NDP's timeline for ousting Liberals comes after leader Jagmeet Singh secures pension in february
A top NDP official has said his party is willing to defeat the Liberals in a confidence vote if Justin Trudeau hasn’t resigned by next February or March, a timeline that happens to coincide with leader Jagmeet Singh’s pension eligibility.
Speaking on CBC’s Power and Politics last Monday evening, NDP House leader Peter Julian told host David Cochrane that if Trudeau isn’t gone by then, the NDP would “100%” vote to support
a “straight up” non-confidence motion in the House of Commons.
“If at the end of February or early March, we have the continued debacle that we’re seeing here, and the prime minister has not stepped out… We simply cannot continue like this,” Julian said. “So yes, the NDP, as the adults in the room, would step up on that. We need to act now to help people and stand up against the Trump administration.”
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Two South Asian men guilty of first-degree murder in fatal shootings outside Edmonton hookah lounge
Two men accused of firing multiple shots into an SUV in an ambush killing outside a northeast lounge were found guilty of first-degree murder by jurors Saturday night.
Jaskaran Singh Sidhu and Prabhjyot Bhatti each faced two charges of first-degree murder in the April 2019 deaths of known drug dealers Jasdeep Singh and Japneet Malhi.
The two victims, with Malhi’s girlfriend, had entered Singh’s Mercedes SUV after leaving the Mazaj Restaurant and Lounge off Barlow Trail N.E. when a sedan pulled up in front of their vehicle and shots were fired from the passenger
side. The 12-member jury found Sidhu and Bhatti guilty following a full day of deliberations that began Friday evening.
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The United States government has urged the Supreme Court to dismiss a petition filed by Mumbai-attack convict Tahawwur Rana, a Canadian national of Pakistani origin, to avoid his extradition to India.
India is seeking the extradition of Rana as he is wanted in the 2008 Mumbai terror attack case. Having lost the legal battle against his extraditions in lower courts and several federal courts, including the US Court of Appeals for the North Circuit in San Francisco, Rana on November 13 filed a “petition for a writ of certiorari” before the US Supreme Court.
In a long battle, this is Rana’s last legal chance to avoid extradition to India.
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BC's projected deficit grows again to historic $9.4 billion due to NDP gov't spending
British Columbia's forecasted record deficit for this fiscal year has grown by another $429 million, reaching $9.4 billion.
The province unveiled the latest quarterly update, the first under new Finance Minister Brenda Bailey, showing B.C.'s debt level set to reach $130 billion by the fiscal year's end, which is $1.4 billion higher than September's projections.
Bailey says in a statement that the province will see "modest" economic growth projected at
0.9 per cent for 2024, while next year's growth is expected to come in at 1.9 per cent.
But she warns that there is also uncertainty looming, including the tariff threat from U.S. president-elect Donald Trump.
Bailey says the NDP government will be "careful" in reducing the record deficit "over time" by growing the economy rather than cutting services, with $13.2 billion in infrastructure spending planned for this fiscal year. Continued on Page 10...
Husband, wife shot in Surrey while child sat in car nearby
Police in Surrey say two people were seriously injured in a shooting on Monday night in the city’s Newton neighbourhood.
According to the Surrey Police Service, just before 6 p.m., police responded to reports of a woman saying that she and her husband had been shot outside a home on 67B Avenue near 126 Street.
“In their car nearby, was a young child who was unharmed. Both victims have been taken to hospital for treatment of serious injuries,” Staff Sgt. Lindsey Houghton shared in a statement.
The suspects were last seen driving away from the incident in a dark-coloured sedan, police add.
“The investigation is in its early stages and is being supported by RCMP Surrey Provincial Operations Support Unit Serious Crime Unit
and General Investigation Unit officers, as well as Surrey Police Service’s Frontline Investigative Support Team (FLIST),” Houghton explained.
The SPS is urging anyone with information about the shooting to call police at 604-599-0502 and quote file 2024-5300 (SP) or contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or www.solvecrime. ca if they wish to remain anonymous.
For anyone planning on travelling in Southern or Central B.C. over the Christmas break, it is advised to have a backup plan just in case of stormy weather.
Environment Canada says regions could be hit by yet another powerful storm on Monday night and into Christmas Eve morning.
Armel Castellan, warning preparedness meteorologist with Environment Canada, told Global News on Thursday that it is going to be a very active atmosphere as British Columbians get ready to celebrate Christmas.
“We’ve got what we call in meteorological jargon a big trough offshore,” he said.
“So… the Northeast Pacific, the Gulf of Alaska, and it’s bringing in a southwesterly flow to the coast. So lots of rain, some snow at elevation… And that’s going to be the theme on and off for the next week or so.”
Castellan said they are not expecting devastation from the storm but they are expecting a lot of moisture along with windy conditions.
A bomb cyclone is when a storm develops or intensifies very rapidly.
Castellan said at this time it looks like the Central Coast may be the most affected.
Global BC meteorologist Mark Madryga said this forecast may change as there are still many days before Christmas.
BC Ferries told Global News it is too early to determine if any sailings will be affected by weather conditions next week.
“You know, the Tuesday event is, or even Sunday, will actually be fairly windy as well on the coast,” he said.
Castellan added that it is uncertain at this time if the storm will reach the Lower Mainland and affect BC Ferries’ sailings or cause power outages.
“We do have some question marks still on Tuesday with what looks to be a bomb cyclone,” he said.
“Again, as we saw in November, but again, most of the energy is going to be focused closer to the Central Coast. So it may have an impact on some of the northern ferry routes.”
Castellan added that at the moment, it looks like the Lower Mainland and Southern Vancouver Island will not see the worst of the storm.
“We are aware of a potential system coming in over the next week, in particular early next week that could impact sailings,” Ceilidh Marlow, a senior communications adviser with BC Ferries said.
“It’s too early right now to confirm any service disruptions but customers should be prepared for the possibility of cancellations, of delays next week if weather conditions make it unsafe to sail.”
Castellan said weather could impact drivers on the highways and even flight schedules.
“Essentially we’re dealing with such an active pattern right across most of B.C. and into the Prairies, in fact,” he said
“And that just means that there’s a lot of types of weather that you might encounter.”
Finance Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland has announced her resignation from Justin Trudeau’s cabinet, taking aim at “costly political gimmicks” on the eve of the government’s fall economic update.
In a letter to Trudeau posted on social media Monday morning, Freeland said rather than be shuffled to another cabinet position she will be resigning, claiming she and Trudeau have been “at odds about the best path forward for Canada.”
Freeland said she will be staying in caucus as a member of Parliament and seeking re-election.
Freeland, who’s served as finance minister since 2020, noted that in the face of Donald Trump’s proposed 25% tariffs, Trudeau’s government must focus on “eschewing costly political gimmicks” which Canadians “can ill afford.”
This comes after news that Freeland was cancelling Trudeau’s announced $250 cheque distribution scheme.
In the letter, Freeland said the move to hand out the costly rebates could “make Canadians doubt that we recognize the gravity of the moment.”
The Working Canadians Rebate would cost taxpayers $4.675 billion.
respect such an approach. They know when we are working for them, and they equally know when we are focused on ourselves,” Freeland wrote in the letter. “Inevitably, our time in government will come to an end. But how we deal with the threat our country currently faces will define us for a generation, and perhaps longer.”
According to journalist Ashley Burke, when Freeland was asked if she would deliver the fall economic statement, she said “what happens with the FES is a question for the PM’s office.”
Trudeau’s housing minister, Sean Fraser, told reporters Monday morning that he will not seek re-election in the next federal election and will also be leaving cabinet. Fraser cited “family reasons.”
Freeland said Canada needs to push back against “America First” economic nationalism to fight for Canada’s economy.
“I know Canadians would recognize and
There have been several reports that Trudeau is actively courting former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney to join his cabinet.
Over 300K customers lost power last Saturday
Strong winds across the province downed trees and power lines, and BC Hydro says over 300,000 customers across the Lower Mainland, Sunshine Coast, Vancouver Island, and the Gulf Islands lost power Saturday.
Surrey was particularly hard-hit by the storm; as of 1 p.m. Saturday, 75,000 customers in that city were without power.
“The strong winds have resulted in trees and branches contacting electrical infrastructure, which has caused extensive damage,” BC Hydro said in a news release around 1 p.m. Saturday.
“About 250 BC Hydro and contractor crew members are currently working to repair damage to power lines, power poles, and other equipment in an effort to restore customers as quickly and safely as possible. To provide additional support, BC Hydro is looking to bring in crews from unaffected regions.”
BC Hydro says vegetation has weakened
across the province, making it more vulnerable to wind. This comes after a multi-year drought, it says.
“As a result, many dead and damaged trees and branches have fallen, and are making contact BC Hydro’s electrical equipment,” the utility said
“All available BC Hydro crews and contractor crews are working to repair damage to power lines, power poles and other equipment in an effort to restore customers as quickly and safely as possible. This work will continue throughout the day and into the night.”
BC Hydro reminds customers that downed power lines are considered an emergency, so call 911 and stay at least 10 metres back.
Environment Canada issued a wind warning for Saturday that extends into the afternoon, with expected gusts as high as 100 kilometres per hour, warning of the possibility of fallen branches and outages.
Atmospheric river brings isolated flooding to Lower Mainland; mountain passes blanketed with snow
After an overnight storm, a rainfall warning remains in place for much of the Lower Mainland Wednesday morning.
1130 NewsRadio meteorologist Michael Kuss says while the steady rain is coming to an end, scattered showers will linger around until daybreak.
“We saw between 20 and 25 millimetres in a widespread way across the Lower Mainland, 30 plus on the North Shore — that was to midnight, with another 10 to 25 from midnight to 4 a.m. for a lot of locations,” Kuss explained. But as the rain tapers off, wind gusts are set to pick up.
“With all that moisture, saturated ground, and potentially unstable conditions, we could see trees down, with winds gusting to 60-70 kilometres per hour through the early morning hours. In fact, all the way to about 9 or 10 a.m., we’ll likely see strong and gusty winds,” Kuss explained. The chance of some coastal flooding could also occur with those winds, he adds.
“We’re expecting the winds to shift direction and pick up along exposed areas on the coast. … With the wave action, that could result in some coastal flooding.”
The overnight rainfall brought flooding to isolated areas across the Lower Mainland.
5 youths now charged in connection with Kelowna swarming attack Victoria suburb's
Five youths have now been charged in connection with a swarming attack that happened on Sept. 27 in Kelowna, B.C.
The BC Prosecution Service said the five youths, who cannot be identified due to their ages, appeared in the Kelowna court on Dec. 18.
The next court appearance for two of the young people is Friday at 2 p.m. All five youths have a court appearance scheduled on Jan. 16, 2025. In a video, obtained by Global News, the 13-year-old victim is swarmed and beaten unconscious. Young people standing around are yelling and filming the attack. When the girl was unconscious on the ground, some of the youths
scooped dirt onto her head while she lay there.
The girl’s father previously confirmed to Global News that his daughter is recovering but it is a long process.
A Victoria, B.C., suburb is taking matters into its own hands to tackle the family doctor shortage.
The City of Colwood is directly hiring family physicians under a new pilot project that could connect thousands of residents with primary care. The project will officially kick off in the new year, with the hire of Dr. Cassandra StillerMoldovan from Ontario.
Colwood says it intends to hire seven more family doctors to ensure care for more than 10,000 residents.
Colwood Mayor Doug Kobayashi said the municipality intentionally recruited an out-ofprovince doctor so as not to deplete the existing pool of local physicians.
He said the plan also addresses one of the biggest issues B.C. is facing when it comes to retaining doctors: the hours doctors spend
dealing with administrative work.
“We are saying, well, we will take all of that away from you,” he said. “What we are good at, as a municipal government, is doing administration. It makes sense.”
Under the program, the doctors will also be offered pensions, vacation and maternity leave as city employees. Dr. Jessep Pewarchuk, co-medical director of the new Colwood Clinic, said those offerings are significant.
“To not have a pension, to not have a benefit plan, to not have maternity leave, to not have parental leave, to not have disability leave, to not have sick leave — this is the reality of practicing medicine as a family doctor or a specialist doctor in B.C. and most other provinces,” he said.
Air Canada adopts new method to help passengers keep track of luggage
For anyone travelling with Air Canada over the holidays, the airline has launched a way to help passengers keep track of their bags.
Customers can use the Share Item Location feature on the Air Canada website to securely share the location of the Apple AirTag or the Find My network with the airline in the event their bags go missing or are delayed.
Air Canada says this is a more efficient way to reunite passengers with their luggage.
The airline provided the steps to use this feature.
Generate a Share Item Location link in the Find My app on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac and securely share it with Air Canada’s baggage team through its Delayed Baggage Claim website.
For customers’ privacy and security, location sharing will automatically end as soon as a customer is reunited with their bag, can be stopped by the customer at any time, and will
automatically expire after seven days.
To use the new Share Item Location feature, customers should verify that their Apple device is running iOS 18.2, iPadOS 18.2, or macOS 15.2 or later.
In a statement to Global News, Air Canada said, “To complement the baggage tracking feature in the Air Canada app, we are one of the first airlines to integrate Apple’s new Share Item Location feature into our baggage handling processes.
“It will allow customers to privately and securely share the location of their AirTag or Find My network accessory with the Air Canada baggage tracking team in the rare event their bags are delayed so that our employees can quickly reunite them with customers.”
While it is not clear if other airlines will follow suit, Porter Airlines said it does not have any plans to implement this feature at this time.
NDP sending mixed signals on whether it will support non-confidence in the Trudeau government
After Chrystia Freeland's sudden and unexpected resignation from the Trudeau cabinet earlier this week, it seemed clear that the NDP would vote non-confidence in the government, triggering an early election. It hasn't been clear since.
The party seems to be backing away from comments NDP House leader Peter Julian made on CBC's Power and Politics hours after Freeland quit Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's cabinet. Host David Cochrane asked Julian if the NDP would vote non-confidence in a Trudeau-led government.
"When it's a straight-up confidence motion, the end of February (or) early March. If we have the continued debacle and the prime minister has not stepped down … so yes, the NDP as the
adults in the room would step up on that," Julian said. In his comments on Monday, Julian went further than NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, who told reporters at one point that all options were on the table.
But then on Wednesday, Singh said he did not want to commit himself to any one course of action and would not promise to help take down Trudeau's government.
"Why would I box myself in and say I am going to do something definitive when we don't know what is going to happen?" Singh told CTV News on Wednesday.
"I am not going to speculate. I don't know what the votes are going to be. I don't know what they are going to be presenting to us. So I am not going to box myself in."
Hells Angels clubhouse sold to City of Kelowna
The City of Kelowna has purchased a former Hells Angels clubhouse, the province has announced.
“It’s really exciting and it’s about time we had some innovation.” Monday-Friday - 12:00pm - 9:30pm & Saturday-Sunday - 12:00pm - 10:00pm
In a statement, B.C.'s Minister of Public Safety Garry Begg says the move is "the next step in addressing organized crime in British Columbia."
Begg's statement said the sale of the home includes a "right of entry," which means the province's civil forfeiture office can take the property back if it is ever acquired and used for organized crime in the future.
In 2023, the B.C. Court of Appeal ordered
that clubhouses in Nanaimo, Kelowna and East Vancouver be seized by the province following a years-long legal battle with the motorcycle gang, which has long been associated with organized crime. The province said it cannot share how much the clubhouse was sold for until it is posted on the B.C. Land Titles registry.
The City of Kelowna did not answer the question of how much the clubhouse cost but, in a written statement, said the purchase at 837 Ellis St. had been made using funds from its land sales reserve budget.
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CFIB concerned by BC’s Fall 2024 Economic & Fiscal Update
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) is deeply concerned to see British Columbia’s deficit climb to $9.4 billion in the provincial government’s Fall 2024 Economic and Fiscal Update.
“The deficit announced today—the largest in B.C.’s history—signals a troubling lack of fiscal discipline,” says Emily Boston, Senior Policy Analyst for B.C. “Residents and small businesses have made difficult adjustments to manage their finances and it’s time for the government to demonstrate the same level of responsibility.”
The update also showed a $1 billion decline in corporate tax revenues since Budget 2024, reflecting another challenging year for businesses. With a threat of 25 per cent U.S. tariffs looming, small business owners are looking on with concern.
“Small businesses across B.C. are feeling tapped out and are tired of serving as the government’s go-to revenue source,” continued Boston. “Addressing the deficit must not come in the form of increased costs to local businesses. Whether it is reducing red ink or red tape, we need this government to chart a clear path forward to lower tax rates and generate economic growth.”
Significant steps are needed to restore business confidence, and the government’s upcoming ‘ease-of-doing business’ review and 2025/26 budget present opportunities to put the economy first and support small businesses.
“According to recent survey data, 61 per cent of BC small businesses believe halting the deficit’s growth should be a top priority for the provincial government to improve the business environment. We hope that in Budget 2025, this effort begins with a plan to tackle the deficit and tax relief for small business owners facing a rising cost of doing business in this province,” concluded Boston.
Surrey is not expected to become the most populous city in Metro Vancouver anytime soon. This is expected to be a longterm trend, too. Currently the second most populous city, Surrey also will not elapse Vancouver’s population throughout the next quarter century through 2050, which is the upper extent of the forecast timeline.
According to Metro Vancouver Regional District’s newly released population growth estimates this week, the city of Vancouver will remain the most populous municipality in British Columbia, countering previous longheld expectations that
Surrey will take the new lead sometime within the first half of the 21st century. Although Surrey will continue to reduce the population gap with Vancouver year by year, projections across all growth scenarios — low, medium, and high — indicate that Vancouver will retain its status as the most populous city.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford has a message for Mexico as the threat of tariffs by incoming president Donald Trump hangs over both sides of the U.S. border. “Mexico has to make a decision: you’re either with Beijing or you’re with Washington. I’ll tell you what Canadians are with.
They’re with Washington,” Ford said in an interview on CNN Tuesday night. Ford has previously accused Mexico of becoming a “backdoor” for Chinese imports, including cars and other products, after the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (formerly NAFTA) was signed. “Cheap Chinese products going through Mexico. They’re slapping the ‘made in Mexico’ sticker on,
shipping it up through the US and Canada, and costing American and Canadian jobs,” he said.
The premier’s remarks come under the continuing threat of a 25 per cent tariff by Trump on all goods from Canada and Mexico until both countries secure their borders against the flow of illegal drugs and migrants.
On Tuesday, the federal government announced it’s five-point approach to bolstering border security, including detecting and disrupting the fentanyl trade, new tools for law enforcement, enhancing operational coordination, increasing information sharing, and minimizing unnecessary border volumes.
Vancouver’s winter has seen a fundamental shift in recent years, as climate change pushes more winter days above freezing than in any other big city in Canada, a new analysis has found. Between 2014 and 2023, the average number of winter days above zero degrees Celsius in Vancouver hit 69 a year — 19 days more than would have occurred without human-caused climate change, according to a global analysis from the U.S.-based research group Climate Central. That’s more than the 13 non-freezing days climate change added to Toronto’s winter, and the six more abovefreezing days now experienced in Montreal.
Kristina Dahl, vice-president for science at Climate Central, oversaw the science team that produced the research. Her team analyzed 10 years of temperature data captured around the world.
By comparing the world we live in with computer models showing a counterfactual world — one that would have been if climate change never happened — Dahl said they could calculate the number of winter days lost around the world due to climate change. Dahl said she hopes the data will help people better understand what they are observing in their lives.
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Hours earlier, Singh called on Trudeau to resign but refused to commit to supporting a non-confidence vote to trigger an election, simply saying “all options are on the table.”
Singh said Canadians deserve a different party in government.
“Canadians are sick and tired of watching government after government put themselves, their friends and corporate giants first,” Singh said in a statement released Monday. “People deserve a government that fights for you for a change.”
Trudeau faced many renewed calls to resign on Monday from across the political aisle, including several in his own caucus publicly demanding his resignation.
The calls came after Trudeau’s deputy
prime minister and finance minister, Chrystia Freeland, resigned from the cabinet just hours before she was set to deliver the government’s Fall Economic Statement. In her resignation letter, she criticized Trudeau for “costly political gimmicks” over his proposed $250 cheque rebate.
Singh’s pension will be secured in February 2025, six years after he was elected in a British Columbia byelection on Feb. 25, 2019. Many pointed out on X that “late February, early March” is exactly when Singh’s pension is secured.
The Canadian Taxpayer Federation has estimated that if Singh took his pension early at 55 and lived until he was 90, the taxpayer would be on the hook for $2.3 million for Singh’s total retirement.
New Coquitlam SkyTrain maintenance facility construction cost soars to $1.3 billion
While SkyTrain line extension projects often take the spotlight, the essential infrastructure that keeps Metro Vancouver’s growing rail rapid transit network running tends to go unnoticed in the public eye.
Currently, the operational needs of SkyTrain’s Expo Line and Millennium Line are primarily served by the OMC1 operations and maintenance facility in the Edmonds area of Burnaby.
Built as a part of the original Expo Line in the 1980s, OMC1 provides the vast majority of the operations, maintenance, and train storage capacity for the Expo and Millennium
lines. In 2021, TransLink began site preparation early works on a much-needed second major operations and maintenance facility, called OMC4. The size of this facility and its importance is comparable to OMC1 in Edmonds.
Federal Conservatives crush Liberals in Cloverdale-Langley federal byelection
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had a bad day Monday. In the morning his deputy and finance minister Chrystia Freeland unexpectedly quit from cabinet. In the afternoon, his government unveiled a fall economic statement showing a deficit of more than $60 billion. And, on Monday night, the Liberal Party of Canada lost the riding of Cloverdale-Langley City by a wide margin in a byelection.
The riding became vacant after Liberal incumbent John Aldag resigned in May so he could run for the B.C. NDP in LangleyAbbotsford in October. Aldag lost that race to B.C. Conservative Harman Bhangu.
On Monday, federal Conservative candidate Tamara Jansen won the riding comfortably, returning for the second time. Jansen represented the riding from 2019 to 2021, after
which she was narrowly defeated by Aldag. Aldag was also the Liberal MP in CloverdaleLangley City from 2015 to 2019.
This time around Jansen was competing against Liberal candidate Madison Fleischer.
Several messages from Postmedia to Jansen’s team were not returned on Monday evening or on Tuesday. When reached by the Langley Advance Times on Monday, Jansen said through a campaign spokesperson that interviews would not be granted.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre celebrated the win in a post to social media.
“Congratulations to common sense Conservative Tamara Jansen on winning the former Liberal riding of Cloverdale-Langley City, with twice as many votes as all the other candidates combined,” he wrote on X.
Elections Canada says Jansen won 66.3 per cent of the vote, with Liberal Madison Fleischer a distant second on 16 per cent and New Democrat Vanessa Sharma in third with 12.5 per cent.
“This is a fresh wound for the Liberals who are bleeding on several fronts,” said UBC political scientist Stewart Prest. “It was not unexpected.”
Prest said the Liberals won the seat in 2021 by only a handful of votes when overall Liberal popularity was around 32 per cent. This time the Liberals had the support of just 22 per cent of Canadians according to recent polls.
The loss also came after the Liberals lost two long-held seats in byelections in the last several months — in Toronto and Montreal.
Federal Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre applauded the decisive British Columbia byelection victory in Cloverdale-Langley City in a social media post Tuesday.
Langley woman’s disappearance deemed ‘suspicious,’ homicide team takes over
Homicide investigators have taken conduct of the search for a Langley, B.C., woman last seen in late October.
Chantelle Moore’s family reported her missing in midNovember, after not hearing from her for an “extended period of time.” An investigation by Surrey and Langley RCMP concluded the 34-year-old was last seen at a hotel in Langley, and that no one had seen her since October.
On Thursday, the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT) said it had taken over from Mounties “due to recent information suggesting Ms. Moore’s disappearance to be suspicious.”
IHIT said investigators and Moore’s family are looking to answer a number of unanswered questions.
Anyone with information is asked to contact IHIT at 1-877-551-IHIT (4448) or by email at ihitinfo@rcmpgrc.gc.ca.
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Surrey woman killed during last Saturday's windstorm
A South Surrey woman was killed during the windstorm Saturday (Dec. 14) that left thousands without power.
Around mid-morning Saturday, at a residence near 29 Avenue and 175 Street, a 65-year-old woman in her yard was tragically killed by a falling tree or part of a tree, Surrey Police Service media relations Staff Sgt. Lindsey Houghton shared in an email.
BC Emergency Health Services and Surrey Fire Service Service attended, but lifesaving measures were unfortunately, unsuccessful.
Police were called to help facilitate Victim Services to support the family, Houghton noted Surrey Fire Service assistant chief Greg McRobbie said his crews responded to a call for a "traumatic injury" in a residence in South Surrey after 10 a.m. on Saturday. On arrival, they found the woman unresponsive, next to a very large branch that witnesses said fell from roughly 30 feet above, said McRobbie.
"It was an extremely difficult call, not only for the people there but also for the firefighters who attended," said McRobbie. "Our thoughts are with the family and friends. It's an extremely difficult time and such a tragic incident."
Crews from Surrey Fire Services also responded to a separate call Saturday morning in the city about another person trapped by a fallen tree.
McRobbie said firefighters were able to rescue the person out from under the tree.
Environment Canada says the windstorm created wind gusts as high as 96 kilometres per hour at the Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal in Delta, B.C., and 115 kilometres per hour on Saturna Island, located midway between the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island.
The windstorm knocked out power for more than 320,000 customers, said BC Hydro, with all but about 5,000 having power restored by Sunday morning.
Vancouver police union criticizes handling of officer sex assault case
The president of the Vancouver Police Union says a sexual assault case involving two Central Saanich Police Services officers was handled incorrectly.
In a letter obtained by Global News, Ralph Kaisers said the “tragic loss” of officer Matthew Ball followed statements that could have undermined “the presumption of innocence.”
Global News learned on Wednesday that one of the two Central Saanich Police Service officers charged with sexual assault died by suicide.
Police sources say Ball, 43, died by suicide Tuesday afternoon. He was released on bail on Monday. “The description of the allegations as
‘deeply corrosive to public trust’ prior to any trial or conviction not only prejudges the case but also casts a shadow over the entire law enforcement community, who are working diligently and with integrity to serve their communities,” Kaisers wrote.
“Although the intent may be to demonstrate accountability, such statements must be measured to avoid eroding confidence in our profession.”
Kaisers added that Ball’s death should “serve as a catalyst for reflection and collaboration on how we manage sensitive and challenging situations.”
Two Central Saanich police officers charged with sexual assault: VPD
Two police officers in Greater Victoria have been charged with “unlawful sexual contact” with a woman they met while on duty.
The Central Saanich Police Service asked the Vancouver Police Department to investigate after receiving a report of the allegations on Oct. 28.
On Tuesday, prosecutors filed charges against Matthew Ball, 43, for sexual assault and breach of trust for alleged offences between Feb. 1, 2019, and Oct. 31, 2023. Ball, a sergeant, worked for the Calgary Police Service for 12 years and has been in Central Saanich since 2016.
Ryan Johnson, 40, was charged with sexual assault for alleged offences between Feb. 6 and March 8, 2020. Johnson became a constable in Central Saanich in 2017.
The B.C. Prosecution Service said Wednesday the charges were approved by experienced Crown counsel “with no prior or current connection with the officers,” using established guidelines for allegations against peace officers. “Allegations like these are deeply corrosive to the public trust police officers depend on to keep their communities safe,” said VPD Deputy Chief Fiona Wilson.
“To maintain trust in the criminal justice system, we must always be prepared to fully investigate allegations of misconduct and
wrongdoing within our own ranks, and to recommend criminal charges when compelling evidence exists.”
Ball and Johnson are believed to have acted independently, Wilson alleged, but had “separate, intimate relationships at different times” with the woman.
She said because Central Saanich is a small community, it was likely the officers knew each other, but investigators have found no evidence there is a connection between the two alleged crimes. Wilson thanked the woman who came forward for her “courage” and said the VPD continues to work to support her. She said the victim was a member of the general public and did not work in law enforcement.
Both suspects were arrested Tuesday morning by Vancouver police officers, with help from the Victoria Police Department.
Wilson said 25 investigators worked on the case over the past seven weeks. She said it is possible additional charges could be forthcoming as the investigation is “active and ongoing.”
Anyone with information is asked to call the VPD’s dedicated tip line at 604-717-0604.
Central Saanich Police Service patrols the municipality in Greater Victoria of around 18,000 residents and lists only 28 active officers.
1 dead, 1 in serious condition after stabbing in Surrey
A woman has died and a second victim was taken to hospital in serious condition after an attack in Surrey’s Guildford neighbourhood early Saturday morning.
“The second victim was transported to hospital and remains in serious condition.”
The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT) has taken over the investigation.
The Surrey Police Service (SPS) says officers responded to reports of a stabbing in a home on 108A Avenue near 147 Street around 3 a.m. When they arrived, they found two people suffering from life-threatening injuries. “Despite life-saving measures, one woman succumbed to her injuries at [the] scene,” said SPS Staff Sgt. Lindsey Houghton.
BCs projected deficit grows again to
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$9.4 billion in latest fiscal update
In September, just before the provincial election call, then-Finance Minister Katrine Conroy presented B.C.'s quarterly financial update that forecasted a then-record $8.9 billion budget deficit for this year, driven largely by lower corporate income taxes and natural resource revenue as well as costs for fighting wildfires.
Those projections also promised more fiscal pain to come, with annual deficits of $6.7 billion and $6.1 billion in the two following years.
The B.C. New Democrats released a costed platform during the election in October that projected a budget deficit for next year to rise to $9.6 billion from the original $6.7 billion forecast, as revenue was expected to fall by more than $1.5 billion due to a number of promises and proposals. The costed NDP platform listed about
$2.9 billion in what it called new investments up to 2027, and Premier David Eby said at the time that the campaign promises were made so that "the maximum number of people benefit" from the intended affordability relief.
Last week, the province announced that the B.C. Public Service has temporarily paused all external hiring except for positions such as those in critical or front-line areas or involving the Indigenous Youth Internship Program and others.
The statement on the hiring freeze cited "a constrained fiscal situation" that requires the B.C. Public Service to make "the best use of its resources." S&P said then that more rating cuts may come in the next two years, given B.C.'s current fiscal course that would create rising debt and very low internal liquidity.
Suspect in 1996 killing arrested, charged thanks to DNA: Ottawa police
Ottawa police say advances in DNA technology helped them find, arrest and charge a suspect in a 1996 stabbing death on the Portage Bridge.
At a news conference Monday, Deputy Chief Trish Ferguson said 73-year-old Lawrence Diehl, who was living in Vancouver, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder last week for the death of Christopher Smith. The victim was crossing the Portage Bridge between Ottawa and Gatineau, Que., early on April 12, 1996, with a cousin when he got into an altercation and was stabbed, police said. Smith was later pronounced dead at a Gatineau hospital. Ferguson said advances in genetic genealogy, or building potential family trees using DNA, helped lead investigators to the
breakthrough. She declined to share more details.
While this is the first time Ottawa police say they have found relatives using the technology, it's also been used to help identify Jewell Parchman Langford as the "Nation River Lady." Ottawa police thanked police in Toronto and Vancouver and the RCMP. They're also asking the public for any additional information about what Diehl was doing in Ottawa around that time, saying only that he was there for work. Ottawa police said they're regularly reviewing more than 60 unsolved homicides. In 2012, they put up a $50,000 reward for information related to his death.
Diehl appeared in court on Saturday. He has not yet entered a plea.
Dismiss Rana’s petition against extradition, USA urges SC
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Rana, currently lodged in a jail in Los Angeles, faces charges for his role in the Mumbai attacks and is known to be associated with PakistaniAmerican terrorist David Coleman Headley, one of the main conspirators of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks.
“The petition for a writ of certiorari should be denied,” US Solicitor General Elizabeth B Prelogar said in its filing before the Supreme Court on December 16.
Rana is not entitled to relief from extradition
to India in this case, she argued in a 20-page submission.
In his “petition for a writ of certiorari to review the judgment of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit”, Rana has argued that he was tried and acquitted in the federal court in the Northern District of Illinois (Chicago) on charges relating to the 2008 terrorist attack on Mumbai.
“India now seeks to extradite him for trial on charges based on the identical conduct at issue in the Chicago case,” the plea has said.
Two guilty of first-degree murder in fatal shootings outside northeast hookah lounge
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.Justice Karen Horner handed the pair automatic life sentences with no parole for at least 25 years.
Prosecutors had contended Bhatti and Sidhu, and possibly a third man, Amandeep Saggu, were in the car when the ambush took place.
Saggu pleaded guilty in June 2023 to manslaughter and was handed a nearly eightyear prison term.
A protected witness, who can only be identified by the pseudo-initials W.A., gave evidence suggesting Sidhu and Bhatti were in the sedan as it sped by Singh’s Mercedes in the Mazaj parking lot. But defence lawyers argued W.A. was not a credible witness and had reason to lie about their
involvement.
W.A. testified he saw a Nissan Altima known to be used by Saggu to sell drugs and chased after it in hopes of obtaining some cocaine.
He said when he pulled up beside the car at 41st Avenue and 19th Street N.E. not far from the Mazaj lounge, Sidhu pointed a firearm at him and said he was lucky he didn’t get shot.
The witness testified Bhatti was in the front passenger seat and Saggu, who was in the rear, instructed him to go to the lounge to confirm Malhi and Singh were present. which he did.
A few minutes later, the sedan involved in the shooting moved into the parking lot outside the Mazaj and its occupants laid in wait for nearly 90 minutes before opening fire.
Drug mules who were in Fiji arrested by PNG Customs
Two women from Europe who had transited through Fiji by sea have been caught in Papua New Guinea with 15.02kg of cocaine.
They are believed to be drug mules and were apprehended at the Jackson’s International Airport in Port Moresby while trying to board a plane for Sydney on December 7.
PNG Customs Chief Commissioner David Towe said the drugs could have
been sold for $6.2 million on the streets in Australia if PNG Customs had not detected and seized the illegal cargo.
He said the two foreign nationals, both female, are Portuguese passport holders aged 20 and 23 respectively.
Reports suggest they had travelled by sea from Europe to Los Angeles, then to Sydney and Fiji, before arriving in Papua New Guinea around December 2, 2024.
‘Reversing Fiji’s Constitution risky’
Australian constitutional lawyer Anne Twomey says challenging the validity of the 2013 Constitution is not a useful course to follow to make the Constitution more democratic and functional for amendments.
Speaking during the 26th AttorneyGeneral’s Conference at the Sheraton Resort in Denarau, Nadi last week, Ms Twomey said a vulnerable point of attack was the process by which the 1997 revised constitution was revoked and the 2013 Constitution promulgated.
“Neither followed existing legal procedures, nor any democratically legitimate process,” Ms Twomey said.
“The Court of Appeal of Fiji previously held in 2001 that the 1997 revised constitution continued to apply, and had not been validly revoked at that stage, and the court continued to apply that constitution in litigation in 2009.
“Too much has already occurred under the 2013 Constitution such as holding elections, including the election of the current government, invalidating the 2013 Constitution and seeking to revert to the 1997 version which, therefore, potentially caused too many practical problems by invalidating laws and acts which had been relied upon in good faith.” Referring to the 2001 Yabaki case, Ms Twomey said it was impossible to disregard and reverse what had already occurred, and to turn back the clock would create a legal and administrative nightmare, an unacceptable risk to the peace and welfare of the nation.
“Accepting that to be the case, however, does not mean that Fiji is stuck forever with an unamendable constitution.
“It could be argued, for instance, that section 160 of the 2013 Constitution is not a valid and effective manner and form provision as it is instead a purported abdication or renunciation of the power to alter the Constitution.
“While it’s appropriate in a democratic society to make the Constitution harder to amend than an ordinary law, it should not be made impossible to amend, as this illegitimately impedes the operation of the democratic system by imposing the will of a small group of people from the past over that of the people of today for whom the constitution is meant to serve.”
Usamate and Bulitavu attack Sayed-Khaiyum and label him a hypocrite
Opposition MPs, Jone Usamate and Mosese Bulitavu continue to raise issues of concern within the former FijiFirst Party, and have even labelled Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum as a hypocrite.
Usamate says during his tenure as FijiFirst General Secretary, Sayed-Khaiyum staunchly opposed the $15,000 constituency allowance for MPs - a stance FijiFirst proudly championed in Parliament.
He says despite opposing the $15,000 constituency allowance for MPs in Parliament, Sayed-Khaiyum later accepted it on behalf of FijiFirst and used $5,000 per member to address party debts caused by his poor financial management.
Usamate says if Sayed-Khaiyum was genuinely committed to his principles, he could have donated the money instead of using it to offset the liabilities.
Usamate adds Sayed-Khaiyum's actions speak louder than his words as he accepted the very allowance which FijiFirst opposed, true to his
After 7 tourist admitted to hospital, Australia warns visitors to Fiji to be alert to drink spiking
The Australian government has issued a travel advisory after the “drink spiking” incident at the Warick Resort last night.
The Ministry of Health & Medical Services said in a statement this afternoon, seven guests at the resort were taken to the Sigatoka Hospital last night with nausea, vomiting and neurological symptoms after consuming a cocktail drink prepared at a bar at the resort.
The affected patients’ age ranges from 18 to 56 years, and two patients have been transferred to Lautoka Hospital due to the severity of their condition, said the Ministry.
Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade issued a travel advise this afternoon.
“We continue to advise exercise normal safety precautions,” the Smart Traveller advice
for Fiji said.
“Be alert to the potential risks around drink spiking and methanol poisoning through consuming alcoholic drinks.
character, left FijiFirst with a significant debt of close to $700,000, and later dissolved the party, leaving creditors high and dry, and didn't donate the controversial allowance to charitable causes.
He says now, Sayed-Khaiyum has the audacity to call for ethics from others, criticizing MPs who voted against the motion as per party directives, yet his record reeks of contradiction and double standards.
Usamate says Fijians are well aware of the role MPs play in their communities - from religious events to natural disasters, weddings to funerals, MPs are expected to give back generously.
He says this is especially challenging with modest salaries of $50,000 paid to government MPs and Opposition backbenchers.
Usamate says contrast this with Aiyaz SayedKhaiyum, who imposed an unjust salary structure during his tenure, paying himself $235,000 annually—nearly six times what government MPs and Opposition backbenchers earned.
earthquake in Vanuatu
“Get urgent medical help if you suspect drink spiking.” 14 dead following 7.3 magnitude
The death toll in Vanuatu has risen to fourteen following the 7.3 magnitude earthquake yesterday.
Reports say more than 200 people have been treated for injuries
Port Vila resident Michael Thompson says rescue crews were seen pulling three people alive, though injured, from a collapsed building and this has offered hope to search and rescue volunteers.
Delhi ignored our commanders when surrender pact was inked in 1971: Dhaka Sri Lanka lifts vehicles import ban for first time in 4 years
In a fresh diplomatic salvo, Bangladesh Foreign Ministry , on Wednesday, alleged India ignored Bangladesh military commanders when the surrender documents were being signed between Indian and the Pakistan Army in Dhaka on December 16, 1971. Citing a book, the Foreign Ministry of Bangladesh, in a post on Facebook, said a major political mistake at the surrender ceremony was the Indian military command’s failure to ensure the presence of General MAG Osmani as a signatory.
In
Bangladesh HC commutes Assam separatist’s death sentence
A Bangladesh High Court on Wednesday commuted the death sentence of ULFA leader Paresh Baruah to life imprisonment and acquitted a former junior minister and five others in a 2004 case of attempted smuggling of weapons to the separatist outfit in NorthEast India.
Baruah, believed to be in China, was sentenced to death after a trial in absentia in 2014. His name also figures in the ‘most wanted’ list of National Investigation Agency.
Victory Day speech, Yunus makes no mention of Mujib
Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus led Bangladesh on Monday in marking the 54th Victory Day, his speech making no mention of founding leader Mujibur Rahman while calling deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s administration the “world’s worst autocratic government”.
“Bijoy Dibosh” commemorates the Pakistan military’s surrender to Indian forces and the liberation of Bangladesh in 1971. ‘Bangabandhu’ Mujibur Rahman is seen as the independence movement’s iconic figure. His daughter Sheikh Hasina fled to India on August 5, after massive student-led protests against her government. Nobel laureate Yunus then took over as head of an interim government.
In his televised address to the nation, Yunus indicated that elections might be held by early 2026. “Broadly speaking, the election can be scheduled between the end of 2025 and the first half of 2026,” he said. The country could not build on its achievements because of its own faults and, of late, a “monstrous autocratic government” had grabbed power, he said in an apparent reference to Hasina’s Awami league government. He said the ouster of the “world’s worst autocratic government” amid a mass upsurge added extra significance to the celebration. Yunus and Bangladesh President Mohammed Shahabuddin separately paid tributes to Liberation War martyrs at the National Memorial.
Sri Lanka has announced that they will lift the vehicles import ban which was put in place in 2020 to ease the pressure on foreign exchange reserves due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Issued on Wednesday, by the gazette, the importation of public transport vehicles has been allowed for the first time since early 2020.
The Ministry of Finance said the policy to ban vehicle imports was implemented with the intention of easing the pressure on foreign exchange reserves due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic downturn of 2022.
the intention of safeguarding foreign exchange reserves of the country by way of discouraging importation of an excessive number of vehicles and keeping unnecessary stock of motor vehicles by the importers while spending substantial amounts of foreign exchange,” a statement said.
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake addressing Parliament on Wednesday said the importing cars for private use will be allowed from February 2025.
However, the decision is subject to rules so as to protect the island nation’s effort to build foreign reserves. All importers must sell their imports within three months, if not, a three per cent fee would be charged.
“These conditions have been imposed with
The vehicle importers’ association hailed the move, having lobbied the government extensively to lift the import ban.
The IMF bailout conditions dictate that Sri Lanka must build up its forex reserves to prevent a crisis similar to 2022 when shortage of foreign reserves led to the absence of fuel and essentials.
The IMF in recognition of Sri Lanka’s recovery from the economic downturn had allowed vehicle imports as a measure of increasing state revenue by way of import duties.
Depleted foreign reserves in April 2022 led to an unprecedented economic crisis in Sri Lanka, forcing the island nation to announce its first-ever sovereign default.
US sanctions Pak space agency over proliferation of ballistic missiles
The United States on Wednesday slapped sanctions on four Pakistani entities, including the state-owned flagship aerospace and defence agency — National Development Complex (NDC) — on charges of them contributing to Pakistan’s ballistic missile programme.
The NDC has worked to acquire items in furtherance of Pakistan’s long-range ballistic missile programme. All these entities pose a risk of materially contributing to, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction or their means of delivery, a US official said.
Amid deadlock, farmers give call for 'Punjab Bandh' on December 30
As the deadlock persists between the Centre and protesting farmers over various demands, the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha and Samyukt Kisan Morcha (non-political) on Wednesday gave a call for ‘Punjab Bandh’ on December 30.
Train services in Punjab were affected as farmers, who are protesting to press the Centre for accepting their demands, including a legally binding minimum support price for crops, squatted on rail tracks as part of the three-hour 'Rail Roko' protest on Wednesday.
The farmers alleged that the Centre is determined to sell the country's agriculture and public institutions to corporate houses.
“A call for a Punjab Bandh is being given for December 30, against the atrocities of the Central government. Emergency services will remain operational,” reads a statement released by the farmer unions. Meanwhile, farmer Ranjit Singh reportedly died at Shambhu border amid farmers' protest by consuming a poisonous substance, farmer leaders said.
The farmers demanded Rs 25 lakh aid for the deceased farmer’s family, complete debt waiver, and a government job for a family member.
For the past three weeks, Punjab farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal has been on a fast-untodeath at the Khanauri border point between Punjab and Haryana to press the Centre to accept the agitating farmers' demands.
A “jatha” (group) of 101 farmers made three attempts to enter Delhi on foot on December 6, December 8 and again on December 14. Haryana security personnel did not allow them to proceed.
Farm leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal, whose indefinite fast entered the 24th day on Thursday, fainted for around 10 minutes at the Khanauri protest site. His condition is stated to be serious.
While the farm leader was unconscious, farmers and those present there continued to chant “Satnam Waheguru” for his speedy recovery.
BKU (Sidhupur) general secretary Kaka Singh Kotra gave a call to the residents of nearby villages to converge on the protest site
by Dallewal to make an appeal, especially to Punjabis, not to allow the police to remove him from the morcha site at any cost. Despite his poor health, Dallewal made an effort to present farmers’ case before the Supreme Court (SC) through video-conferencing in the afternoon. However, he could not do so due to audio disruption, Kotra said.
Lashing out at Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, Kotra said why he had been shying away from visiting the protest site. He also asked Mann to take stand in favour of
Amidst shifting of responsibility between the Centre and the state over who should talk to farmers protesting at the Shambhu and Khanauri borders since February, the state government today held a meeting with representatives of 15 other farmer unions, over the National Policy Framework on Agricultural Marketing.
Though no representative of the SKM (NonPolitical) or the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha, the two forums protesting at Punjab borders, were present at the three-hour meeting held between farmer leaders and Agriculture Minister Gurmeet Singh Khuddian, the leaders of Samyukt Kisan Morcha-affiliated unions asked the state to reject the National Policy Framework on Agricultural Marketing, as it was against the interests of the state and its farm-based economy. The state government had to send its observations, comments and
objections to the draft policy by December 10. However, acceding to the request of the state government today, the Centre has asked it to send the response by January 10.
During the meeting today, leaders, including Joginder Singh Ugrahan, Dr Darshan Pal, Balbir Singh Rajewal, Rajinder Singh Deepsinghwala, Jangveer Singh Chauhan and Ruldu Singh Mansa, besides others, emphasised that the policy sought to promote privatisation in the food procurement business, which, they said, would lead to monopolistic trade practices in agriculture.
They also demanded that an all-party meeting be convened at the earliest to build a wider consensus against the draft policy, as it was allegedly aimed at allowing private parties to go in for contract farming. All leaders reportedly said they would protest tooth and nail any attempt to implement that.
File fresh report on pending arrests in drug cases:
More than three months after the Punjab and Haryana High Court was assured of a special campaign to arrest accused in drug cases at large after six months of FIR registration, data furnished to the court suggests 1,304 accused were yet to be arrested. Among them are 729 persons from a list of 1,447 accused identified on September 5 and an additional 575 added between January 31 and May 31.
As the matter came up for resumed hearing, the Bench referred to its earlier order, in which it was noted that 1,447 accused
a lapse of more than six months of FIR registration.
“The police had assured the court that a special campaign shall be launched in September to arrest the accused. The state counsel submits that out of those 1,447 accused, 729 accused are yet to be arrested. He further contends that 575 new accused have been added from January 31 to May 31. Thus, 1,304 accused are yet to be arrested in cases registered prior to May 31,” the Bench asserted, while calling for a comprehensive status report
Kisan Mazdoor Morcha leader Sarwan Singh Pandher said farmers had squatted on rail tracks at many places from noon to 3 pm.
FIR registered against Rahul Gandhi in Parliament scuffle case
Delhi Police on Thursday registered an FIR against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, hours after the BJP filed a complaint, accusing him of physical assault and incitement during a scuffle on the Parliament premises.
A police officer said the FIR had been registered under Sections 115 (voluntarily causing hurt), 117 (voluntarily causing grievous hurt), 125 (act of endangering life or personal safety of others), 131 (use of criminal force), 351 (criminal intimidation) and 3(5) (common
intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
The officer said police are likely to call Gandhi for questioning. Police will request the Lok Sabha Secretariat to provide the CCTV footage of the area where the alleged incident happened.
Another officer said all sections imposed against Gandhi are bailable, except Section 117, punishment for which depends on the severity of the injury caused, ranging from seven years to life imprisonment.
BJP indulging in distraction, Shah must resign for 'insulting' Ambedkar: Congress
The Congress on Thursday accused the BJP of diverting attention from the issue of Union Home Minister Amit Shah's "insult" to BR Ambedkar, and demanded that Shah must resign and apologise for his remarks.
The opposition party also alleged that the BJP is "anti-Constitution" and "anti-Ambedkar".
Addressing a joint press conference at the AICC headquarters here, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge and former party chief Rahul Gandhi condemned Shah's remarks on Ambedkar and said they would continue to protest across the country and that a movement against this had already begun.
"The BJP wants to divert attention from Shah's remarks on Ambedkar and that is why they are raising other issues," Kharge told reporters.
He said they (Congress leaders) were only
Delhi's air quality plunged into the 'severe plus' category on Thursday, with a 24-hour average Air Quality Index (AQI) of 451 recorded at 4 pm, according to the Central Pollution Control Board data. The city witnessed dangerously high levels of PM2.5, the primary pollutant, with 32 of the 35 monitoring stations recording air quality in the severe plus category.
Some areas recorded AQI readings as high as 470.
The PM2.5 particles, measuring 2.5 micrometres or less in diameter, pose significant health risks as they can penetrate deep into the lungs when inhaled.
demanding the resignation of Home Minister Shah and were protesting "in support of our demands, but the BJP MPs blocked us from entering Parliament". "They pushed me, I lost my balance and sat down," the Congress chief said, adding that he condemns Shah's remarks on Ambedkar.
Kharge said they would run a nationwide movement raising the issue of Ambedkar's alleged insult by the home minister.
Gandhi said the BJP-RSS thinking is "antiConstitution" and "anti-Ambedkar".
"The BJP is indulging in distraction. We want the apology and resignation of home minister over his remarks on Ambedkar," Gandhi said, adding that they would continue to raise their demand and the Adani issue.
Later, in a post on X, Gandhi said, "Amit Shah, Apologise and Resign."
The national capital remains under Stage IV of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), which includes the most stringent anti-pollution measures.
The measures involve a complete ban on construction activities and the entry of nonessential polluting trucks into the city. GRAP categorises air quality into four stages: Stage I (Poor, AQI 201-300), Stage II (Very Poor, AQI 301400), Stage III (Severe, AQI 401-450), and Stage IV (Severe Plus, AQI above 450).
The Indian Meteorological Department has issued a yellow alert for Friday, warning a very dense fog. The maximum temperature on Thursday was recorded at 23 degrees Celsius, slightly above the season's normal, while the minimum temperature was five degrees Celsius, three notches below normal, the department said.
US President-elect Donald Trump has reiterated his intention to impose reciprocal tariffs if India "continued to impose high tariff" on import of certain American products.
Speaking to the media in the US on Tuesday, Trump named India, Brazil and China among countries that were imposing high tariffs on certain US products.
He said, “The word reciprocal is important... if India charges us 100 per cent, do we charge them
nothing for the same?”
Citing an example, Trump said, “You know, they send in a bicycle and we send them a bicycle. They charge us 100 and 200 per cent tariff. India charges a lot. Brazil charges a lot. If they want to charge us, that's fine, but we are going to charge them the same thing.”
When asked about a potential trade agreement with China, he said, “If they tax us, we tax them the same amount.”
The deadlock over the hosting of Champions Trophy finally ended on Thursday when the ICC announced that India will play their matches of the 50-over event at a neutral venue instead of in the host country Pakistan, which will have a similar arrangement for tournaments to be held in India till 2027. "The ICC Board has approved that all matches between India and Pakistan played at ICC events during the current rights cycle from 2024 to 2027 (which are to be hosted in India or Pakistan) will be played at a neutral venue proposed by the
tournament host," said the ICC in a statement.
The arrangement will apply to the Champions Trophy 2025 (Pakistan), next year's women's Cricket World Cup in India and the T20 World Cup in 2026 in India and Sri Lanka.
India had refused to travel to Pakistan for the event scheduled in February-March due to security concerns. India have not played in Pakistan since the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.
"The schedule for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 is set to be confirmed soon," the ICC stated.
Thirteen people, including a Navy official, died as a naval vessel collided with a passenger ferry off the coast of Mumbai on Wednesday.
The Navy said the accident occurred when the Navy speed boat undergoing engine trials lost control and collided with the passenger ferry, Neelkamal, off Karanja, Mumbai.
The ferry was carrying passengers from Gateway of India to Elephanta Island.
The accident led to the loss of 13 lives, including a navy personnel and two persons employed with the speed boat-making company. They were on board the naval boat for the trials, the Navy said.
Search and rescue efforts were launched by the Navy in coordination with the Coast Guard and Marine Police. Four naval helicopters, 11 naval craft, a Coast Guard boat and three Marine Police boats are carrying out the rescue work. The survivors were picked up by the Navy and civil craft in the area and have been transferred to jetties and
Stepping up his attack on Amit Shah over his remarks on BR Ambedkar, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday said if Prime Minister Narendra Modi has any respect for Babsaheb he should sack the home minister today itself in case he does not quit on his own.
Elon Musk said Starlink satellite internet is inactive in India, his first comments since authorities seized two of the company's devices in recent weeks, one in an armed conflict zone and another in a drug smuggling bust.
Starlink is seeking approval in India to provide satellite broadband services and the Musk-owned company is trying to address any potential security concerns as part of the process.
Musk wrote on X late on Tuesday that "Starlink satellite beams are turned off over India" and were "never on in the first place."
He was responding to a post from the Indian Army about a search operation on Dec. 13 in Manipur state in India's northeast, where a communal conflict has raged since early last year.
The post included photos of seized weapons and
A 12-year-old girl has been charged with manslaughter after the death of an 80-year-old man in Leicestershire.
Bhim Kohli died on 2 September, a day after being attacked at Franklin Park in Braunstone Town while walking his dog Rocky.
The girl, who cannot be named because of her age, appeared at Leicester Youth Court - sitting at Leicester Magistrates' Court - earlier and was released on bail. She is next due at Leicester Crown Court on 3 February. A 15-year-old boy has previously been charged with Mr Kohli's murder.
He is due to enter a plea at Leicester Crown Court on Wednesday, and a provisional trial date of 17 February has been set. Leicestershire Police said the attack
hospitals in the vicinity. So far 99 people have been rescued.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh posted on X, “Deeply saddened by the loss of precious lives in the collision between passenger ferry and Indian Navy craft in Mumbai Harbour.
“My heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families. Extensive search & rescue efforts are ongoing by the Indian Navy and Coast Guard, deploying multiple assets, to locate missing persons.”
Accusing Shah of disrespecting the architect of the Constitution, Kharge said the home minister should apologise to the nation for the insult he caused to Ambedkar during his speech in Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.
"I want to tell the PM that if he respects Babsaheb, he should immediate remove Amit Shah from his Cabinet," Kharge told a press conference here.
"Amit Shah's remarks on Ambedkar are condemnable, he has insulted the Dalit hero, whom they revere. Amit Shah must apologise to the people of the country," Kharge said.
He also attacked the prime minister, saying that instead of telling Shah that his remarks were wrong, Modi is defending his home minister.
a satellite dish and receiver with a Starlink logo.
Two military officers familiar with the search operation, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the device with the Starlink logo was being used by a militant group. They said the device was likely smuggled through the porous border with neighbouring civil war-torn Myanmar, where use of Starlink devices by rebel groups has been documented in media reports although the company does not operate in Myanmar either.
Earlier this month, Indian police sent a legal demand to Starlink seeking purchase details of a device found when they caught smugglers at sea with $4.2 billion worth of methamphetamine, one of the biggest such Indian seizures.
The police suspect the smugglers were using the internet device to navigate.
occurred near the park's Bramble Way entrance at about 18:30 BST on 1 September.
A post-mortem examination found Mr Kohli died of a neck injury.
In a statement, his family described him as "a loving husband, dad and grandad".
"He was always very happy and talkative, the joker of the family and always loved to outsmart us with a smile." Because of prior police contact with the victim, Leicestershire Police made a voluntary referral to the Independent Office of Police Conduct (IOPC). Following further contact with the IOPC, the force then made a mandatory referral.
"We will carry out an assessment to decide what further action may be required from us," an IOPC spokesperson added.
