Category Archives: Canada

Victims dismayed as Canadian inquiry finds mystery syndrome does not exist

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New Brunswick officials say baffling disorder that causes memory loss and cognitive decline is from known neurological condition

After warning medical professionals to be on the lookout for a baffling neurological condition that produced memory loss, muscle wasting and severe cognitive decline, authorities in the Canadian province of New Brunswick have concluded that no such illness exists, a finding that has prompted skepticism and disbelief as families search for answers.

New Brunswick officials last year flagged a possible “cluster” of residents suffering from an unknown neurological syndrome, similar to those of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. Symptoms were varied and dramatic: some patients started drooling, and others felt as though bugs were crawling on their skin.

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Night-time attack on controversial Canadian gas pipeline site

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Police release video of attack on workers’ equipment at camp of Coastal GasLink, a 400-mile pipeline opposed by First Nation groups

Police in Canada have released footage of axe wielding attackers as they investigate a “calculated and organised” night-time raid on a remote work camp.

Up to 20 people are believed to have attacked Coastal GasLink’s pipeline construction camp last week on Marten Forest Service Road in British Columbia.

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National guard troops to be deployed in DC as trucker convoy protests loom

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US protest to follow Canadian truckers’ demonstration against pandemic restrictions

The Pentagon is expected to approve the deployment of 700 to 800 unarmed national guard troops to the nation’s capital, a US official said on Tuesday, in the face of trucker convoys that are planning protests against pandemic restrictions beginning next week.

The District of Columbia government and the US Capitol police are requesting the national guard assistance. The troops would be used largely to help control traffic and are expected to come from the district’s national guard and three states, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss aid not yet formally approved.

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Canada extends emergency powers after trucker blockades ended

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Prime minister Justin Trudeau says situation ‘still fragile’ after biggest police operation in nation’s history

Canadian lawmakers have voted to extend the federal government’s emergency powers, granting the prime minister, Justin Trudeau, powerful tools to prevent new blockades by those opposed to Covid-19 restrictions.

Despite opposition from rival Conservatives and legal challenges to the decision from civil rights groups, experts expect the decision will have little lasting damage for Trudeau.

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Disinformation for profit: scammers cash in on conspiracy theories

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Some accounts claiming to support the Canada trucker protests are run by con artists abroad

When Facebook removed dozens of groups dedicated to Canada’s anti-government “Freedom Convoy” protests earlier this month, it didn’t do so because of extremism or conspiracies rife within the protests. It was because the groups were being run by scam artists.

Networks of spammers and profiteers, some based as far afield as Vietnam or Romania, had set up the groups using fake or hacked Facebook accounts in an attempt to make money off of the political turmoil.

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As New Zealand police face criticism over parliament protests, Canada could provide lessons | Dominic O’Sullivan

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Ottawa police have abandoned their policy of de-escalation against anti-Covid mandate demonstrators

Today’s action to cordon off the occupation of parliament’s grounds and prevent it growing might go some way to restoring public confidence in the police, which has appeared to be eroding since the protests began a fortnight ago.

So far, police have pursued a de-escalation strategy, but there have been calls for firmer action. The whole event has raised important questions about the relationship between the police and government, and about police independence and accountability.

The police are an instrument of the crown […] but in the two principal roles of detecting and preventing crime and keeping the Queen’s peace they act independently of the crown and serve only the law.

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Canadian police secure downtown Ottawa as truckers’ protest ends

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Three-week occupation over Covid precautions and Trudeau government ends with 76 vehicles towed and 191 arrests

Canadian police on Sunday secured the downtown core of Ottawa with fencing, as city workers cleaned up trash and snow plows cleared streets after two days of tense standoffs and 191 arrests ended a three-week occupation.

Demonstrators used hundreds of trucks and vehicles to block the city center since 28 January, prompting the prime minister, Justin Trudeau, to invoke rarely used emergency powers.

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Ottawa trucker protest: pepper spray and scuffles as police try to clear capital – video

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Police pushed back protesters in Canada’s besieged capital on Saturday, arresting 170 people and towing away dozens of vehicles. Many more trucks were driven out of the city, raising authorities’ hopes for an end to the three-week protest against the country’s Covid restrictions. Police in tactical gear quickly gained ground on the second full day of one of the biggest police enforcement actions in Canada’s history, for which officers were drawn in from around the country

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Ottawa protests: conspiracies and accusations of betrayal as police end blockade

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Large parts of area in capital cleared after more than 191 are arrested and 57 vehicles are towed

When thousands of protesters against Covid restrictions arrived in Ottawa last month, it would have seemed unimaginable that they would take over parts of the Canadian capital with little resistance.

To their own disbelief, the rightwing protesters soon controlled the streets outside parliament, brazenly flouting the law in the belief nothing could or would stop them.

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Ottawa: police use pepper spray and stun grenades to clear trucker protest

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Police chief says ‘occupation is over’ as he vows to clear out those still demonstrating against Covid mandates and Trudeau government

Canadian police deployed pepper spray and stun grenades on Saturday in a continuing effort to break up a blockade of trucks and demonstrators that has occupied downtown Ottawa for more than three weeks in a protest against pandemic protocols.

Reports indicated that authorities escalated crowd control efforts. Police with rifles reportedly approached protesters and smashed truck windows.

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Canadian police arrest at least 100 protesters in bid to break up Ottawa truck blockade

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At least 21 vehicles towed as police start breaking up protest camp that has paralysed Canada’s capital for several weeks

Police in Ottawa have begun arresting protesters and towing away vehicles in an effort to break up the so-called “freedom convoy” that has paralysed Canada’s capital for weeks and prompted the prime minister, Justin Trudeau, to declare a national emergency

By Friday evening, at least 100 people had been arrested, mostly on mischief charges, and at least 21 vehicles had been towed, including all of those blocking one of the city’s major streets, as police exercised emergency powers that Trudeau invoked earlier this week.

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Republicans who opposed racial justice protests hope truckers ‘clog up’ US cities

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Lawmakers including Ron Paul and Ron DeSantis say they would back disruption of a Canadian-style trucker convoy

In the wake of racial justice protests following the murder of George Floyd, a wave of Republican lawmakers supported legislation to punish protesters who blocked roads. Now some of those same Republicans are supporting similar tactics from conservative trucker convoys protesting against vaccine mandates.

Last year, the Florida governor, Ron DeSantis, signed an anti-rioting law that stiffened penalties for protesters who blocked roads and even gave some legal protection to drivers who ran them over. It went so far that in September a federal judge struck down the law, ruling it unconstitutional.

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Protesters defy police presence in Ottawa after officers warn of crackdown

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Justin Trudeau says ‘high time these illegal and dangerous activities stop’ after nearly three weeks in Canadian capital

Truckers who have blockaded downtown Ottawa for nearly three weeks have defied a growing police presence in the Canadian capital and ignored repeated warnings that they could face steep fines and possible arrest.

Officers had warned of an impending crackdown on Thursday, as busloads of police reinforcements arrived in the city and work crews took the rare step of erecting metal fences outside the senate and parliament.

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Ottawa protests: ‘strong ties’ between some occupiers and far-right extremists, minister says

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Public safety minister speaks after arrest of extremists accused of plotting to kill police officers in Canada border town of Coutts

Canada’s public safety minister has warned of ties between protesters occupying the country’s capital and a group of far-right extremists who were charged earlier this week in the border town of Coutts, Alberta, over an alleged plot to kill police officers.

“Several of the individuals at Coutts have strong ties to a far-right extreme organization with leaders who are in Ottawa,” the minister, Marco Medicino, told reporters on Wednesday.

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Spain mourns worst fishing tragedy in 38 years after sinking of Villa de Pitanxo

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The Galicia-based trawler sank off Newfoundland with just three known survivors from the crew of 24

Spain was in mourning for its worst fishing tragedy in almost 40 years, as rescuers warned on Wednesday that it was unlikely they would find any more survivors from a ship that sank in rough seas off Newfoundland.

Search teams have so far confirmed 10 dead and rescued three survivors from a life raft, and the search continues for 11 others who remain unaccounted for.

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Saunas, haircuts, hot meals: Ottawa protesters set up for the long haul

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Protesters against Covid-19 rules seem unfazed by possible police action as prime minister invokes emergency powers

A day after Canada’s prime minister announced a dramatic escalation in his government’s fight against blockades across the country, protesters in the nation’s capital were scheduling haircuts and receiving massages, apparently unfazed by the prospect of ramped-up police enforcement.

Hundreds of semi-trucks which have been parked out front of Canada’s parliament since late January have become emblematic of the protests, but planning and logistics for the occupation is run from a second site in a hotel parking lot on Coventry Road, 5km east of the downtown area.

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Seven dead and 17 missing as Spanish fishing boat sinks off Canada

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Three crew rescued from life raft as international mission combs icy seas for survivors

At least seven people have died and 14 are missing after a Spanish fishing boat sank in bitterly cold seas off the north-east coast of Canada early on Tuesday morning.

Spain’s maritime rescue service said an international operation was under way to locate the crew of the Villa de Pitanxo, a boat from the north-western Galicia region that went down 280 miles (450km) off the Newfoundland coast.

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Canada: Justin Trudeau invokes emergency powers amid trucker blockades – video

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The Canadian prime minister, Justin Trudeau, announced the government would invoke the Emergencies Act as the country goes into a third week of 'illegal and dangerous' blockades.

 'We are not preventing the right of people to protest legally,' said Trudeau, adding that the military would not be deployed as part of the measures


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Trudeau invokes rare emergency powers in attempt to quell protests

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Emergencies Act gives government broad powers for 30 days, but prime minister is not expected to call in the military

The Canadian prime minister, Justin Trudeau, has invoked legislation that gives his government sweeping powers to fight a growing number of “illegal and dangerous” blockades across the country.

The first prime minister to invoke the Emergencies Act, Trudeau said the measures would be time-limited and only apply to specific geographic regions. “We are not preventing the right of people to protest legally,” he said, adding that the military would not be deployed. “The act is to be used sparingly and as a last resort.”

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Foreign money funding ‘extremism’ in Canada, says hacker

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Exclusive: leak shows more than half of donations to convoy protest through GiveSendGo came from US

A hacker who leaked the names and locations of more than 90,000 people who donated money to the Canadian trucker convoy protest has said it exposed how money from abroad had funded “extremism” in the country.

In an exclusive interview, the hacker told the Guardian that Canada was “not safe from foreign political manipulation”. “You see a huge amount of money that isn’t even coming from Canada – that’s plain as day,” said the hacker, who belongs to the hacktivist group Anonymous.

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