Montreal, Canada | AFP | Canada’s Quebec province Wednesday prohibited government workers and anyone receiving government services from covering their face, in a move critics say unfairly targets Muslim women who wear a niqab veil. The legislation applies to bureaucrats, police officers, teachers, and bus drivers, as well as …
Read More »Bomb kills four Pakistani troops searching for kidnappers
Islamabad, Pakistan | AFP | A bomb Sunday killed four Pakistani soldiers as they searched for militants linked to the kidnapping of a US-Canadian family who were freed last week. The incident happened near the Kharlachi checkpoint in Kurram district in the restive tribal belt bordering Afghanistan. The family were being …
Read More »Authorities thwarted planned 2016 attacks on New York
New York, United States | AFP | An undercover FBI agent helped thwart a jihadist plot to attack targets including New York’s subway and Times Square, authorities announced in unsealing the charges Friday. Three people have been charged with involvement in the planned attacks, which were to be carried out in …
Read More »Netflix to spend Can$500 mln to make films, TV shows in Canada
Ottawa, Canada | AFP | Netflix will spend Can$500 million (US$400 million) over the next five years to make original films and television shows in Canada, the company and Heritage Minister Melanie Joly announced Thursday. This amounts to about five percent of the video streaming service’s estimated total US$7 billion production …
Read More »In political turn, Bieber rallies for Black Lives Matter
New York, United States | AFP | Pop star Justin Bieber, known more for headline-grabbing scandals than activism, on Friday took an unexpected political turn as he hailed the Black Lives Matter movement. The 23-year-old, who abruptly cut short a tour in July, took to Instagram to show support for …
Read More »US role in spotlight as nations meet on Paris climate deal
Montreal, Canada | AFP | A top European environment official said Saturday the United States appeared to be softening its stance on the Paris climate accord, but the White House quickly pushed back. The remark came as environment ministers from some 30 countries gathered in Montreal seeking headway on the Paris …
Read More »Report finds staggering decline in Canada wildlife
Montreal, Canada | AFP | Half of the vertebrate populations in Canada are in staggering decline, despite the country’s vast outback, according to a WWF report Thursday that highlighted threats to beluga whales and caribou. The World Wildlife Fund in its Living Planet Report pointed to 451 shrinking animal populations out …
Read More »Despite political hurdles, Trump defiant on Mexico wall
Washington, United States | AFP | President Donald Trump insisted Sunday that the US Congress must find a way to pay for his promised border wall, branding Mexico a hotbed of violent crime. And he warned both Mexico and Canada that if they continue to be “difficult” in trade …
Read More »Carats to carrots: Canadian woman finds long lost diamond ring in garden
Ottawa, Canada | AFP | An elderly Canadian woman has recovered a diamond engagement ring she lost 13 years ago, after it turned up this week on a carrot pulled from her old garden. Mary Grams, 84, told local media she lost the ring she’d worn since 1951 while weeding on …
Read More »Canadian pastor faced ‘overwhelming loneliness’ in NKorea labor camp
Mississauga, Canada | AFP | A Canadian pastor recently freed from imprisonment in North Korea spoke Sunday of the “overwhelming loneliness” and harsh conditions he experienced during his two-and-a-half years in a labor camp. Hyeon Soo Lim, 62, was imprisoned by Pyongyang in January 2015 for carrying out “subversive activities,” a …
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