Advance voting for three federal by-elections in Canada is set to begin Friday. According to Elections Canada, advance voting will take place for four consecutive days, from Friday through Monday, between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. The by-elections are being held in the federal ridings of North Vancouver–Capilano in British Columbia, Beaches–East York in Toronto, and Chicoutimi–Le Fjord in Quebec. Election Day for all three ridings is scheduled for August 31. The three by-elections are part of a series of federal by-elections being held across Canada this year. Earlier, on April 13, two federal b

At least 43 people have died after an overloaded boat capsized in Nigeria’s northwestern Sokoto state, while 16 people have been rescued. Local officials said many of those who died were children. Abdulkadir Yusuf, a regional official with the National Inland Waterways Authority, said around 40 bodies had been recovered and rescue operations were continuing. Local lawmaker Nasiru Adamu put the death toll at 43. Residents said the boat was carrying farm owners and workers hired to harvest rice. However, reports differ on the number of people aboard the boat. One resident said more than 70 peo

Police in Abbotsford have launched an investigation after two separate videos showing garbage being dumped in a waterway and a local park went viral on social media. The two incidents are believed to have occurred in late July. In one video, a woman is seen dumping garbage at Mill Lake Park, while another video shows her dumping garbage near Bluejay Elementary School. According to Sgt. Paul Walker, police had not received any reports about the incidents before the videos went viral. However, after the videos were widely shared, around 30 people contacted or tagged the police department, provid

Former Punjab Chief Minister and Congress leader Charanjit Singh Channi on Thursday clarified that he had been absent from Wednesday’s Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting with the permission of the party high command. Channi said he had an examination at Panjab University, which prevented him from attending the meeting. He said the party high command had granted him permission to remain absent. The meeting, chaired by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, was attended by senior leaders including Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, along with several other top leaders and special invitees. A

Canada’s largest bank, Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), has appointed former Ontario cabinet minister Caroline Mulroney as its new vice-chair. According to a statement issued by RBC, Mulroney will begin her new role on September 14. Her appointment is within the bank’s Capital Markets division. Mulroney is the daughter of the late former Canadian prime minister Brian Mulroney. She served as an MPP in the Ontario legislature from 2018 to 2026 and held several key positions in Premier Doug Ford’s government, including Attorney General, Minister of Transportation and President of the Treasury Bo

A 33-year-old woman has been charged with six serious offences in connection with two separate grass fires that occurred in Vernon, in B.C.’s Okanagan region, on Aug. 4. According to Vernon North Okanagan RCMP, the first fire was reported on Kammenz Road near Bench Row Road in the afternoon. About 20 minutes later, a second fire was discovered at Carlson Park. Following an investigation, police arrested 33-year-old Maria Benning Bear, a resident of West Kelowna, on Aug. 14. She is facing six serious charges, including arson, mischief causing property damage, possession of incendiary material

A senior man who was seriously injured after being struck by a TransLink bus in Surrey last month has died in hospital. According to the Surrey Police Service, the man, believed to be between 60 and 65 years old, was found seriously injured at the intersection of 128 Street and 96 Avenue at around 9:41 p.m. on July 11. Paramedics rushed him to hospital, where he later died while undergoing treatment. Police believe the incident occurred near a bus stop. The initial investigation has ruled out factors such as excessive speed and impairment as possible causes of the crash. SPS is asking anyone w

Alberta Technology Minister Nate Glubish is set to host the province’s second town hall on its plans for artificial intelligence data centres on Thursday in Redwater, north of Edmonton. The event comes amid growing concerns over the environmental and economic impacts of large-scale AI facilities. Redwater is in Sturgeon County, where tech giant Meta is planning a $13-billion AI data centre project. The proposed facility would be a major investment in the region and is expected to be one of Canada’s largest data centres. The town hall follows a contentious meeting in Lacombe on Wednesday,

The Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) has ordered WestJet, Canada’s second-largest airline, to eliminate the weight limit it imposes on power wheelchairs carried on its aircraft. The regulator ruled that WestJet’s weight restriction creates an unreasonable barrier for passengers living with disabilities and must be removed before July 2027. The case came to light following a complaint filed by Winnipeg resident and former federal cabinet minister Steven Fletcher, who was prevented from boarding a WestJet flight last year because of the weight of his customized electric wheelchair. WestJ