Israeli airstrikes hit one of Beirut’s heavily-populated southern suburbs on Friday as blasts were heard throughout the Lebanese capital. It was not immediately clear what the target was but thick black smoke was seen billowing from the area. The strike came an hour after thousands of people attended the funeral of a top Hezbollah commander who was killed the day before.

Statistics Canada says real gross domestic product grew 0.2 per cent in July, following essentially no change in June, helped by strength in the retail trade sector. The agency says the growth came as services-producing industries grew 0.2 per cent for the month. The retail trade sector was the largest contributor to overall growth in July as it gained one per cent, helped by the motor vehicles and parts dealers subsector which gained 2.8 per cent. The public sector aggregate, which includes the educational services, health care and social assistance, and public administration sectors, gained

There are reports of Punjab BJP president Sunil Jakhar resigning. This news has come when the assembly elections are going on in Haryana. However, the party avoided the talk of resignation calling it a rumour. Meanwhile, a meeting has been called by the Punjab BJP on September 30. The meeting will be held in Chandigarh under the leadership of BJP constituency in-charge Vijay Rupani. It is being said that Sunil Jakhar is angry with being Ravneet Singh Bittu a minister. He has not been active in party programs for the past several days. Jakhar was also absent from the important meeting to discu

Health Minister Adriana LaGrange says there's more work to be done before a new compensation contract for Alberta's doctors is finalized. LaGrange says she has to make sure the new deal, which was agreed to in part this past April, is sustainable. She says doctor compensation under the existing contract over the past few years has risen quicker than inflation and population growth and is currently over budget this year. The group representing Alberta's doctors have said the government is dragging its feet in implementing the new deal and putting patients' lives at risk in the pro

Less than 24 hours after the Conservatives lost their first attempt to topple the government the Tories are trying again. A new motion being debated this morning states that the House of Commons has lost confidence in the Liberal government and "offers Canadians the option to axe the tax, build the homes, fix the budget and stop the crime." That's the list of slogans the Tories have been using for months. On Wednesday, the majority of MPs voted against the first non-confidence motion that was put forward by Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre. The series of confidence votes comes after the ND

Tactical evacuations are underway outside the B.C. southern Interior town of Grand Forks, as an out-of-control wildfire in Washington state surges north and threatens to cross the border. The Regional District of Kootenay Boundary says the evacuations are taking place west of Grand Forks as embers from the Goosmus wildfire shower the area. Emergency Info BC says evacuation orders posted Wednesday are in place for west of Highway 41 and south of Highway 3, as well as properties west of Highway 3 from Sleepy Hollow Rd to Phoenix Rd. It says residents need to evacuate immediately because the fire

Canada has issued a joint statement with its allies calling for "an immediate 21-day ceasefire across the Lebanon-Israel border," citing an "unacceptable risk of a broader regional escalation." The statement, issued along with the United States, Australia, European Union, United Arab Emirates and eight other countries, calls on the governments of Lebanon and Israel and all parties involved to endorse the temporary ceasefire and "give a real chance to a diplomatic settlement." Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said the cease-fire plan put forward was only a proposal and that th

Sidhu Moosewala's father Balkaur Singh is currently campaigning for Congress in Haryana. On Thursday, he campaigned in support of Congress candidate Bharat Singh Bainiwal from Ellenabad Vidhan Sabha constituency of Sirsa district. Balkaur Singh reached the village of Shakar Mandori in Elanabad, where the people gave him a warm welcome. Addressing the people from the platform, he said that Sidhu was a true soldier of the Congress party and now is the time to strengthen the hands of Rahul Gandhi. Attacking the Bharatiya Janata Party, he said that the BJP calls the farmers sitting on the Delhi b

National Bank of Canada, Canada's 6th largest bank, has cleared a major regulatory hurdle to buy Edmonton-based Canadian Western Bank. The Montreal-based bank said in a statement on Thursday that it had received approval for the deal from the Competition Bureau, clearing the way for its acquisition of Western Bank. However, the transaction is pending approval from the banking regulator and the finance minister. National Bank is buying Western Bank for about $5 billion. The CEO of National Bank of Canada said that they are aiming to complete the takeover in early 2025. Founded in 1984, Canad