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'Private Bruno' becomes active-duty Marine Corps recruit mascot

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:20:00 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- A four-legged servicemember has officially become an active-duty mascot for the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego.'Private Bruno,' a six-month-old English Bulldog, was appointed to his duties during a ceremony Friday morning. Authorities investigate deputy-involved shooting in North County The dignified dog was named after Maj. Gen. Bruno Hochmuth, who at the time of his death was the first General Officer killed during the Vietnam War, according to Marine Corp officials.Pvt. Bruno will be following in Maj. Gen. Hochmuth's footsteps as he was also the commanding general of the depot from November 1963 to February 1967, military records show.Marine Corps officials say Maj. Gen. Hochmuth was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal, the Legion of Merit with Combat “V” (Valor), the Navy Commendation Medal with Gold Star in lieu of a second award, along with the Purple Heart with Gold Star. In present day, Cpl. Johnny “Manny” Manuelito, a fellow English Bulldog, rel...

Man airlifted to hospital in critical condition following Hwy. 400 crash

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:20:00 GMT

Three people are in hospital, including a man who was airlifted to hospital in critical condition, following a crash on Highway 400 south of Barrie.The collision occurred in the southbound lanes of the highway south of Highway 89.OPP Sgt. Kerry Schmidt says two vehicles were involved in the crash. One of the vehicles rolled over several times.Two people in the vehicle that rolled were taken to hospital, including a man who was airlifted to a trauma centre by an Ornge air ambulance.One person from the second vehicle was brought to hospital with minor injuries.All southbound lanes are closed from Highway 89 to Highway 88 for the investigation.Collision: #Hwy400 sb closed at Hwy89. Two vehicle collision, one vehicle rolled over. Three people to hospital, one person was airlifted to a trauma center. Expect delays. #AuroraOPP investigating. pic.twitter.com/xulmD4wknr— OPP Highway Safety Division (@OPP_HSD) April 21, 2023  

Scarborough schools locked down after reports of person with gun in area

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:20:00 GMT

Toronto police say two people are in custody and no other suspects are being sought after reports of a person with a gun outside of Albert Campbell Collegiate Institute in the Finch Avenue East and Brimley Road area of Scarborough on Friday afternoon.Albert Campbell and nearby Royal Crown School were both briefly placed in lock downs that have since been lifted.Police say Francis Libermann Catholic High School is in hold and secure.Police say a pellet gun has been recovered and no injuries have been reported.No further details were immediately available.PERSON WITH A GUN:(UPDATE)Albert Campbell CI-no other suspects outstanding-police o/s investigating-Frances Libermann -remaining in lockdown-Albert Campbell CI and Royal Crown – no longer in lockdown#GO883099^sc— Toronto Police Operations (@TPSOperations) April 21, 2023More to come

Drive-by shooting wounds 3, kills 12-year-old bystander

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:20:00 GMT

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Bullets sprayed out from a speeding car in Connecticut’s capital, killing an innocent 12-year-old bystander and wounding three other people who have have rap sheets that include gun crimes, authorities said Friday.The suspects in the drive-by shooting appeared to target three males who were standing on a sidewalk on a residential street not far from downtown Hartford shortly after 8:30 p.m. Thursday, city police said.Secret Pierce, a seventh grader at Milner Middle School, became Hartford’s seventh homicide victim of the year. She was sitting in a parked car when she was shot in the head, police said. She died Friday morning. The three other victims, males ages 16, 18 and 23, were expected to survive.“This is a painful day in our community,” Mayor Luke Bronin said at a morning news conference outside police headquarters. “I don’t have the words. I want to say to Secret’s mom and loved ones that we all are so deeply sorry. That we are with them toda...

Muslims celebrate Eid al-Fitr holiday with feasts, prayers

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:20:00 GMT

BEIRUT (AP) — The holiday of Eid al-Fitr ushered in a day of prayers and joy for Muslims around the world on Friday. The celebration was marred by tragedy amid the explosion of conflict in Sudan, while in other countries it came against the backdrop of hopes for a better future.After the Ramadan month of fasting, Muslims celebrate Eid al-Fitr with feasts and family visits. The start of the holiday is traditionally based on sightings of the new moon, which vary according to geographic location.In Sudan’s capital, Khartoum, staccato blasts of gunfire marked the early hours of the feast day. A deadly conflict in the vast African country that erupted in the past week has forced many people to shelter indoors ahead of the holiday, even as water and food for civilians runs low.In Jerusalem, thousands of faithful gathered at Islam’s third holiest shrine, the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, where tensions with Israeli authorities have seethed in the past month. The compound also hosts Judais...

Former industry minister takes job at Rogers two years after leaving office

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:20:00 GMT

OTTAWA — Former Liberal industry minister Navdeep Bains is joining Rogers as the company’s new chief corporate affairs officer.Rogers announced several new appointments to its executive leadership team on Thursday, including Bains and a former Shaw executive. “This is a terrific opportunity to build on my commitment to champion critical issues facing both Canada and Canadians,” Bains said in a statement. “It’s an exciting time to join the company and to work with Tony and the team to help grow the digital economy and deliver more choice, more value and more connectivity for consumers.”Bains served in Prime  Minister Justin Trudeau’s cabinet as industry minister from 2015 until early 2021, and chose to not run for re-election that year.The industry minister is responsible for overseeing the country’s national industrial strategy, including regulating national sectors such as telecommunications.Ben Klass, a PhD candidate at Carleton University...

Mohawk Mothers, McGill reach deal to search for graves at site of former hospital

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:20:00 GMT

MONTREAL — McGill University and a group of Indigenous elders have reached a deal to search for the possibility of unmarked graves at the former site of a Montreal hospital.The Mohawk Mothers allege there are bodies of Indigenous patients buried on and around the old grounds of the Royal Victoria Hospital, which McGill is renovating to expand its campus. The Mothers say they have uncovered evidence of graves following interviews with survivors of mind-control experiments that took place in the 1950s and 1960s at a psychiatric institute affiliated with the hospital.Canada and the United States allegedly funded abusive psychological experiments on vulnerable patients with the MK-ULTRA program. Last October, the group obtained an injunction ordering a pause on excavation work on the university-expansion project with a judge ruling the renovations would cause irreparable harm.On Thursday the Quebec Superior Court gave legal status to the agreement that would allow three archeologists — ...

Labour board flags ‘irregularities,’ low turnout in public service strike vote

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:20:00 GMT

OTTAWA — The federal labour board has found low turnout and irregularities of significant concern with the strike vote that led more than 100,000 public servants to walk off the job this week.The board found in a decision posted Thursday that the Public Service Alliance of Canada failed to properly let members know it had shortened the voting period by eight days, moving the deadline from April 19 to April 11.Only about 35 per cent of members of the bargaining unit actually cast a ballot, and 80 per cent of them were in favour of a strike mandate. Union president Chris Aylward hasn’t previously revealed how many members were in favour of a strike mandate, except to say that it was an “overwhelming majority.”The decision arose from a complaint by a public servant who asked the board to overturn the result of the vote when he was unable to cast his ballot. The board decided against granting that request because it’s unlikely there would have been a different re...

White House: No evacuation plans for all Americans in Sudan

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:20:00 GMT

RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany (AP) — The Pentagon has deployed forces and is developing options to assist in the possible evacuation of U.S. Embassy personnel from Sudan, but the White House said Friday there are no plans for now for a broader pullout of the potentially thousands of other Americans from the African country where warring factions are in a violent conflict.The troop moves by the U.S. military are intended “to ensure that we provide as many options as possible, if we are called on to do something. We haven’t been called on to do anything yet,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said at a news conference in Germany. Austin and U.S. Army Gen. Mark Milley, the Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman, held meeting meetings with defense leaders from other countries to discuss additional support for Ukraine. An estimated 16,000 private U.S. citizens are registered with the U.S. Embassy in Khartoum as being in Sudan. The State Department has cautioned that that figure probably is inacc...

Hassan Diab’s supporters urge Canada to rebuff extradition after guilty verdict

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:20:00 GMT

OTTAWA — Supporters of Hassan Diab are calling on Canada to refuse any new extradition request from France after a court found the Ottawa sociology professor guilty of a 1980 bombing.Diab, who has always maintained innocence, was tried in absentia in Paris for the attack on a synagogue that killed four and wounded 46.A French court sentenced Diab to life in prison today and issued an arrest warrant for him.Following lengthy proceedings that went all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada, Diab was extradited to France where he spent three years behind bars, including time in solitary confinement.French judges dismissed the allegations against him in January 2018 and ordered his immediate release, allowing him to return to Ottawa where he lives with his wife and children.In May 2021, a French court upheld a decision directing Diab to stand trial, a ruling his Canadian lawyer called inexplicable.This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 21, 2023.Jim Bronskill, The Ca...