia province, more than 6,000 kilometers (3,725 miles) away.

"Their stories are heartbreaking," Bennett said, describing firsthand accounts of their "identity being stolen" and "about not really feeling that you belong anywhere."

"I have great hope," said lead plaintiff and Beaverhouse First Nations chief Marcia Brown Martel, "that this will never, ever happen in Canada again."

The Sixties Scoop, which actually continued into the 1980s, is just the latest historical wrong suffered by Canada's indigenous peoples that Ottawa has sought to redress.

Starting in 1874, 150,000 Indian, Inuit and Metis children in Canada were forcibly enrolled in 139 boarding schools run by Christian churches -- including the Catholic Church -- on behalf of the federal government in an effort to integrate them into society.

Many survivors alleged abuse by headmasters and teachers, who stripped them of their culture and language.

At least 3,200 students never returned home.

The experience has been blamed for gross poverty and desperation in native communities that bred abuse, suicide and crime.

Apology

Ottawa formally apologized in 2008 for the "cultural genocide," as part of a Can$1.9 billion (US$1.5 billion) settlement with former students.

The government also launched an inquiry last year into the disproportionately high rate of killings and disappearances of indigenous women and girls in Canada.

Indigenous women represent four percent of Canada's population but 16 percent of homicide victims. More than 1,200 were murdered or have gone missing over the past three decades.

Bennett was at a loss to explain Canada's past assimilation policies.

"I don't know what people were thinking," said the former pediatrician. "I don't know how governments thought they could do a better job (at raising children) than their parents, their village, their community."

Bennett said an official apology would be forthcoming.

She also said there may still be a need to "totally overhaul the child welfare system as it is right now."

"Too many children are still being taken from their families," the minister said.

The settlement, which still requires court approval, will be split between Scoop survivors and a reconciliation foundation that will help them to reaquire their language and culture, with Can$750 million going directly to the survivors.

A small number of lawsuits launched by other survivors remain outstanding and are not included in the settlement, but Bennett said she would "work with them" toward a resolution.

Those individuals who were sent abroad to live with foreign families will also be invited to return to Canada, if they wish.

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Saudi king, Putin clinch billion-dollar energy, arms deals on landmark Russia visit

Yahoo – AFP, Victoria LOGUINOVA-YAKOVLEVA, October 5, 2017

Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) and Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz
Al Saud walk during a welcoming ceremony ahead of their talks at the Kremlin in
Moscow on October 5, 2017 (AFP Photo/Yuri KADOBNOV)

Moscow (AFP) - Saudi Arabia's King Salman, on a landmark visit to Russia, and President Vladimir Putin on Thursday signed a slew of arms and energy deals as the key US ally seeks to deepen cooperation with Moscow.

The leaders of the world's largest energy exporters discussed an extension of an OPEC agreement to cap oil output and oversaw the signing of deals which officials said were worth billions of dollars.

Saudi Arabia signed preliminary agreements to buy Russia's S-400 air defence systems and anti-tank guided missile systems and receive "cutting edge technologies," said the Sunni state's military firm, Saudi Arabian Military Industries.

The two countries also signed a series of multi-billion dollar investment deals including one to create a $1 billion fund to pursue energy projects.

"This is the first visit by a Saudi Arabian monarch in the history of our relations and that in itself is a landmark event," Putin said as he welcomed 81-year-old King Salman to Moscow in an ornate gilded Kremlin hall.

"I'm sure your visit will boost the ties between our countries," Putin added.

"We aim to strengthen our relations in the interests of peace and security, in the interests of developing the world economy," the Saudi king responded.

Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir told journalists that "relations between Russia and Saudi Arabia have reached a historic moment."

"Today we alone as the Russian Direct Investment Fund announced deals worth $2.1 billion," said Kirill Dmitriyev, the head of the fund set up to attract investment.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said agreements came in the fields of "energy -- not only traditional but also nuclear power -- and also in cooperation in space exploration (and) agroindustry and infrastructure projects."

'Diversifying risks'

Saudi Arabia is the country that buys the most US arms and Washington and Riyadh in May announced a $110 billion deal to sell weapons to Saudi Arabia.

But Saudi, a long-standing ally of Washington, is keen to boost ties with Moscow as a major player in the Syrian conflict and a fellow oil producer with shared interests in supporting energy prices.

"We are certain that further strengthening of relations will have a positive effect on strengthening stability and security in the world," his Saudi counterpart Jubeir stressed.

Fyodor Lukyanov, the Kremlin-connected chairman of the Council on Foreign and Defence Policy, said Riyadh saw closer ties with Moscow as expedient for the moment, and was "diversifying risks" by buying arms from both Moscow and the US.

"Saudi Arabia has recognised Russia as a significant player in a region that is important to it," he told AFP.

"They respect Russia more now. But you shouldn't think it's forever."

Oil cap for 'stability'

The leaders of the world's largest energy exporters also discussed the OPEC agreement to cap oil output.

OPEC members have joined with Russia and other countries in cutting crude output in a pact that has helped prop up prices.

"We strive to continue the positive cooperation between our countries to achieve stability on world oil markets which promotes the growth of the world's economy," Salman said.

Russia and Saudi Arabia are heavily dependent on oil exports and the global plunge of the price of crude that began in 2014 lashed both their economies.

Putin said on Wednesday it was possible to extend an OPEC deal to cap oil output "at least until the end of 2018".

Focus on Syria, Yemen

While Russia and Saudi Arabia are partners on the oil market, they are at loggerheads on Syria, where Moscow supports President Bashar al-Assad and Riyadh backs the opposition.

Lavrov said the Saudi monarch and Putin's meeting saw a "particular focus on Syria, Iraq, Libya and Yemen."

The two sides said they had common ground in a desire to rally Syrian opposition forces to take part in UN-backed peace talks.

Jubeir said that the countries "closely cooperate... on uniting the Syrian opposition and broadening its framework, in order to start the political process" at Geneva peace talks.

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