Sep/10	Aug/10	Jul/10	Jun/10	May/10	Apr/10	Mar/10	Feb/10	Jan/10
Dec/09	Nov/09	Oct/09	Sep/09	Aug/09	Jul/09	Jun/09	May/09	Apr/09	Mar/09	Feb/09	Jan/09
Dec/08	Nov/08	Oct/08	Sep/08	Aug/08	Jul/08	Jun/08	May/08	Apr/08	Mar/08	Feb/08	Jan/08
Dec/07	Nov/07	Oct/07	Sep/07	Aug/07	Jul/07	Jun/07	May/07	Apr/07	Mar/07	Feb/07	Jan/07
Dec/06	Nov/06	Oct/06	Sep/06	Aug/06	Jul/06	Jun/06	May/06	Apr/06	Mar/06	Feb/06	Jan/06
Dec/05	Nov/05	Oct/05	Sep/05	Aug/05	Jul/05	Jun/05	May/05	Apr/05	Mar/05	Feb/05	Jan/05

11 men arrested in B.C. eagle mutilations	30/04/06
Webcam catches baby eagle's first moments	29/04/06
Canada, U.S. agree to softwood lumber deal	28/04/06
Canada, U.S. reach framework agreement on softwood lumber	27/04/06
Addictions bleed nearly $40B a year from economy: study	26/04/06
Caledonia standoff enters 57th day after evening clash ends in arrest	25/04/06
12-year-old arrested in connection with Medicine Hat deaths	24/04/06
Nepali police fire rubber bullets at protesters, struggle to enforce curfew	23/04/06
Guyana agriculture minister, a Canadian citizen, killed in home invasion	22/04/06
Native standoff continues in Caledonia	21/04/06
Ontario police evict aboriginal protesters	20/04/06
Roadside bomb injures 2 Canadian soldiers	19/04/06
Suspected killer accessed online sex offender registry, Maine police say	18/04/06
N.S. man sought in double killing in Maine fatally shoots self	17/04/06
Pope's Easter message calls for world peace	16/04/06
Flooding forces evacuation of Sask. reserve	15/04/06
Flooding may prompt evacuation of Sask. reserve	14/04/06
Dingwall entitled to golden handshake, arbitrator rules	13/04/06
Brace for high gasoline prices all summer	12/04/06
Five charged in biker gang killings	11/04/06
Autopsy results due Monday in Ontario mass murder	10/04/06
Victims in multiple slaying came from Toronto area	09/04/06
Nepal's king orders soldiers to shoot protesters	08/04/06
Winnipeg braces for Red River crest	07/04/06
U.S. judge rejects permanent injunction to block Canadian beef	06/04/06
Internet use by hate groups increasing: expert	05/04/06
Military probes whether friendly fire killed soldiers in Taliban battle	04/04/06
Deadly blast in doughnut shop not a terrorist job: police	03/04/06
Time to spring forward an hour	02/04/06
Body of fallen Canadian soldier returns	01/04/06

11 men arrested in B.C. eagle mutilations Web Posted | Last Updated Sun, 30 Apr 2006  09:07:16  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 30th, 2006 Eleven men face charges in the killing and mutilation of dozens of bald eagles in North Vancouver – including possession and trafficking in dead wildlife. A North Vancouver RCMP spokesperson said the men – who are all from British Columbia – face 105 charges in total. The B. C. Conservation Officer Service, with help from various agencies in Canada and the United States, conducted an investigation after at least 50 carcasses were found in North Vancouver in February 2005.	Police examine eagle remains in February 2005. (CBC)
About 40 of the eagle carcasses were buried in a shallow grave on the Burrard First Nations reserve. The legs and feathers had been cut off, investigators said. Eagle feathers and talons are used in some traditional aboriginal outfits and ceremonies. For these purposes, permits are issued for First Nations to use eagles that have died naturally – but sometimes the birds are killed for the parts. Burrard First Nations elder Leonard George said some of the men arrested were part of his community. Leah George-Wilson, a spokeswoman for the Burrard band, said the arrests have brought closure to people in the community. "In our community view, this sort of activity is criminal and must be dealt with in that manner. In our view, the courtroom is the best venue for these kinds of activities to be dealt with," she said on the weekend. The RCMP spokesperson said there will be more charges coming in the case. The first court proceedings will take place June 15 in Surrey Provincial Court. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Webcam catches baby eagle's first moments Web Posted | Last Updated Fri, 28 Apr 2006  23:00:05  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 29th, 2006 An eaglet on British Columbia's Hornby Island pecked through its shell Friday afternoon in an event eagerly anticipated by millions of webcam watchers around the world. Doug Carrick, who set up a webcam to observe the nest, said at exactly 1:35 local time one of the chicks started to poke its head out of the egg. "I could see the hole, this little two eyes, a beak and the head inside the egg," he said. "There's no question there's a little chick inside there."	The nesting pair and one of the two eggs: the nest has become wildly popular on the internet. (CBC)
A second egg had yet to hatch. To date, the website, which features a pair of nesting adult bald eagles, has received 100 million hits since it went online in early April. Carrick's wife Sheila told the Canadian Press that she saw the chick as its mother and father were changing positions in their nest. "She just sat down on the egg again, so we can't see anything now." It took 38 days for the first egg to hatch, she said. Carrick, 73, got federal and provincial government approval to set up the webcam while the eagles were on their annual migration. Located 40 metres up in his neighbour's tree, the webcam is attached to a video cable, which runs to Carrick's television. "When you sit and have your afternoon tea or morning coffee and there's the eagle looking at you, it's very hard to ignore it," said his wife, Sheila.
The retired accountant first set up the camera last year to observe the nesting pair, but didn't broadcast it on the internet. That year, he captured footage of the female laying an egg. The video impressed conservationists so much, they offered to pay some of the costs of streaming this year's video online. A Vancouver company is also sharing the expense. Carrick said the eagles noticed the enclosed camera and "pecked at it" and then got on with their lives.	Doug Carrick set up his webcam while the eagles were on their annual migration. (CBC)
With their sharp yellow beaks and black and yellow eyes, the eagles take turns protectively covering the pair of eggs. While one sits, the other hunts. The webcam image is so clear, viewers can see the eagles' feathers being ruffled by the wind and the bits of branches that make up the nest. Neighbouring birds can be heard chirping in the background. Carrick says he sent the website to his sister-in-law in Australia, who forwarded it to friends around the globe. "It's just mushrooming," he said. Because the site has been so popular, Carrick has posted a note on the site asking surfers to close the webcam when they're not viewing the eagles. Carrick hopes the intimate look at the nesting eagles will make people think twice about threatening the species' habitat. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Canada, U.S. agree to softwood lumber deal Web Posted | Last Updated Thu, 27 Apr 2006  21:51:36  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 28th, 2006
Canada has reached a softwood lumber agreement with the United States that will "finally put an end to this conflict," Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced Thursday. "I'm delighted to announce that we have reached an agreement," Harper told the House of Commons. "This is what Canada wanted. This is what Canada got. This, colleagues, is a good deal." Harper made the announcement of a revised agreement after an initial deal drew mixed industry reviews on both sides of the border, and criticism from the Ontario government. Harper was absent from Question Period on Thursday as he tried to marshal support for the agreement from the provinces and the Canadian industry.
Price drops lead to export restrictions Harper said the U.S. had accepted Canada's key conditions. The agreement provides Canadian producers unrestricted access to U.S. markets under current market conditions, he said, meaning there is no overall cap on the Canadian share of the U.S. market. With prices at the current market, this means no quotas or tariffs, Harper added. But, if the price drops, certain export restrictions will kick in. Producers would have to pay an export tax of five per cent if there's a small drop in price. If it's a larger drop, they would have to pay as much as 15 per cent.	A landmark softwood lumber agreement reached Thursday provides Canadian producers unrestricted access to U.S. markets. (CBC)
"There is no quota; there is simply an export tax at the bottom of the market," said International Trade Minister David Emerson. However, exporters who don't want to pay the tax will have to limit their volume of exports. The U.S. would also return $4 billion of the $5 billion in duties it has collected so far on Canadian lumber imports, Harper said. But $1 billion will remain in U.S. hands. He said the U.S. has agreed to a seven-year deal with the possibility of a renewal. B.C., Quebec, Ontario back deal Ontario Natural Resources Minister David Ramsay said the province would now support the agreement, after it was assured it would get a bigger share of the U.S. market. "While this arrangement would require each jurisdiction to make some concessions, Ontario got a critical element – a more reasonable share of softwood exports," Ramsay said in a statement. B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell expressed support, saying "on balance, it's a reasonable deal for Canada and a good deal for British Columbia." Quebec Economic Development Minister Raymond Bachand hailed said it's "the best deal." "We're very happy with this deal. Most of what we wanted, we've gained for the first time." Opposition slams agreement But Opposition Leader Bill Graham blasted the agreement. He said its details will reveal "draconian measures" that will "punish our industry." He called the agreement a great deal for the Americans but a "disaster for Canada." NDP Leader Jack Layton also criticized the U.S. for keeping $1 billion in duties. "It is incredible that such a thing could be called acceptable," Layton said. "It's like if a judge said to a thief all you have to do is pay back 80 cents on the dollar and we'll call it even." Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Canada, U.S. reach framework agreement on softwood lumber Web Posted | Last Updated Wed, 26 Apr 2006  18:41:51  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 27th, 2006
Canada and the United States have worked out a "framework" agreement to negotiate an end to the long-running softwood lumber dispute between the countries. The agreement would see Canada allowed access to roughly 34 per cent of the U.S. softwood lumber market. Canada will also collect an export tax on softwood lumber shipped to the United States if the price drops below $355 per thousand board feet. The tax would be at least five per cent of the price per thousand board feet. The U.S. government has also agreed to return 78 per cent of the $5 billion it has collected in countervailing duties and dumping fees on Canadian lumber since May 2002. The Atlantic provinces are exempt from the arrangement. Companies have paid millions of dollars Vancouver-based Canfor Corp., Canada's biggest softwood lumber producer, had paid duties of $733 million US by the end of December, said Pierre Lacroix, a Montreal-based analyst with Desjardins Securities. Western Forest Products Inc. has paid $390 million US. Tembec, based in Montreal, has paid $327 million Cdn, Abitibi-Consolidated Inc. $231 million US and Domtar Inc. about $150 million. Under the deal, Canfor would recover about $650 million, about 78 per cent of what it has paid out. The agreement must be approved by provincial governments and lumber-industry groups, some of which have already said they will oppose it. "I think it will be a fairly difficult sell to the Canadian industry as a whole," Daryl Swetlishoff, a forestry sector analyst with Raymond James Ltd. in Vancouver, told CBC News.
BMO Nesbitt Burns analyst Stephen Atkinson was highly critical of the framework. "Everybody gets 78 per cent of what they've put up," he told the Canadian Press late Wednesday. "I think Canada's signing a bad deal," he added. "It's not a windfall; it's money they paid." Firms would take currency hit Canadian firms will also take a currency hit, Atkinson said. The value of the dollar has risen sharply in recent years but the firms will get the money back in constant dollars, he added. "Why would you give 22 per cent to your competition?" Atkinson said, referring to the 78 per cent figure. "I've never heard of it, where you have your competition making record profits south of the border and Canada has to give 22 per cent. This money belongs to the companies and their shareholders, and the Canadian government is giving it away." Atkinson added that "in my discussions with Canadian industry personnel, they do not like the deal." Some executives have, however, been supportive of a negotiated settlement. "We support the federal government's efforts and we encourage the provincial governments to support the deal," Abitibi-Consolidated CEO John Weaver said in a statement. Deal pits B.C. against Ontario and Quebec The provinces must also agree to the deal. Quebec has also come out against the agreement, and so has David Ramsay, Ontario's natural resources minister.
An irate Ramsay slammed the agreement reached between the two countries for favouring B.C. mills at the expense of those elsewhere in the country. Ontario would be on the losing end of an "unacceptable" agreement that would keep exports below historic levels and kill more jobs in the province's North, he said. "This is very serious for Ontario and we can't sign on to an agreement that specifically disadvantages us," Ramsay said outside the Ontario legislature. Ramsay, whose own riding is in northern Ontario, said many communities in the region are "totally dependent" on the forest industry and will be negatively impacted by the deal. In Ontario's best year, its forestry sector produces some 12 per cent of Canada's softwood lumber exports to the United States, Ramsay said. But under this deal, Ontario's softwood lumber exports would be capped around nine per cent, a significant reduction for companies like Tembec and Domtar. B.C.'s share of Canada's lumber trade to the United States would increase to some 58 per cent from 53 per cent, Ramsay said. "We need on average our historical share, something over 10 per cent," said Ramsay. "This is not acceptable and we won't be part of this." The dispute has simmered for decades The dispute has been simmering for decades, but boiled over in May 2002 when the United States imposed duties of 27 per cent on Canadian softwood lumber, arguing that Canada unfairly subsidized producers of spruce, pine and fir lumber. An agreement in principle to end the dispute was reached in December 2003. But it died two days later and the issue has been before North American Free Trade Agreement panels and the World Trade Organization several times. Rulings have usually gone Canada's way. The new deal comes just one day before the United States would have to decide whether to proceed with a final appeal of a NAFTA ruling that rejected the U.S. argument that Canadian lumber is subsidized. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Addictions bleed nearly $40B a year from economy: study Web Posted | Last Updated Wed, 26 Apr 2006  07:47:50  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 26th, 2006
Addictions to tobacco, alcohol and illegal drugs cost the Canadian economy $39.8 billion a year, according to survey results released Wednesday. The Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse said that figure, based on data from 2002, includes the cost of providing health care, losing millions of days of productivity, and handling court cases and jail sentences. "It's a sort of a wake-up call for us to rethink how we're addressing the issues of substance abuse in Canada," said Jacques LeCavalier of the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse. The $39.8 billion figure breaks down this way: - Tobacco addiction costs are estimated at $17 billion, or 42.7 per cent of the total amount. - Alcohol dependency costs are pinned at $14.6 billion, or 36.6 per cent. - The costs from addictions to illegal drugs are estimated at about $8.2 billion, or 20.7 per cent. The estimated "avoidable costs" amount to more than $1,260 for every person in Canada. The study didn't take into account government revenue from alcohol and tobacco taxes, or the amount of money Canadians spend on buying cigarettes, liquor or illegal drugs. The group also said more Canadians are becoming ill and dying from their addictions, pegging the number at 43,162 in 2002 alone.
The breakdown by cause of death looks like this: - 37,209 from tobacco, including 17,679 cancer deaths, 10,853 from cardiovascular disease and 8,282 from   respiratory disease. - 4,258 deaths attributed to alcohol, including 1,246 from cirrhosis, 909 from vehicle crashes, and 603 from   drinking-related suicides. - 1,695 from illegal drugs, including 958 from fatal overdoses, 295 from suicides linked to drug use, 165 from   hepatitis C infection linked to drug use, and 87 from HIV infection connected to drug use. A Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse survey conducted 10 years ago, using figures from 1992, found that tobacco addiction was responsible for a larger share of the total cost of about $18.5 billion. (The centre cautions that the cost figures from the two studies are not directly comparable because the surveys were conducted in different manners.) The latest survey said alcohol and illegal drugs are now taking a bigger share of the toll. "Increases in alcohol-attributed death and illness between 1992 and 2002 may be linked to changes in patterns of use, including increased consumption of five or more drinks on a single occasion," the study said. At the same time, it said, drug-attributed deaths more than doubled, "largely because of an increase in drug overdoses and the spread of hepatitis C, which was not measured in 1992." Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Caledonia standoff enters 57th day after evening clash ends in arrest Web Posted | Last Updated Tue, 25 Apr 2006  05:44:34  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 25th, 2006
Barricades stayed up and tensions remained high Tuesday morning in Caledonia, Ont., as a native blockade entered its 57th day. On Monday night, about 500 residents of Caledonia, Ont., let their frustrations boil over when they confronted police and native protesters at a blockade in the town. The residents held a rally earlier in the evening, calling on authorities to end the seven-week-old native demonstration at a housing development in Caledonia, which is about an hour west of Toronto. There are plans to build 250 homes on the 40-hectare site, which the natives say is on their land. At the meeting, about 3,000 non-native residents voiced their mounting frustration over the blockade, then some in the crowd started toward it.
A line of 100 police officers kept the crowd at bay. Still, the demonstrators released their anger by smashing a police vehicle. One resident was arrested. Site occupied 2 months The native demonstrators, mostly members of the nearby Six Nations reserve, first occupied the site on Feb. 28 to stop construction of the housing project by Henco Industries on land they say was stolen from the Six Nations more than 200 years ago.	Ontario Provicial Police arrest a young protester in Caledonia as residents moved toward a native blockade. (CBC)
The province says aboriginals gave up the land in 1841 to make way for a new highway, an agreement a Six Nations spokesperson said was only meant to be a lease. Six Nations filed a land-claim suit over the area in 1999. Last Thursday, police moved in to try to end the protest, but failed when hundreds of people from the reserve arrived to bolster the blockade. Sixteen people were arrested and later released on bail. The blockade was not removed. However, the police action spurred talks between native leaders and provincial and federal officials. The sides met for about five hours Saturday night following a 19-hour marathon Friday in a bid to end the standoff. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
12-year-old arrested in connection with Medicine Hat deaths Web Posted | Last Updated Mon, 24 Apr 2006  17:14:06  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 24th, 2006
Police have charged two people in connection with the weekend deaths of three people in Medicine Hat, Alta. RCMP in Leader, Sask., said Monday they arrested 23-year-old Jeremy Alan Steinke and a 12-year-old female companion, whose name cannot be released under the Youth Criminal Justice Act. The two have been charged with three counts of first-degree murder.
The bodies of a middle-aged man, a middle-aged woman and a pre-teen boy were found about 1:30 p.m. local time Sunday in a home in the southeastern Alberta city. Police say the three are believed to be members of the same family. Police have not disclosed how the three died or whether they have a motive or suspects. They are, however, treating the case as a homicide, not a murder-suicide. Earlier in the day, police said they were looking for a young girl to "ensure her safety."	The bodies of a middle-aged man, a middle-aged woman and a pre-teen boy were found in this home in Medicine Hat, Alta. (CBC)
Neighbour 'never heard a harsh word'
The bodies were discovered after a young boy went to call on his friend at the modern split-level home on a quiet residential street. He thought he saw a body through a window and ran home to get his mother, who then called police. A white truck sat in the driveway of the house Sunday with a broken passenger window. White-smocked police investigated the home all day using dogs to search through garbage, gardens and alleyways. Phyllis Gehring, who lives next door to the home where the bodies were found, told Canadian Press the family members were good neighbours who had lived there for about three years.
"We knew them, but it wasn't like they came over or we went over there," Gehring said. "We had no problem with them whatsoever. I never heard a harsh word between the mother and father." Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Nepali police fire rubber bullets at protesters, struggle to enforce curfew Web Posted | Last Updated Sun, 23 Apr 2006  23:11:30  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 23rd, 2006
KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) - Nepali police fired rubber bullets at thousands of protesters Sunday, struggling to enforce a curfew imposed to keep persistent pro-democracy demonstrators off the streets in the Himalayan country's deepening crisis. The protesters were trying to enter the city limits of Kathmandu, the capital, when police first fired tear gas, then rubber bullets, independent Kantipur television reported. Doctors at a hospital said they treated three people injured by rubber bullets. Later, communist rebels attacked security bases and government buildings in Nepal's mountainous north-central region, officials said Monday. There was no immediate information on injuries or the extent of damage in the attacks overnight in Chautara, about 120 kilometres northeast of Kathmandu.	An opposition party supporter with the slogan 'Loktantra Zindabad' painted on his head stands in front of policemen at the scene of a demonstration in Kathmandu, Nepal, Sunday. (AP/Gautam Singh)
Kathmandu was under a daylong curfew for the fourth straight day. On Saturday, clashes between security forces and tens of thousands of demonstrators left more than 200 people injured. The protesters have refused to quit despite King Gyanendra's offer to allow the alliance of seven opposition parties behind the protests and a general strike to nominate a prime minister and form a government. Opposition leaders said the king's offer to resolve a crisis that began after he seized power in February 2005 fell short of a key opposition demand: the return of parliament and creation of a special assembly to write a constitution. The chaos has stoked worries among the international community of a humanitarian crisis in Nepal, already one of the world's poorest countries. Many also worry that a political vacuum could give the Maoist rebels, who have seized control of much of the countryside in a bloody, 10-year insurgency, a route to power. The opposition called for protests to continue throughout the week, including a massive rally along the ring road that skirts the capital on Tuesday. "We urge all the people, the old and the young alike, to come out of their homes, their villages, their neighbourhoods and get to the nearest point on the ring road for the mass rally," said a statement from body co-ordinating the protests. Sunday's curfew was to last 11 hours in and around the capital, but state television later reported that it had been shortened by an hour and would end at 7 p.m. The army strung barbed wire to block off some inner alleys and major intersections in Kathmandu on Sunday. Small groups of protests protested inside the city as soldiers patrolled in armoured personnel carriers.
Thousands of other people marched elsewhere in Kathmandu's Kalanki and Gangabu neighbourhoods, which have been the centre of the protests since the opposition campaign to force out King Gyanendra began April 6. By late afternoon, the protests had degenerated into young men hurling bricks and bottles at police, who responded with tear gas and baton charges. Smaller protests also broke out on the ring road. While most followed what has now become a common routine of chanting and waving flags, an ominous development was attacks on people accused of being government informers. At one rally, a man was severely beaten after being accused by a political party organizer, Gita Pathak, of being an informer. "He works for the palace," she screamed as a gang of men beat the victim to the ground, showering him with kicks before he was spirited away by some onlookers. In the southern town of Bharatpur, hundreds of women chanted slogans against the king, banging plates and utensils. In Nepalgunj, 500 kilometres southwest of Kathmandu, farmers came out with plows to protest. Some broke down the statue of King Tribhuwan, Gyanendra's grandfather. Nepal's crisis has escalated since a general strike called by the parties and communist rebels began more than two weeks ago. Protesters have filled the streets daily, leaving the country paralyzed, stores emptied of goods and the situation dangerously volatile. Security forces firing at protesters have killed at least 14, and wounded many more. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Guyana agriculture minister, a Canadian citizen, killed in home invasion Web Posted | Last Updated Sat, 22 Apr 2006  21:35:26  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 22nd, 2006 GEORGETOWN, Guyana (AP) - Gunmen burst into the home of Guyana's agriculture minister early Saturday and shot him to death along with two of his family members visiting from Canada, authorities said. Satyadeo Sawh, a Canadian citizen, was killed as he reclined in a hammock even though his family members had satisfied the assailants' demand for money and jewelry, said his wife, Sattie Sawh, who said she survived by hiding in the coastal home. "They still turned around and shot them," she said hours after the attack at her house, where several government officials gathered to console the family. Among the dead were Sawh's sister, Phulmattie Persaud, and his brother, Rajpatrai Sawh, who were visiting from Canada. A security guard was also killed.
Another of Sawh's brothers was briefly hospitalized for a gunshot wound, said Sattie Sawh. At least one other person, a neighbour's security guard, was also wounded, police said. Satyadeo Sawh, 50, and his wife, both naturalized Canadian citizens, returned to Guyana in the early 1990s. He joined the successful campaign of the governing People's Progressive Party, which came to power in 1992, and was named a cabinet minister that year. "It smacks of a political assassination but the motive is still to be determined," said government spokesman Robert Persaud. Police said the motive appeared to be robbery. Later Saturday, the government held an emergency cabinet meeting and issued a statement saying it believed the killing of Sawh, the first of a cabinet minister since Vincent Teekah in 1978, was an attempt to destabilize the country before upcoming elections. The elections, scheduled for Aug. 4, were recently postponed to give authorities more time to prepare for balloting. A new date has not yet been set. The slayings "seemed a well planned and executed assassination by a large, heavily armed gang," the cabinet's statement said. It added that the attack "might be part of a sinister plan to impact the outcome of the upcoming regional and general elections." President Bharrat Jagdeo said Sawh will be missed for his energy and efficiency. He also urged police to find the killers and asked the public to remain calm and united. "We need to send a signal to the murderers and those who directed them that we will not be defeated and the nation will emerge stronger," he said in a speech broadcast Saturday night on television and radio. The government said it planned to seek help from foreign security agencies, but did not elaborate. Flags at government offices were flown at half-mast Saturday.
No arrests were made, but tracking dogs were searching the sugar cane fields surrounding the house where the gunmen were believed to have hid before the attack and fled afterward, said police Chief Winston Felix. Authorities believe the assailants waited outside the house in the Earl's Court district, about 10 kilometres east of the capital of Georgetown, and forced their way inside after the minister and his family arrived. Felix said that the motive appeared to be robbery and that police were stepping up security for cabinet ministers and other high-profile people. Forensic evidence shows the gunmen used rifles, Felix said. Neighbours and witnesses said the men numbered about seven and wore black clothing. Sawh, who has two adult sons, also once served as Guyana's ambassador to Venezuela. "I don't know if I will pack up and leave," Sattie Sawh said. "I came back to Guyana because I like my country." The slayings comes amid a rise in violent crime and political uncertainty over the upcoming elections. The main opposition People's National Congress called the killings "brutal and dastardly." A national day of mourning was to be announced next week. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Native standoff continues in Caledonia Web Posted | Last Updated Fri, 21 Apr 2006  08:31:06  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 21th, 2006 A standoff between native protesters and provincial police continues on Friday morning at a construction site in Southwestern Ontario, a day after a police raid failed to end the protest. Talks to defuse the dispute in Caledonia, about 90 kilometres southwest of Toronto, are expected Friday morning. In the pre-dawn hours on Thursday, Ontario Provincial Police moved in to remove native protesters from the disputed tract of land they had been occupying since late February. They arrested 16, but by the end of the day, more than 200 other protesters moved in, setting up barricades of burning tires and overturning vehicles.	Protesters say the land was granted to Six Nations more than 200 years ago and was never officially transferred to non-natives. (Frank Gunn/ Canadian Press)
Demonstrators first occupied the site on Feb. 28 to stop construction by Henco Industries on land they say was stolen from the Six Nations more than 200 years ago. The province says aboriginals gave up the land in 1841 to make way for a new highway, an agreement a Six Nations spokesperson said was only meant to be a lease. Six Nations filed a land claims suit over the area in 1999. Linda Powless, editor of a weekly aboriginal newspaper on the Six Nations reserve, said the dispute is a microcosm of a national problem. "There isn't a First Nation in Canada that hasn't been ignored by the federal government in resolving its land claims," she said. "The process has kept people waiting for years. Six Nations has been waiting over 200 years for a settlement here." There are plans to build 250 homes on the 40-hectare site. The province was granted a court injunction in March to remove the protesters, but staged their raid on Thursday because they said "escalation activity" had given them reason to be concerned. Police said New York licence plates had been seen around the site. Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty was quick to say that his government had in no way influenced the police decision to remove the demonstrators. He said he would take as much time as needed to settle the dispute peacefully. Thursday's events raised the spectre of the 1995 standoff in Ipperwash, Ont., which ended with a police raid and protester Dudley George shot dead. George's death is the subject of an ongoing inquiry, which has heard testimony from former Ontario premier Mike Harris. Prime Minister Stephen Harper said on Thursday he was watching developments in Caledonia closely. Assembly of First Nations National Chief Phil Fontaine is also concerned the Caledonia protest could turn more ugly, and said blocking roads and occupying land is not the answer. "We still believe that the most effective way achieving change is through negotiations," he said. But Bradford Morse, who teaches aboriginal law at the University of Ottawa, said the media spotlight on a protest can help. "The media has a huge influence in so many ways. Filing lawsuits is not always an effective way to proceed," he said. Morse said some protests have led to the recognition of land rights, but the cost has been incarceration, injury and sometimes death. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Ontario police evict aboriginal protesters Web Posted | Last Updated Thu, 20 Apr 2006  07:51:27  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 20th, 2006
Ontario Provincial Police staged a pre-dawn raid Thursday on a construction site in southwestern Ontario that had been occupied by aboriginal protesters for more than seven weeks. Officers moved in "incredibly quickly with overwhelming force" shortly before 5 a.m. EDT and started arresting people, protester Mike Desroches told Hamilton television station CHCH. Police arrived at the Caledonia site in several large rental vans with their guns drawn, and armed with tear gas and Tasers, said Desroches. The protesters had been camped out since Feb. 28 on the site where new homes are being built, about 90 kilometres southwest of Toronto. They say the land was granted to the Six Nations more than 200 years ago and was never officially transferred to non-natives. The province says aboriginals gave up the land in 1841 to make way for a new highway. In late March, the protesters ignored an order from an Ontario Superior Court judge to end the occupation. Talks to end the standoff broke down on Tuesday. Six Nations filed a land claims suit over the area in 1999. Police did not immediately comment on the raid, but were expected to do so later Thursday. In 1995, another OPP raid on a native occupation made national headlines when an unarmed protester was killed by a police sniper. Dudley George's death at Ipperwash Provincial Park became the subject of an ongoing inquiry, which has heard testimony from former Ontario premier Mike Harris. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Roadside bomb injures 2 Canadian soldiers Web Posted | Last Updated Wed, 19 Apr 2006  08:04:33  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 19th, 2006
Two Canadian soldiers were slightly hurt when a bomb exploded near their convoy west of Kandahar, media reports said Wednesday.
Army spokesman Maj. Marc Thériault said their injuries were not life-threatening, Broadcast News reported. Thériault said the soldiers were airlifted to the Kandahar airfield for treatment. The convoy was on its way to Forward Operating Base Robinson to replace troops there when an improvised explosive device exploded near a Bison reconnaissance vehicle, the BN report said. The vehicle was able to continue on toward the base after the attack.
About 2,300 Canadian soldiers make up Task Force Afghanistan, based in and around the former Taliban stronghold of Kandahar, in southern Afghanistan. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Suspected killer accessed online sex offender registry, Maine police say
Web Posted | Last Updated Mon, 17 Apr 2006  21:07:17  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 18th, 2006 A Nova Scotia man suspected of killing two registered sex offenders in Maine before taking his own life had looked up details about the men on the state's online sex offender registry, police say. Stephen Marshall, who shot himself in the head with a .45-calibre handgun when police stopped the bus in which he was riding, had logged on to 34 individual names on the registry, police said. The registry provides addresses and conviction data of offenders. "We know that Marshall logged on and got specific information on [34] individuals, two of which were the victims," Steve McCausland, a spokesman for the Maine state police, told CBC News.	Stephen Marshall of Cape Breton was a person of interest in shooting deaths of two sex offenders. (Maine Department of Public Safety/Associated Press)
The state maintains an online registry of 2,200 offenders that includes their names, photos and addresses. McCausland said the site gets more than 200,000 hits a month. 'She heard the shots' Police said Marshall, of the Cape Breton community of Little Bras d'Or, was a person of interest in the fatal shootings of Joseph Gray, 57, of Milo, and William Elliott, 24, of Corinth. Their bodies were discovered Sunday morning in the Maine towns of Milo and Corinth, northwest of Bangor. Both victims were registered sex offenders in Maine. They were reportedly killed in their respective homes. Police began looking for Marshall, 20, after his father's pickup truck was spotted by Elliott's girlfriend leaving the scene of his slaying. "She witnessed the shooting, she heard the shots. She followed Marshall out into the yard and then she got the vehicle description," McCausland said. "But most importantly, she got the licence plate number." The white pickup was found abandoned near Bangor but a tip led police to search for Marshall on a bus travelling to Boston.
David Procopio, who works for the Suffolk County District Attorney's office that covers the Boston area, said Marshall was sitting 13 rows behind the driver on the Greyhound bus when "police boarded the bus and they asked [the driver] to turn on the overhead dome lights." That's when the young man fired a single shot that went through his head and out the window. Five other passengers were evaluated at a Boston hospital because they had blood spattered on them, said Procopio. They were fine and they were released. "We're just grateful that no innocent bystanders or passengers were hurt."
Suspect may have been meeting his dad Emergency workers found another weapon on Marshall's body, a .22-calibre handgun. He had been carrying a backpack, a laptop computer and personal papers, including his passport, "but nothing to shed any light on why he came to Boston." Maine police said Marshall had come to Houlton to meet his father. "He had arrived at his father's home Thursday night and apparently disappeared sometime Sunday morning [or] Saturday night with his father's truck and three guns," McCausland said. They say they discovered Marshall's father's truck abandoned in Bangor and alerted authorities in Boston. Police in Nova Scotia said Marshall had no previous run-ins with the law. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
N.S. man sought in double killing in Maine fatally shoots self Web Posted | Last Updated Mon, 17 Apr 2006  05:53:10  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 17th, 2006
A Canadian man wanted for questioning in the deaths of two registered sex offenders in Maine shot himself when he was cornered Sunday night by Boston police, said officials in Maine. Stephen A. Marshall, 19, of Cape Breton, N.S., was pronounced dead late Sunday night at Boston Medical Centre. Police say Marshall shot himself in the head when police stopped the bus he was on. No other passengers on the bus were injured. Marshall was earlier described as a person of interest in the fatal shootings of two men whose bodies were discovered Sunday morning in the Maine towns of Milo and Corinth, northwest of Bangor, said Stephen McCausland, the spokesman for the Maine Department of Public Safety. The shooting victims were identified as Joseph Gray, 57, of Milo, and William Elliott, 24, of Corinth. Both victims were registered sex offenders in Maine. The state maintains an online registry of 2,200 offenders which includes their names, photos and addresses. It was taken off line after the killings. Marshall was sought by police after his father's pickup was apparently spotted leaving the shooting scene in Corinth. Maine state police say they discovered the pickup truck abandoned in Bangor and alerted authorities in Boston. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Pope's Easter message calls for world peace Web Posted | Last Updated Sun, 16 Apr 2006  08:45:24  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 16th, 2006
Thousands of people cheered loudly after Pope Benedict XVI blessed the crowd at St. Peter's Square on Sunday and delivered a message of peace as he celebrated his first Easter mass as Pope. Speaking from the steps of St. Peter's Basilica at Vatican City, Pope Benedict called on faithful Roman Catholics to pray for peace in Iraq and a solution to the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. He called for dialogue to overcome the obstacles between Israelis and the Palestinians. He defended Israel's right to exist, but called firmly for the establishment of a Palestinian state. Pope Benedict also spoke of the importance of finding a negotiated and "honourable solution" for the Iran nuclear crisis. The Pope urged that peace would "finally prevail" in Iraq, where he said violence "continues mercilessly to claim victims." He also spoke of the hardships in Latin America and Africa, particularly Sudan's troubled Darfur region. At the end of the mass, he addressed the crowd from the terrace of St. Peter's Basilica to give the traditional Urbi et Orbi address (Latin for "to the city and to the world"). The mass coincided with the Pope's 79th birthday and was broadcast to 65 countries. Easter is the most joyous day on the Catholic Church's liturgical calendar and is believed to mark the resurrection of Jesus after his crucifixion on Good Friday. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Flooding forces evacuation of Sask. reserve Web Posted | Last Updated Sat, 15 Apr 2006  08:32:58  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 15th, 2006
The entire Red Earth reserve in northeastern Saskatchewan will be evacuated on Saturday after a local river threatened to flood the community. About 800 people were to travel to Saskatoon. As many as 300 women, children and elderly people left for Prince Albert on Friday. An ice jam has caused the Carrot River to rise faster than expected. By early Friday afternoon, it was just a third of a metre from the top of its banks. The Saskatchewan Watershed Authority was predicting flooding as early as Saturday and, according to Chief Miller Nawakayas, the water may not recede to safe levels until Wednesday. The chief said the band has been getting help from the province and from a neighbouring Cree community. "Our local emergency response teams have been working every day, every hour. We're looking OK for the time being," Nawakayas told CBC Newsworld. Red Earth is located about 240 kilometres northeast of Saskatoon, near the Manitoba border. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Flooding may prompt evacuation of Sask. reserve Web Posted | Last Updated Fri, 14 Apr 2006  07:33:34  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 14th, 2006
Local officials may evacuate a northern Saskatchewan reserve as forecasters predict a rapid snow melt will cause the Carrot and Red Deer rivers to rise over the weekend. Home to about 300 people, the Red Earth First Nation is likely to be the worst-affected community. It's located about 240 kilometres northeast of Saskatoon. The Carrot River runs through the reserve and is expected to crest over the weekend. Band officials say they could make a decision to leave the community as early as Friday afternoon. In Manitoba, people living in the Red River Valley received some good news as forecasters predicted the river won't rise as high as previously thought. The Red River is expected to crest Friday at Emerson, near the border with the United States. Officials say it will crest 15 to 30 centimetres lower than they had anticipated. "The latest information suggests we can revise the forecast down a bit. The predicted crests have been revised down between a half foot and one foot," said Manitoba's senior flood forecaster, Alf Warkentin. The river is up to 15 kilometres wide and covers thousands of hectares of farmland between the towns of Emerson and Morris. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Dingwall entitled to golden handshake, arbitrator rules Web Posted | Last Updated Thu, 13 Apr 2006  08:04:35  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 13th, 2006
David Dingwall was doing a good job running the Royal Canadian Mint when lingering hostility within the federal Liberal party forced him to resign, according to an independent report released Wednesday. The report by arbitrator George Adams upheld a $417,780 severance payment the former Liberal cabinet minister received in February, along with a $42,010 annual pension. "Politics as a 'blood sport' may explain [the federal government's] ... conduct but cannot justify its treatment of Dingwall," wrote Adams, a retired Ontario judge. "He had performed his job well regardless of any perceived allegiances ... He was entitled to [the federal government's] rational support when serious charges concerning his expenditures were made against him." Dingwall's leadership at the Mint, a Crown corporation that manufactures Canada's coins and paper currency, came under question as former prime minister Paul Martin struggled to keep his minority government alive in September 2005. Then in opposition, Stephen Harper's Conservatives accused Dingwall of racking up $730,000 in expenses. In fact, an audit of the expenses later found that more than 70 per cent of them were incurred by other employees in Dingwall's office at the Mint, and that all the payments had been properly approved, Adams' report said. Dingwall had engineered a "significant turnaround" at the Mint since being appointed president in 2003 by departing prime minister Jean Chrétien, Adams noted. The former Nova Scotia MP, who held a Cape Breton riding for 17 years, had been given "substantial performance awards" for turning a money-losing organization into one that had a pre-tax profit of $15.9 million in 2004.
Yet nobody from the Martin administration was prepared to go to bat for Dingwall in the firestorm that erupted over the expenses, the arbitrator found. Dingwall received one phone call from John McCallum, the minister responsible for the Mint, "berating him for having to deal with an expense-related issue at such a delicate time." The Clerk of the Privy Council also called to pass on a message about the government's displeasure. "Dingwall is a very experienced politician," Adams wrote. "In light of these conversations and given his association with former prime minister Chrétien, he now understood there would be no support from the government regardless of the complete absence of wrongdoing on his part." That's why he agreed to resign his position on Sept. 28, in return for a compensation package that was still being worked out when his resignation letter was made public. "Several former Chrétien cabinet ministers had lost their jobs and were involved in very public (and expensive) litigation. No one disagreed with his assessment that he was next," the report said. The federal government "subsequently failed to honour the arrangement, giving rise to the instant dispute and this arbitration," Adams wrote. The arbitrator ruled in his favour, noting that Dingwall had not worked since leaving the Mint "and has no prospects for other work." In the midst of the controversy over his resignation and compensation package, Dingwall drew the scorn of opposition parties when he told a Commons committee: "I'm entitled to my entitlements." Harper's party picked up the phrase and used it repeatedly as an example of Liberal arrogance during the campaign leading up to the Jan. 23 general election. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Brace for high gasoline prices all summer Web Posted | Last Updated Tue, 11 Apr 2006  17:55:55  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 12th, 2006 The looming summer driving season stands to be an expensive one for motorists in Canada and the United States as gas prices look to remain high. The average price of gasoline at the pump jumped to just over $1.04 a litre this week, according to a national survey by Calgary-based MJ Ervin and Associates.	Gas prices are above $1 a litre in most markets.
That's up 2.2 cents from last week's survey and was the highest price MJ Ervin has found in any April survey. The cost of a litre of regular gas ranged from a low of 93.8 cents in Lethbridge, Alta., to just over $1.19 in Labrador City. "With crude prices forecast to remain strong for the remainder of the year, consumers can expect, on average, higher pump prices than last year," MJ Ervin analyst Cathy Hay told CBC News Online. But unless there's another serious supply disruption like the one caused by hurricane Katrina last year, prices aren't likely to hit the record $1.26 a litre recorded in the Sept. 6, 2005, pump price survey, Hay said. Gas hit also affects drivers in U.S. South of the border, the U.S. Energy Department issued a seasonal forecast that predicts Americans will be paying an average of $2.62 US a gallon for regular gas this summer. In February, the average price was $2.25 US a gallon and has been climbing since then along with the price of crude oil. The Energy Department said its forecast assumes no unexpected supply disruptions. "News of any developing hurricanes and tropical storms with a potential to cause significant new outages could add to [price] volatility ... in the latter part of the summer," the report said. Despite the forecast of high pump prices, the department said gasoline consumption during the April to September driving season is expected to rise by 1.5 per cent over last year – suggesting that prices in the United States still aren't high enough to significantly deter travelling. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Five charged in biker gang killings Web Posted | Last Updated Mon, 10 Apr 2006  19:22:07  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 11th, 2006
In what police are referring to as an "internal cleansing" of a biker gang, five people have been charged with first-degree murder in the slayings of eight men in southwestern Ontario.
The victims, whose bodies were found in a farmer's field near Shedden, and one of the suspects are all linked to the Bandidos outlaw biker gang, Ontario Provincial Police confirmed Monday. Police said the men had all been shot, and Det. Insp. Paul Beesley said they may have been killed in several locations. "The victims of this crime have been positively identified and are associated [with], or belong to, the Bandidos motorcycle gang," Det. Supt. Ross Bingley told a news conference in London. "This is an isolated incident with ties to the Bandidos." Among the four men and one woman from Ontario who are charged is Wayne Kellestine. Police say Kellestine is a full member of the biker gang.	John Muscedere, among the dead found in a farmer's field in Ontario, is shown in this undated photo taken from a Bandidos motorcycle gang website. (Canadian Press)
His house was only a few kilometres from where the bodies were found in four abandoned vehicles Saturday morning. The field is in Shedden, about 30 kilometres southwest of London and 200 kilometres west of Toronto. Police raided Kellestine's house on Sunday. All the suspects were arrested inside his home, police said.
No other motorcycle gangs are being investigated, they said. "There's nothing to indicate that there's anything outside the Bandidos ...this is simply an internal cleansing," said Det. Insp. Don Bell. The six Ontario people found dead are believed to be full members of the gang. They are: George Jesso, 52, of Etobicoke. George Kiriakis, 28, of Toronto. Luis Manny Raposo, 41, of Toronto. Francesco Salerajno, 43, of Toronto. John Muscedere, 48, of Chatham. Paul Sinopoli, 30, of Sutton. The two other victims are Jamie Flanz, 37, of Keswick, whom police said was a "prospect member" of the Bandidos, and Michael Trotta, 31, of Mississauga, described as an "associate member." Those charged are: Kellestine, 56, of Dutton. Eric Niessen, 45, of Monkton. Kerry Morris, 56, of Monkton (the lone woman charged). Frank Mather, 32, of Dutton. Brett Gardiner, 21, of no known address. Written by CBC News Staff	Also dead in Ontario's worst mass murder is Francesco Salerajno, shown in this undated photo also taken from a Bandidos website. (Canadian Press) Police block off an area under investigation near Shedden, Ont., on Saturday. (Steve Martin/Canadian Press)
=======================
Autopsy results due Monday in Ontario mass murder Web Posted | Last Updated Mon, 10 Apr 2006  06:12:42  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 10th, 2006
The results of autopsies on Monday are expected to provide police with more clues about a mass killing in Southwestern Ontario. Police have said little about their investigation into the discovery of eight bodies in four abandoned vehicles on the weekend. They have refused to comment on how the men died and won't talk about possible connections with organized crime. Reports have emerged about three west-end Toronto men, missing since Friday, with links to the Bandidos biker gang. Police haven't said any of those men are among the victims.
On Sunday, officers raided a farmhouse owned by Wayne Kellestine. Neighbours told CBC News that Kellestine is the former leader of two biker gangs, the St. Thomas Annihilators and the now-defunct St. Thomas Loners. Police would not comment on the reasons for their raid on the house, which is only a few kilometres from the farmer's field near Shedden, about 30 kilometres southwest of London and 200 kilometres west of Toronto, where the bodies of the eight men were found early Saturday morning by the owners of the property. About a dozen police cruisers were parked outside the biker's residence, while other cruisers blocked roads in the area.	Police set up a roadblock in the municipal area near a farmhouse in Shedden, Ont., under investigation on Sunday afternoon.
Police closed an area of 15 square kilometres around the death site while they searched for clues. Mass murder stuns police Police have declined to identify the victims, saying only that they were all from the Greater Toronto Area and knew each other. It's the biggest mass murder in recent Ontario history. "Obviously, we're not used to having eight people at one homicide scene," Det. Supt. Ross Bingley, a spokesman for Ontario Provincial Police, told reporters Sunday morning. "In 27 years of policing, I don't recall that number of people at any one location, so obviously it's fairly significant." No names will be released until the victims' families are notified, Bingley said. Police refuse to comment on possible gang links OPP also refused to discuss any possible links between the killings and organized crime, although surrounding Elgin County has a history of biker gang activity.
Several motorcycle clubs have been known to be in the area, including the Loners, Bandidos and Hells Angels. "The Hells are present in Ontario; everybody knows that," Bingley said. "But as far as me discussing the Hells or anybody else, we're working on this murder case and we're not talking about the Hells." The bodies were removed overnight Saturday and taken to Toronto. Police seek witnesses who saw vehicles Bingley identified the vehicles as: A grey Pontiac Grand Prix. A silver Infiniti sport utility vehicle. A green Chevrolet Silverado tow truck. A silver Volkswagen Golf. He urged anyone who may have spotted the vehicles in the area to call police. The slayings have shocked people in Shedden, where residents told reporters they couldn't remember the last time there had been a serious crime. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Victims in multiple slaying came from Toronto area Web Posted | Last Updated Sun, 09 Apr 2006  11:27:55  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 9th, 2006
The eight men whose bodies were found in and around four vehicles in a farm field in southwestern Ontario were from the Greater Toronto Area, police said on Sunday. The victims all knew each other, an Ontario Provincial Police spokesman said a day after the grisly discovery near the village of Shedden, about 30 kilometres south of London and about 200 kilometres west of Toronto. It was the biggest mass murder in recent Ontario history.
"Obviously, we're not used to having eight people at one homicide scene," Det. Supt. Ross Bingley said at a news conference. "In 27 years of policing, I don't recall that number of people at any one location, so obviously it's fairly significant." But Bingley stressed that police wouldn't comment on the cause of death until they got more information from the coroner's office in Toronto. Autopsies were scheduled for Monday. No names will be released until the victims' families are notified, Bingley said. Police refuse to comment on possible link to gangs The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) also refused to discuss any possible links between the killings and organized crime, although surrounding Elgin County has a history of biker gang activity.	Police were called to a rural area near Shedden, Ont., where eight men were found dead in and around four vehicles. (Steve Martin/Canadian Press)
Several motorcycle clubs have been known to populate the area, including the Loners, the Bandidos and the Hells Angels. "The Hells are present in Ontario; everybody knows that," Bingley said. "But as far as me discussing the Hells or anybody else, we're working on this murder case and we're not talking about the Hells." A couple found the bodies on their property at about 8 a.m. EDT Saturday, just off a dirt road near Shedden. The bodies were removed overnight and taken to Toronto. Police seek witnesses who saw vehicles Bingley identified the vehicles as: A grey Pontiac Grand Prix. A silver Infiniti sport utility vehicle. A green Chevrolet Silverado tow truck. A silver Volkswagen Golf. He urged anyone who may have spotted the vehicles in the area to call police. The slayings have shocked people in Shedden, where residents told reporters they couldn't remember the last time there had been a serious crime. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Nepal's king orders soldiers to shoot protesters Web Posted | Last Updated Sat, 08 Apr 2006  09:54:06  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 8th, 2006
Opposition parties called off an anti-monarchy rally planned in Nepal's capital on Saturday after the royal government imposed an all-day curfew and threatened to shoot on sight any violators.
Thousands of people were expected to gather in Katmandu to demand a return to democracy. Instead, those planning the protest against King Gyanendra's rule were holding an emergency meeting to determine how to counter the king's latest step to end the protests against his seizure of power last year. The rally was to be part of a four-day nationwide strike that began on Thursday. Security forces fired on demonstrators Saturday in Pokhara, a resort town 200 kilometres west of the capital, killing one person and injuring at least two others. Protesters were throwing stones when the soldiers shot at them, witnesses said. Pokhara was hit by widespread protests throughout Friday, with activists fighting troops who fired back with dozens of tear gas shells, according to witness reports. The king fired the government a year ago and suspended many civil liberties after he accused politicians of failing to stop the violence between the government and Maoist rebels.	A soldier guards a road in Katmandu to enforce a curfew imposed Saturday, the third day of a four-day general strike. (Binod Joshi/Associated Press)
Gyanendra said he would form a new cabinet and restore peace and democracy within three years. But in recent months there have been growing calls across the country for the restoration of democracy. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Winnipeg braces for Red River crest Web Posted | Last Updated Fri, 07 Apr 2006  05:54:11  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 7th, 2006
Officials with the city of Winnipeg have warned almost 200 homeowners to prepare for flooding following a revised forecast that predicts even higher water levels on the Red River. The province's chief forecaster says a crest by Friday morning will be higher than originally thought because of recent rain. A second crest is expected Easter weekend as water flows across the U.S. border. The city of Winnipeg has some protection because of the floodway, the giant ditch built to divert water around the city. But officials say 172 homeowners are at risk of flooding. City crews have already prepared 72,000 sandbags and about a quarter of them have been delivered to properties that could be affected. Water is already overflowing riverbanks and running over streets because of higher-than-expected run-off from the tributaries of the Red River. "We have a lot of local unregulated run-off that we cannot control," said Alf Warkentin, Manitoba's senior flood forecaster. "This is coming right into the city close to home. That's getting awfully high." The province now says the river level could be four metres higher than the Red River's normal summer level in the city. Brent MacKie, who lives near a Red River tributary in Winnipeg, says he's not worried. "We've seen this every year. It's been worse, so we're not concerned at all," he said. It's a different story outside of the city, where Rita Bartmanovich owns a greenhouse south of the floodway. She remembers the massive floods in 1997, when much of the Red River Valley was under water. "Everything's at stake. I don't think anybody knows how high the level is going to go," she said. "It depends what the weather is. I worry about it. I'll start not sleeping at nights again because that's what I did in '97 and we've lived through too many of them." The province warns there is rain in the forecast for next week and that could raise the flood waters now heading north from the United States. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
U.S. judge rejects permanent injunction to block Canadian beef Web Posted | Last Updated Thu, 06 Apr 2006  00:48:52  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 6th, 2006
A Montana court has rejected a U.S. beef lobby group's request for a permanent injunction to block the importation of Canadian cattle, the Canadian Cattlemen's Association says. R-CALF had asked U.S. District Judge Richard Cebull to scrap a ruling by U.S. Department of Agriculture that reopened the border to live cattle under 30 months old and boxed cuts of Canadian beef. The case had been pending before Cebull since last July. R-CALF had won a temporary injunction from Cebull in March 2005 after the lobby group argued Canada doesn't adequately test for mad cow disease. But a federal appeals court overturned that decision last July. Trade in live cattle then resumed. Hugh Lynch-Staunton, president of the Canadian Cattlemen's Association, said it was good news for cattle producers. "I'm pleased with it," he said in telephone interview with the Canadian Press Wednesday night. "It looked like the judge may have let it drag on forever, because he was apparently under no legal obligation to do anything, but this brings closure to that chapter of the legal battle." Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Internet use by hate groups increasing: expert Web Posted | Last Updated Wed, 05 Apr 2006  07:16:19  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 5th, 2006
The number of websites used to promote terrorism and hate has increased by 20 per cent in the past year, an expert with the Simon Wiesenthal Center says. Rabbi Abraham Cooper, associate dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Los Angeles, is in Canada this week to present the group's annual report on digital terrorism and hate to the new Canadian government. "Here's the bad news," he said. "If a private human rights agency can come across this much material, terrorist material –exact material on how to do very terrible things – that's probably only a portion of what's really out there." The group monitors 6,000 websites, and Cooper said many have begun offering online tutorials on subjects from urban warfare to suicide attacks. Cooper described one site as "particularly shocking. "Here's a video giving instructions on how to convert any cellphone into a detonator for an explosive." Based in Los Angeles, the Simon Wiesenthal Center is an international Jewish organization that preserves the memory of the Holocaust by fostering tolerance and understanding through community involvement, educational outreach and social action. It is named after Holocaust survivor Simon Wiesenthal who dedicated most of his life to tracking down fugitive Nazis and bringing them to justice for war crimes and crimes against humanity. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Military probes whether friendly fire killed soldiers in Taliban battle Web Posted | Last Updated Tue, 04 Apr 2006  05:10:38  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 4th, 2006
Canadian and American military investigators are checking out the possibility two soldiers killed in a three-hour gun battle in Afghanistan last week may have died as a result of friendly fire. Pte. Robert Costall, 22, a machine gunner born in Thunder Bay, Ont., and John Stone, 52, an American medic with the National Guard, died last Wednesday in a battle in the Sangin district of Helmand province. Three other Canadians were wounded in the brazen Taliban attack that included mortars and rocket-propelled grenades. Eight Afghan soldiers were also killed. Many observers saw the fight as a testament to the significant strength and resources of the Taliban army. Military officials did not explain what prompted the friendly fire suspicions but acknowledged military operations in the Afghanistan are "complex." "The initial findings justify the requirement for further investigation to determine the facts and circumstances surrounding the firefight, including whether any of the casualties may have resulted from `friendly fire'," said a statement released Tuesday by National Defence headquarters at Kandahar airfield, the coalition's main base in southern Afghanistan. "Terrain, weather and threat levels combine to create an extremely challenging operating environment. The fact the incident occurred at night, with attacks from multiple directions, just adds to the complexity." Three countries will carry out separate investigations – the U.S., Canada and Afghanistan – and it could be months before anything is known, said the statement. In April 2002, four Canadian soldiers were killed by friendly fire when an American fighter jet mistakenly bombed their position in a nighttime training exercise near Kandahar. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Deadly blast in doughnut shop not a terrorist job: police Web Posted | Last Updated Sun, 03 Apr 2006  22:39:25  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 3rd, 2006
Police have ruled out terrorism as the cause of an explosion at a Tim Hortons doughnut shop that killed one man in a trendy downtown area of Toronto on Sunday. The victim was likely an arsonist or attempting suicide, Staff Sgt. Don Cole of Toronto police told reporters hours after the explosion. "He's not a strap-on al-Qaeda bomber guy," Cole said. "It sounds to me like a guy who either wanted to do a torch job or commit suicide." Police said the man apparently carried a can of gasoline into a washroom stall about 1 p.m. local time at the eatery in the city's Yorkville area, and set off a flash fire that killed him. The victim was an unidentified male who was pronounced dead at the scene with severe burns to his body. Nobody else was injured. Tim Hortons spokesman Nick Javor later confirmed the victim was not an employee. In a statement, he praised the quick response of the staff, and said they would be offered appropriate support.
Explosion triggered flash fire: police Police Chief Bill Blair earlier described the incident as a flash fire rather than a bombing. Two blocks in the downtown area were cordoned off as police investigated. "It appears that there has been a very hot and intense fire in an enclosed area within the washroom," Blair said. But he declined to speculate on the cause of the fire. "Until we determine precisely what happened in that cubicle and what caused those flames that took that man's life, I really can't speculate," he said. Police could not confirm reports the man was seen entering the washroom with wires or possibly explosives strapped to his body.	Toronto police Chief Bill Blair answers reporters' questions outside the doughnut shop Sunday. (Patrick Morell/CBC photo)
The ceiling fell down on the victim, bringing down wires and batteries from an air-freshening device that might have contributed to suspicions of a bomb, Cole said. Suspicious bag not a threat After the incident, a police robot was used to remove a duffel bag from the doughnut shop, which is on Yonge Street just north of the intersection with Bloor Street. Explosives experts detonated the bag with a loud bang. It contained school supplies.
Police also evacuated a second Tim Hortons a few kilometres north and detonated a suspicious package, which ended up being a clock in a shopping bag. Eyewitness Jenny Phillips told Reuters that she heard bangs like pops from a firecracker and a scream "that will haunt me forever" as she left the washroom area. She smelled burnt powder and saw a "wall of flames" inside the men's washroom before staff herded the two dozen customers outside. "I thought the roof was caving in," she said. "People were screaming."	A police robot removes a suspicious parcel from the shop in the aftermath of the explosion.
Blast rattles shop workers Employees who appeared shaken were escorted from the scene, and some attempted to shield their faces from the throng of television cameras. They refused to answer questions, but Tim Hortons district manager Amin Islam said they were doing well. "I'm just making sure they're going home safely," he said. Daryl Fuglerud, a spokesman with Toronto's fire department, told reporters the man who died had burns to his body. "It doesn't appear that there was much of a fire at all," Fuglerud said. "There was a very small amount of smoke upon our arrival." Fuglerud said the investigation was turned over to police because it was a "possible criminal" case. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Time to spring forward an hour Web Posted | Last Updated Sat, 01 Apr 2006  19:36:46  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 2nd, 2006 Folks in Canada, the United States and other parts of the world are losing an hour's sleep as clocks move forward to mark daylight time Sunday. "Spring forward, fall back" is the catchphrase everywhere in Canada, except in Saskatchewan and parts of Quebec, Ontario and British Columbia, which remain on standard time year round. Daylight time traditionally sets in at 2 a.m. local times on the first Sunday in April. Clocks are	That extra hour of daylight time can lend a hand to conserving energy.
turned back an hour the last Sunday in October. However, beginning next year, daylight time will begin two weeks earlier and end one week later. The United States is leading the move in a bid to save energy. Most of Canada will follow suit. Daylight time started in Germany in 1915, and adopted soon after by Britain, the United States and much of Europe and Canada. Written by CBC News Staff
=======================
Body of fallen Canadian soldier returns Web Posted | Last Updated Sat, 01 Apr 2006  12:58:08  EST Giant Dwarf Posted: Apr 1st, 2006
A military plane carrying the body of a 22-year-old Canadian soldier who died while fighting a Taliban assault in Afghanistan arrived on Saturday at CFB Trenton in Ontario. Defence Minister Gordon O'Connor and Chief of Defence Staff Gen. Rick Hillier were among those at the base to pay their respects to Pte. Robert Costall.
Under cloudy skies, an honour guard of soldiers stood at attention while eight of their comrades carried the flag-draped coffin across the tarmac to a hearse. Costall's wife, Chrissy, the mother of the couple's year-old son, walked to the hearse, leaned over to touch her husband's coffin and wept. Other members of the family at the ceremony included the soldier's parents, Greg and Bonnie Costall. Costall was killed and three other Canadian soldiers were wounded during the most intense firefight Canadian forces have endured in more than 30 years.	Pte. Robert Costall, 22, leaves behind his wife and their one-year-old son. (DND/Canadian Press)
Taliban fighters launched mortars and rocket-propelled grenades at a remote military base in Helmand province, about 110 kilometres northwest of Kandahar early Wednesday. One U.S. soldier and at least eight Afghan servicemen also died in the battle. Costall, who was born in Thunder Bay, Ont., and raised in Sechelt and Gibsons, B.C., was with the 1st Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry based in Edmonton. Twelve Canadians have been killed in Afghanistan since 2002 – 11 soldiers and one diplomat. Costall was the first Canadian killed by enemy fire while serving in that country. There are about 2,200 Canadian soldiers at the base in Kandahar, along with roughly 6,000 other coalition soldiers, including Americans, British, Dutch and French. On Tuesday, troops at the airfield were rattled out of bed by what was believed to be a rocket attack. Three explosions were heard north of the main runway, but no one was hurt. Military observers say violence in Afghanistan has intensified in recent days as Taliban insurgents carry out a spring offensive in a bid to oust foreign troops. Written by CBC News Staff