U.S. and Israel look to Africa for resettling Palestinians uprooted from Gaza

Palestinians walk at an Israeli checkpoint, as they make their way to Al-Aqsa compound in Jerusalem's Old City to attend prayers during the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan, in Bethlehem in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Friday. (Mussa Qawasma/Reuters)

The U.S. and Israel have reached out to officials of three East African governments to discuss using their territories as potential destinations for resettling Palestinians uprooted from the Gaza Strip under U.S. President Donald Trump's proposed postwar plan, American and Israeli officials say. 

The contacts with Sudan, Somalia and the breakaway region of Somalia known as Somaliland reflect the determination by the U.S. and Israel to press ahead with a plan that has been widely condemned and raised serious legal and ethical issues. Because all three places are among the world's poorest countries or regions, and in some cases wracked by violence, the proposal also casts doubt on Trump's stated goal of resettling Gaza's Palestinians in a "beautiful area."

The Mark Carney era begins

As Liberal Leader Mark Carney prepares to be sworn in as prime minister on Friday, the makeup of his cabinet is becoming clearer. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press)

Mark Carney will be sworn in as prime minister at about 11 a.m. ET today. The former central banker has been in transition and security briefings and meetings all week after his landslide victory on Sunday. It's a fraught time to lead this country, as Canadians face a trade war down south and also expect an election to be called imminently. Here's what we've heard from sources:

Cabinet picks: As CBC News reported earlier, Carney is expected to have a slimmer cabinet, with 15 to 20 ministers.

• Procurement Minister Jean-Yves Duclos and former leadership candidate Karina Gould will not be in cabinet. 
   
• Former rival Chrystia Freeland has been asked to become transport minister. Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Minister Gary Anandasangaree will keep his posts and become justice minister and attorney general.
   
• Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault is being shuffled to a new role — a big change for the staunch former Greenpeace activist and strong defender of the carbon tax, which Carney has promised to scrap.

'Free room for rent,' but there's a catch: Undercover investigation exposes shelter-for-sex ads

Marketplace meets undercover with a man to learn the true intentions behind his ad offering a 'warm bed' to a 'young petite female.' (CBC)

Offering shelter in exchange for sex is, of course, illegal in Canada. But it's happening online, a Marketplace investigation has found. The team found 20 such ads on platforms like Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace and reached out, posing as a student in need of housing.

"We fool around a little bit here and there," said one respondent. "If you're not into actually having sex, that's cool. We can do other things" — which he named in detail.
 
An arrangement like this is especially pernicious in a housing crisis, which makes it increasingly difficult to find an affordable place to live. One lawyer rejects the notion that this kind of exchange is harmless if both people agree, as there's an inherent abuse of power.

One advertiser, asked for his reasoning behind his housing offer, claimed he liked to "help people out" before abruptly hanging up.

READER REPORT

Your thoughts on cancelling travel to the U.S.

• Glori-Jeanne, Calgary: She owns a home in California that once helped her escape winters at home. But she's in Calgary now and doesn't want to go down south and spend money in the U.S. She's waiting until midterms to see what happens.
• James, Sudbury, Ont.: Among other trips, he was considering a cruise with more than 20 family members to Alaska, as well as a motorcycle trip in that state. Those have all been scrapped for at least the next four years — maybe even forever, he said. His future trips will be within Canada or other places. He's currently in Mexico.
• Evelyn, Ottawa: Everything was booked for a trip to Chicago in April, what was meant to be a 55-year reunion with her graduating MBA class. But threats against Canada began, and she cancelled the trip before tariffs were even implemented, and one to New York as well. She's disappointed but will be visiting loved ones in Vancouver and Halifax instead.
• Christine, St. John's: She had wanted to travel to New York City later this month to attend its Print Week. There's no way that's happening now, she said — and she's interested in seeing how the situation will impact travel this summer.

Sonya Cywink's murder in 1994 remains unsolved, but her sister's quest for the truth persists

Frustrated with police, Meggie Cywink, left, is determined to find the truth about the death of her sister, Sonya Cywink, even if that means investigating the case herself. (CBC/Submitted by Meggie Cywink)

In case you missed it

• King Charles gave his Canadian personal attendant a ceremonial sword at Buckingham Palace, a symbolic gesture with added meaning amid a trade war.
   
• Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he and federal officials had a "very productive meeting" with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick in Washington yesterday. It's a positive sign after weeks of mud-slinging. There will be another meeting next week, though Ford didn't specify any details.
   
• After filing for creditor protection last week, Hudson's Bay Company is in limbo, with its rewards program put on pause.
   
• Human rights investigators are racing to preserve online evidence of killings in Syria, a crucial step in establishing what's happening and creating a foundation for future investigations.

And, in today's good and calming news...

Signs of spring are beginning to bloom

Residents and sightseers in Tokyo are being treated to surprise early cherry blossoms. (CBC)

Thousands of purple jacaranda flowers are blooming in Mexico City, while in Tokyo, cherry blossoms are flowering early. These harbingers of spring are actually related: In the 1930s, the Mexican president wanted to important Japanese cherry trees, but a Japanese landscape architect recommended jacarandas instead, as they'd better survive Mexico's climate.