National News

A Toronto artist based in Florida says he's anxiously waiting to ensure the safety of his friends in the state and assess the potentially catastrophic damage to his property as Hurricane Milton barrels towards his community just outside Sarasota.

He's just one of many Canadians who own homes in the state. Like him, many have fled because of this hurricane or its predecessor Helene, which unleashed devastation across several southern states just a few weeks ago. 

Roughly half a century ago, Mikhail Baryshnikov dashed into a waiting car after a series of Toronto performances, defecting from the Soviet Union in a move that made international headlines.

On Tuesday Baryshnikov, one of the most renowned ballet dancers of the 1970s and '80s, paid tribute to the man who helped orchestrate his escape in 1974 – the late Canadian politician Jim Peterson, who was a lawyer at the time.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre was not allowed to speak in the House of Commons Tuesday as his public feud with Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly spilled into a second day.

House Speaker Greg Fergus delivered the penalty to Poilievre in the morning, a day after he asked the leader of the opposition to withdraw a remark accusing Joly of pandering to supporters of the terrorist organization Hamas.

Federal political parties appear to be locked in a game of chicken in an increasingly precarious Parliament over a debate that has stalled almost all business in the House of Commons.

The Conservatives have vowed the debate will continue until the Liberals hand over unredacted documents to the RCMP about a green-tech foundation that was found to have misspent government money.

The debate has now stretched into its second week.

A newly released document shows federal cabinet ministers were warned in May 2022 that hostile states were targeting Canada's strategic interests, the integrity of Canadian institutions and democratic processes, and the ability of the public to exercise Charter-protected rights and freedoms.

The document is a summary of one of four memorandums to cabinet, generally considered closely held confidences, that were provided to a federal commission of inquiry into foreign interference as part of its terms of reference. 

The Oct. 7 attack by Hamas fighters on Israel last year, and the immediate Israeli retaliation that followed, sent shockwaves throughout the world that have shaken Canada culturally and politically.

Here is a look at some of the major developments in Canada related to the conflict.

Oct. 7, 2023 — Hamas-led militants launched air and ground attacks on Israel, killing nearly 1,200 and taking more than 250 hostages. The attacks, followed hours later by Israeli counterattacks in the Gaza Strip, marked the beginning of the current Israel-Hamas war. 

Emotional mourners gathered by the hundreds in cities across Canada on Sunday to honour the victims of Hamas's Oct. 7 attack on Israel that sparked the still raging war in Gaza and roiled tensions in the Middle East and beyond.

In the nation's capital, a sea of Israeli flags could be seen draped over participants in front of Ottawa City Hall, with Canadian flags waving alongside them as they called for the release of hostages still being held in Gaza.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau repeatedly reiterated calls for a ceasefire in the Middle East on Saturday as he blamed Hamas, Hezbollah and Israel for a staggering number of civilian deaths.

But Trudeau stopped short of outright condemning Israel for beginning a ground war days after the Israeli military crossed the border into southern Lebanon.

"We need to see peace in the region," Trudeau said from Paris on the final day of the Francophonie summit.

Here's a look at some of this week's top news photos as selected by editors.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 4, 2024.

First Nations leaders say the pride two Saskatchewan courthouse staff felt on the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation turned to shame after they were told to change out of the orange clothing they wore to work.

The Meadow Lake Tribal Council, which represents nine First Nations, is demanding Saskatchewan investigate why the two First Nations women were told Monday to go home from the courthouse in Meadow Lake, northwest of Saskatoon, to change their clothes.