Canada – Winnipeg Free Press

At the Coalition Avenir Québec caucus meeting on Jan. 27 in Trois-Rivières, François Legault was greeted by Bernard Drainville and Christine Fréchette, two former ministers who are vying to succeed him as party leader. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Patrice Bergeron

Fréchette and Drainville face off in first CAQ leadership debate

Thomas Laberge, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 1:53 PM CDT

QUÉBEC - Tensions flared Saturday in Quebec City as Christine Fréchette and Bernard Drainville faced off in the first debate to succeed Premier François Legault as leader of the Coalition Avenir Québec.

The proposed “third link” bridge connecting Quebec City and Lévis quickly moved to the centre of the clash.

Fréchette accused Drainville’s preferred route of serving his “ego,” while Drainville countered that she was blocking the project with too many conditions.

“To sum it up: I’ll do it, and Christine is putting it on hold because she’s imposing so many conditions that it won’t happen,” he said.

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B.C. naturopath alleges suspects in Iran activist’s murder sought to ‘silence’ him

Darryl Greer, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Preview

B.C. naturopath alleges suspects in Iran activist’s murder sought to ‘silence’ him

Darryl Greer, The Canadian Press 5 minute read 3:00 AM CDT

VANCOUVER - An affidavit filed by Rosita Fatemi said her meeting with Arezou Soltani and Mehdi Ahmadzadeh Razavi took place in a parking lot in the Park Royal mall in West Vancouver, the heart of British Columbia's Iranian community.

The document said she and her two fellow founding directors of a B.C. non-profit society opposed to the Iranian regime were there to discuss a lawsuit filed by another activist, Masood Masjoody, who had accused Soltani and Razavi of being aligned with the dictatorship.

Razavi had accused her at the meeting of communicating with Masjoody, and took her phone without her consent when she tried to refute the accusation, her affidavit says.During the same meeting, Fatemi alleges that Soltani wanted to know how to "silence" someone, in a way that would "look natural."

"She also asked me for a drug substance to 'get rid of him.' Based on the context of the discussion, I understood her to be referring to the plaintiff (Masjoody) and causing him to be murdered," she said.

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The Park Royal shopping centre in West Vancouver is seen on March 18, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Greer

‘People are tired:’ Canadians on humanitarian mission describe life in Cuba

Fakiha Baig, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Preview

‘People are tired:’ Canadians on humanitarian mission describe life in Cuba

Fakiha Baig, The Canadian Press 5 minute read 5:00 AM CDT

Two Canadians on a humanitarian mission in Cuba say it's easier for locals to count the number of hours the lights are on than off.

And when electricity is flowing, Leanne Isaak says Cubans can be seen scrambling to get as many tasks done as they can, such as cooking, charging phones, showering and filling buckets with water.

"People say, 'I may not get power again for three days so I'm going to do everything that I need to do in this one or two-hour time-frame to prepare for the next chunk of time when I'm just going to try to keep going," said Isaak, the founder and a co-director of a non-profit called One Shared Future Un Futuro Compartido.

"In Spanish they say, 'We don't have blackouts, we have lights-on,' because (they're) more often in the dark than they have electricity," added Elise Hjalmarson, also a co-director of the non-profit.

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A street vendor waits for customers on the Malecón during a blackout in Havana, Monday, March 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

Canadians plan to sail to Gaza despite detention risks

Kathryn Mannie, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Preview

Canadians plan to sail to Gaza despite detention risks

Kathryn Mannie, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 12:58 PM CDT

Canadians are planning to sail to Gaza again as part of a flotilla that aims to deliver aid and break a nearly 20-year naval blockade months after six Canadians were detained by Israel for attempting a similar mission.

Safa Chebbi, spokesperson for the Canadian arm of the Global Sumud Flotilla, said more than 100 boats and 3,000 participants from around the globe are set to depart from Spanish and Italian ports on April 12, bound for Gaza.

Chebbi said health-care workers, journalists and builders hoping to provide aid and help in Gazan reconstruction efforts will sail on the fleet of ships, along with medicine and other life-saving supplies.

Hanging over the planned sailing is the possibility the boats will be intercepted by Israeli forces and passengers detained, as has been the case for dozens of ships in the past two decades, with none reaching Gaza since 2008.

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Updated: Yesterday at 12:58 PM CDT

Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, centre, arrives at the Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport in Athens, Monday, Oct. 6, 2025 after being deported from Israel for taking part in a Gaza-bound aid flottila. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Petros Giannakouris

Canadians living abroad looking to increase voter turnout ahead of byelections

Catherine Morrison, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Preview

Canadians living abroad looking to increase voter turnout ahead of byelections

Catherine Morrison, The Canadian Press 4 minute read 5:00 AM CDT

OTTAWA - Canadians living abroad are calling for increased turnout among overseas voters and arguing that barriers to casting a ballot could be affecting election results.

Timothy Veale, the director of Grits Abroad — an organization aimed at connecting Canadian Liberal voters living worldwide — said nearly five million Canadians live outside the country and roughly 3.5 million of them are eligible to vote.

Veale said the share of non-resident Canadians voting in federal elections is mired in the low single digits. He said the causes include mail-only voting, compressed timelines, uncertainty about ballot arrival and delivery and a lack of outreach from party campaigns.

Daniel Scuka, a member of Grits Abroad living in Germany, said parties need to "wake up" and encourage Canadians overseas to vote. He said Elections Canada could also be directed to do more to support overseas voting.

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Election workers count special ballots, ballots cast by Canadians outside their ridings, at the Elections Canada Distribution Centre on the day of the federal election, in Ottawa, on Monday, April 28, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang

Three Quebec maritime students who were stranded in Persian Gulf in good spirits

Charlotte Glorieux, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Preview

Three Quebec maritime students who were stranded in Persian Gulf in good spirits

Charlotte Glorieux, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 12:26 PM CDT

MONTREAL - Three students who were stranded aboard ships in the Persian Gulf for more than two weeks arrived back home in good spirits. the director of Quebec’s maritime institute said.

All three students arrived in Quebec on Friday after flying from Saudi Arabia to London, then on to Canada.

Mélanie Leblanc, director of the institute, said in an interview that she had received an email earlier in the day from one of the students confirming their safe arrival. She also spoke with two of the students via video conference.

The trainees were part of a program with Quebec-based shipping company Desgagnés and were stationed on two cargo ships that have been unable to move since Feb. 28, when Iran blocked most traffic through the Strait of Hormuz amid the ongoing war with the U.S. and Israel.

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Updated: Yesterday at 12:26 PM CDT

Maritime historical groups earn UNESCO recognition for Black Loyalist archive

Lyndsay Armstrong, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Preview

Maritime historical groups earn UNESCO recognition for Black Loyalist archive

Lyndsay Armstrong, The Canadian Press 4 minute read 5:00 AM CDT

HALIFAX - Detailed ledgers, business receipts and church records from Black Loyalists in the 1780s and onward are more than just rich historical texts to Andrea Davis.

“This is a part of my history… it means so much to us as a community,” she said in an interview Saturday.

Davis is an eighth generation descendant of Black people who left the United States for Nova Scotia at the end of the American Revolution, siding with the British. The Black Loyalists were offered land, protection and freedom, but they were not given the rations, assistance or fertile land they were promised.

“My ancestors, they are a group of people that were not meant to survive, but they did. And so to be here to represent the Black Loyalists and my ancestors is extremely rewarding,” she said.

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PBO nominee Annette Ryan enters spotlight at a pivotal time for federal finances

Craig Lord, The Canadian Press 6 minute read Preview

PBO nominee Annette Ryan enters spotlight at a pivotal time for federal finances

Craig Lord, The Canadian Press 6 minute read 5:00 AM CDT

OTTAWA - Ottawa's nominee for federal fiscal watchdog will face questions from members of Parliament on Monday after a turbulent period for the budget office.

Annette Ryan, a longtime public servant and currently a deputy director at Canada's financial intelligence agency, Fintrac, was named as cabinet's pick to be the next parliamentary budget officer earlier this month.

Ryan's nomination, which must be approved by the House of Commons and Senate, was referred to the parliamentary finance committee, where she'll testify on Monday afternoon.

The Office of the Parliamentary Budget Officer scrutinizes federal spending decisions and helps to cost out campaign proposals during elections.

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Annette Ryan speaks at the Standing Committee on Finance in Ottawa on Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Handout — House of Commons (Mandatory Credit)

Most NDP leadership candidates say they’re in no hurry to become MPs

David Baxter, The Canadian Press 6 minute read Preview

Most NDP leadership candidates say they’re in no hurry to become MPs

David Baxter, The Canadian Press 6 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 2:13 PM CDT

OTTAWA -

Four of the five federal NDP leadership candidates say they won't be in a hurry to enter the House of Commons if they win — a position the only MP in the race calls "a little bit odd."

Filmmaker Avi Lewis said if he is chosen as the new NDP leader next week, his main priority will be to prepare the party's grassroots for an election.

"The race has been a great way to get into communities and really get on the ground with people and witness the daily struggles of Canadians and refine our solutions that would make life easier. And I'm excited to continue that work," Lewis told The Canadian Press.

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Updated: Yesterday at 2:13 PM CDT

Tony McQuail participates in the NDP French language leadership debate, in Montreal on Thursday, November 27, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christopher Katsarov

Federal departments, agencies to shed 12,000 full-time equivalent positions

Catherine Morrison, The Canadian Press 6 minute read Preview

Federal departments, agencies to shed 12,000 full-time equivalent positions

Catherine Morrison, The Canadian Press 6 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 8:09 PM CDT

OTTAWA - Federal departments and agencies are looking to cut more than 12,000 full-time equivalent jobs over the next three years as part of the Carney government's spending review.

That figure comes from plans released by federal departments and agencies for 2026-27 outlining how they'll shed billions of dollars to meet the government's cost-cutting targets. Multiple part-time positions can make up one full-time equivalent position.

Rola Salem, spokesperson for the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, said departments were asked to include in their reports details about the savings for each fiscal year until 2028-29. That included a description of how the savings would be achieved, the number of reductions in full-time equivalent positions and any measures that weren't included in the last budget.

Among the expected job losses are 1,793 positions at Public Services and Procurement Canada, 900 jobs at Statistics Canada and 942 at Health Canada.

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Updated: Yesterday at 8:09 PM CDT

A giant Canadian flag hangs on the side of a government office building in downtown Ottawa on Tuesday, June 30, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

Canada should ‘absolutely’ match Poland’s Chinese EV ban at military bases: expert

Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press 6 minute read Preview

Canada should ‘absolutely’ match Poland’s Chinese EV ban at military bases: expert

Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press 6 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 8:18 PM CDT

OTTAWA - Intelligence and cybersecurity experts are warning the Liberal government about national security risks posed by allowing Chinese electric vehicles onto Canadian military bases.

Critics and some experts are even calling on Ottawa to ban the cars from Canadian Armed Forces bases and other sensitive sites due to onboard sensors they say could collect and transmit sensitive information to the Chinese government.

Their warning comes after Poland and Israel instituted similar bans on EVs built by Chinese companies like BYD Auto over the past year — and as Conservative politicians in Canada raise the alarm over the threat of so-called "spy cars."

Dennis Molinaro, a counter-intelligence expert at Ontario Tech University and a former national security analyst, said the federal government should follow the example of Poland and Israel.

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Updated: Yesterday at 8:18 PM CDT

A BYD electric car is on display at the Essen Motor Show in Essen, Germany, on Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner, File)

Eby says he will sell B.C. as ‘stable jurisdiction’ during trade trip to China

Wolfgang Depner, The Canadian Press 3 minute read Preview

Eby says he will sell B.C. as ‘stable jurisdiction’ during trade trip to China

Wolfgang Depner, The Canadian Press 3 minute read Friday, Mar. 20, 2026

VICTORIA - A trade delegation headed by British Columbia Premier David Eby will travel to China later this year in an effort to drum up business for the province.

The premier says the trip will focus on deepening trade relations around agriculture and energy, but he did not provide a timeline or other details.

Eby's trip to China comes after Prime Minister Mark Carney visited the country in January, when he met with Chinese President Xi Jinping, and signed trade deals around Chinese-made EVs and Canadian canola.

Eby says the mission to China will deliver the same message as his trip to India earlier this year, which is that B.C. is a "stable jurisdiction in a very unstable time."

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Friday, Mar. 20, 2026

Premier David Eby speaks during a press conference at the legislature in Victoria, B.C., on Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chad Hipolito

Tumbler Ridge shooting victim undergoing fourth surgery to repair fractured skull

The Canadian Press 2 minute read Preview

Tumbler Ridge shooting victim undergoing fourth surgery to repair fractured skull

The Canadian Press 2 minute read Friday, Mar. 20, 2026

VANCOUVER - The 12-year-old girl seriously injured in the mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge, B.C., is undergoing a fourth surgery, this time to repair her fractured skull.

Maya Gebala's mother, Cia Edmonds, posted on social media that the latest surgery is to place a prosthetic piece in the girl's skull where she was shot on Feb. 10.

Edmonds says in the post that her daughter still cannot talk or move her right side, but she can move her left hand and leg and is able to stare at her mother with her uninjured eye.

She says there is concern about a possible new infection but says she knows her daughter "is fighting" to recover.

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Friday, Mar. 20, 2026

Maya Gebala is shown in this undated handout photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Handout - GoFundMe, Krysta Hunt for Cia Edmonds (Mandatory Credit)

U.S. congressman introduces bill targeting Online Streaming Act

Anja Karadeglija, The Canadian Press 3 minute read Preview

U.S. congressman introduces bill targeting Online Streaming Act

Anja Karadeglija, The Canadian Press 3 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 8:21 PM CDT

OTTAWA - A Republican congressman in Washington has introduced a new bill taking aim at Canada’s Online Streaming Act.

The bill would trigger an investigation of the streaming legislation by the Office of the United States Trade Representative, Rep. Lloyd Smucker's office said in a news release.

The statement said if the trade representative finds the implementation of the streaming bill discriminates against or burdens American commerce, the USTR would be directed to take “necessary retaliatory action.”

Under the Online Streaming Act, the federal broadcast regulator has ordered large foreign platforms to make a five per cent contribution toward Canadian content.

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Updated: Yesterday at 8:21 PM CDT

Rep. Lloyd Smucker, R-Pa., speaks at a campaign rally on Monday, Nov. 4, 2024, in Newtown, Pa. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Canadian military personnel leave Iraq with NATO allies amid Iran war

Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press 3 minute read Preview

Canadian military personnel leave Iraq with NATO allies amid Iran war

Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press 3 minute read Friday, Mar. 20, 2026

OTTAWA - Canadian Armed Forces members are among the NATO personnel who have left Iraq as the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran drags on.

The alliance said Friday it has safely relocated to Europe the last of its personnel from Mission Iraq, a non-combat advisory operation.

Defence Minister David McGuinty confirms that Canadian military members and civilians taking part in the mission have been relocated to a secure location and are all safe.

"As we continue to monitor the situation in the region, we call on all states to respect international law and uphold the fundamental principles of international prosperity and security," McGuinty said in a written statement.

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Friday, Mar. 20, 2026

File photo — U.S. air force members stand under the wing of an E-3 Sentry-AWACS aircraft at Tinker Air Force base near Oklahoma City, Friday, June 29, 2007. (AP Photo)

Invasive grasses may pose deadly risk post-wildfire, UBC researcher says

Marissa Birnie, The Canadian Press 3 minute read Preview

Invasive grasses may pose deadly risk post-wildfire, UBC researcher says

Marissa Birnie, The Canadian Press 3 minute read Friday, Mar. 20, 2026

VANCOUVER - Invasive grasses are creeping into burnt landscapes years after wildfires and could fuel massive future fires that put people's lives at risk, a University of British Columbia researcher says.

Jennifer Grenz, an assistant professor in the department of forest resources management, co-authored a study that focuses on the aftermath of the McKay Creek wildfire, a 46,000-hectare fire that burned near Lillooet in 2021 during the record-breaking heat dome.

The study, published this month in the journal "Fire Ecology," took place in B.C.'s southern Interior, a region that includes dry forests and grassland and rugged terrain ranging from narrow valleys to tall ridges.

Grenz said that while native plants were slow to recover two years after the fire, invasive grasses like cheatgrass are starting to grow onto bare post-burn patches of ground in lower-elevation areas where people live, work and use for recreation.

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Friday, Mar. 20, 2026

March 22, 2026

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