The headline asks a reasonable question, but it's naively put. The Government of Canada knows full well about Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses, and always has. Reports of those abuses aren't hard to come by, as the Saudis publicly execute individuals for adultery, homosexuality and blasphemy, among other things. Not to mention the Saudi government's penchant for the hyper-strict version of Islam that spawned al Qaeda, Islamic State and a host of other brutal terrorist groups.

It's not ignorance of the Saudis that allows our weapons to be sold to them. It's greed. That and the knowledge that those weapons can never be used against us, 10,000 miles away. The mayhem that the Saudis create in their own and neighbouring countries doesn't affect Canada. We can facilitate the carnage with impunity. 

Nothing will change, Ms. Kermalli. When $15 billion is at stake, foreign lives don't matter.