Reach

Canada's long-held consensus on immigration is under threat but has not disappeared, the immigration minister said in an interview after announcing a major cut to the number of newcomers to Canada. 

On Thursday, Immigration Minister Marc Miller and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced plans to slash Canada's immigration targets by 20 per cent next year and admitted the Liberal government did not get the balance right after the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said Friday that Canada strongly condemns a new surge of "horrifying violence" perpetrated by gangs in Haiti.

Gang violence has increased in the Caribbean nation in recent weeks and the UN says gangs now control 85 per cent of the capital city of Port-au-Prince.

Kenya is leading a multinational security mission to restore order after gangs drove out the former prime minister with targeted attacks earlier this year.

A transition council is now leading the nation, with the goal of holding elections next year.

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

A man uses an umbrella to shield himself from the rain while walking on the Stanley Park seawall across the water from downtown Vancouver, Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

2 Timothy 3:16-17

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

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Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Proverbs 22:6

Maybe it's because I just had another birthday. Maybe it's because I'm a granddad several times over. Or maybe it's because of a struggling young seminarian I met recently who wishes he had been higher on his parents' priority list than, say, fifth or sixth. He was hurried and ignored through childhood, then tolerated and misunderstood through adolescence, and finally expected to "be a man" without having been taught how.

The annual Poppy Campaign launched today, Friday, October 25, with the presentation of the season’s first poppies to County of Grande Prairie Reeve Bob Marshall and Mayor of Grande Prairie, Jackie Clayton. Poppies are now available at local stores and businesses, with all proceeds going to support veterans and their families. For details on upcoming Remembrance Day services, visit the events calendar at reachfm.ca.

The City of Grande Prairie's snow removal teams are fully prepared for the 2024/2025 winter season, having already responded to significant snowfall over the past weekend.

As winter sets in, crews will continue managing snow to ensure safe and efficient travel throughout the city. Full winter operations, including sanding and plowing priority roads, were underway this week, with crews ready for any upcoming snowfalls.

Snow Removal Operations
The City manages snow removal in three key ways:

With the winter approaching rapidly CN Rail is looking at a lot of movement coming as winter approaches the prairies.

With plenty of grain left in prairie bins following the harvest, CN Rail will be moving quite a bit of that to buyers over the coming months.

Assistant Vice President of Grain at CN Rail David Przednoweck says that they've been seeing a lot of movement over the previous two weeks.

Home sweet home. In many cases, when a holiday comes to an end, people are longing for one or two more days away. But for Dan Joudrey, a recent experience in Cuba had him longing for the usual uncomfortable plane ride so he could finally get home.

Joudrey recently vacationed in Cuba with a family member and it did not turn out as planned. Thanks to economic conditions on the island and a prolonged power outage that lasted an entire week, the trip was anything but relaxing. In fact the lack of basic resources made it difficult to survive, let alone enjoy a vacation.

Professional surfer and Christian writer, Bethany Hamilton is mourning the loss of her three-year-old nephew. 

A week ago, Hamilton reached out to her friends, family and followers on social media to pray for the young boy. 

"HELP‼️ My precious nephew was medivaced to Kapiolani in Oahu this morning after drowning last night," said Hamilton in a post on Instagram. "He still has a heartbeat and has fight in him. Please pray. Thank you!"

Unfortunately, a few days later he passed away.