CanadaMar 19, 2021
Trudeau denounces 'lack of transparency' as Canadian tried in China on spy charges
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau denounced China's "lack of transparency" Friday following a brief trial for Michael Spavor, one of two Canadians detained by Beijing for more than two years. Canada said its consular officials were refused permission to attend the proceedings against Spavor, an entrepreneur with North Korea-related business, who is accused by China of stealing state secrets. Jim Nickel, the Canadian Embassy's deputy chief of mission, said he was told by Spavor's lawyer that the hearing ended at noon Friday after two hours. No verdict was announced. Nickel declined to give other d
CanadaMar 19, 2021
Trial of Michael Spavor in China ends without verdict
A Chinese court says it will pronounce its sentence on detained Canadian entrepreneur Michael Spavor at a later date.Spavor's trial on charges of spying and illegally sending state secrets abroad lasted just two hours today and was conducted behind closed doors.Canadian consular officials were refused permission to attend. Ten diplomats from eight countries, including the US, Britain and Australia, stood on the street opposite the courthouse in Dandong, China.Former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig is due to go on trial on Monday.The detention of the ``two Michaels'' is seen as retribution for
CanadaMar 18, 2021
Enough doses of COVID-19 should arrive in the country so that every adult could get a first shot before Canada Day: Maj. Gen. Dany Fortin
Barring any issues, Major-General Dany Fortin says enough doses of COVID-19 should arrive in the country so that every adult could get a first shot before Canada Day. But due to the threat of vaccine production issues, the government's official line is that Canadians will be fully vaccinated by the end of September. And the calculations rely on the provinces continuing to delay second doses up to four months to get first doses to more people sooner. Health Canada anticipates a total of 36.5-million doses from Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and the AstraZeneca vaccine from the Serum Institute of Ind
CanadaMar 18, 2021
Iran's report on shootdown of Flight 752 doesn't explain why it happened: TSB
Transportation Safety Board chair Kathy Fox says Iran's civil aviation agency failed to answer key questions in its final report on the downing of a Ukrainian passenger jet in January 2020. Kathy Fox says the final report on what happened to Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 fails to explain why the aircraft was shot down. Iran is blaming human error for the Revolutionary Guard firing two surface-to-air missiles at the jet shortly after it took off from Tehran. The TSB has questions about the missile operator's training, experience or proficiency. The final report from Iran's civil av
CanadaMar 18, 2021
Federal government rejects Iran's explanation of human error for the shooting down of an airliner from Ukraine
The federal government has rejected Iran's explanation of human error for the shooting down of an airliner from Ukraine in January of 2020. Iran's Revolutionary Guard fired two missiles at Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 shortly after it took off from Tehran. All 176 people on board were killed, including 55 Canadian citizens and dozens more with ties to the country. Foreign Affairs Minister Marc Garneau and Transport Minister Omar Alghabra largely dismiss the 145-page document, which was posted to the website of Iran's Civil Aviation Organization today. They say the report makes no
CanadaMar 18, 2021
Canada will get more than 2.5 times the doses of Pfizer-BioNTech in the next eight weeks, than were delivered in the last 14 weeks
Health Canada's updated vaccine delivery website says Canada will get more than 2.5 times the number of doses of Pfizer-BioNTech in the next eight weeks, than were delivered in the last 14 weeks. The site, updated today, confirms more than 8.5 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine are to be shipped to Canada between March 22 and May 16. That includes almost 1.2 million doses in each of the next two weeks, and just over one million doses a week, for the next six weeks after that. Moderna has not confirmed shipments past the end of March, and there is no date yet for the first shipments expected
CanadaMar 17, 2021
TSB to provide its comments on the final safety investigation report into the downing of Ukraine International Airlines flight 752
The Transportation Safety Board has received the final report into the downing of a Ukrainian passenger jet over Tehran, and will discuss it at a news conference tomorrow. Ukraine International Airlines Flight 7-52 crashed after it was shot down by Iran's Revolutionary Guard in January, 2020. All 176 people aboard were killed, including 55 Canadian citizens, 30 permanent residents and dozens of others bound for Canada. Transportation Safety Board of Canada on Twitter: #MEDIA: TSB will hold a news conference to provide its comments on the final safety investigation report into the downing of U
CanadaMar 17, 2021
Female senior officer quits military, 'sickened' by sexual misconduct allegations
A female officer of the Canadian Armed Forces is quitting the military, saying she is "sickened" by investigations into alleged sexual misconduct by senior military leaders.In her sharply worded resignation letter, obtained by The Canadian Press, Lt.-Col. Eleanor Taylor says she is also "disgusted" it took so long for the top brass to come under scrutiny.A veteran of the war in Afghanistan, Taylor has also served with the military's special forces and most recently held a top position with a reserve unit in Halifax.Her resignation comes amid allegations of misconduct involving senior members
CanadaMar 16, 2021
More dangerous variants of COVID-19 recorded recently are just the tip of the iceberg: Dr. Theresa Tam
Canada's top doctor says now is not the time for Canadians to increase their contact with others in light of a recent rise in average COVID-19 case counts across the country. Dr. Theresa Tam says this upswing combined with an acceleration of new variants of the virus in Canada is cause for concern. She says the most up-to-date stats indicate the percentage of Canadians with immunity to COVID-19 remains low, even as governments have been ramping up their vaccination efforts. And since today's case numbers reflect the situation in Canada two weeks ago, Tam urged Canadians to continue to keep th