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Woman part of first cohort of Canadian evacuees describes journey from Gaza to Egypt

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 22:00:30 GMT

A woman who was part of the first group of Canadians evacuated from Gaza  amid the Israel-Hamas war says she is incredibly relieved to have made it out of the besieged Palestinian enclave with her two children. Rana Nassrawi, who is currently at a hotel in Cairo, says she and her kids will be flying home to Mississauga, Ont., in a day. Nassrawi was among the 75 people connected to Canada who were able to leave Gaza through the southern Rafah crossing with Egypt — the only way out for foreign nationals — on Tuesday as the war entered its second month.She says Canadian officials were on the Egyptian side of the border to welcome her and her kids and facilitated their eight-hour bus ride to Cairo from the Rafah crossing.Nassrawi says they arrived at their Cairo hotel early this morning and she immediately burst into tears as she became overwhelmed with thoughts of what she had witnessed in Gaza. The 43-year-old had been in Gaza to visit her elderly parents for the first time in two dec...

‘I’m on the verge of losing my house’: Man’s attempt to earn extra income leads to financial ruin

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 22:00:30 GMT

A Brampton, Ont., man answered a job ad that he hoped would earn him some extra cash, but instead, he ended up losing nearly $20,000.He’s the latest victim of suspected job scams sweeping across Canada right now.“Times are tough and I was looking for some part-time work to earn some extra cash on the side,” the man said. He asked only to be identified as “Peter.”It all started after he received a WhatsApp message from a person offering part-time work.“The person said I could earn thousands of dollars per week,” Peter says.He responded and was put in touch with a team member who explained the process.“The man explained everything, had me download an app and provided training on the work I would be doing.”That work involved so-called tasks where Peter would be rating hotels using a phone software application set up by this company.But to get started, he had to deposit funds, in the form of cryptocurrency to a wallet.“You had to have a balance of crypto de...

Candidate who wouldn’t denounce Moms for Liberty chapter after Hitler quote wins Indiana mayor race

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 22:00:30 GMT

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (AP) — A Republican candidate who refused to denounce a local chapter of Moms for Liberty that used a quote by Adolf Hitler in a newsletter has won her election as mayor of Carmel, Indiana, a wealthy suburb of Indianapolis.City Councilwoman Sue Finkam defeated Democratic candidate and fellow city councilman Miles Nelson in Tuesday’s municipal election, according to unofficial returns from the Hamilton County election office. The election closed a contentious and at times bitter race to lead the city of about 102,000 people and succeed its longtime mayor.The race received widespread attention after Nelson called on Finkam to denounce the Hamilton County chapter of Moms for Liberty, the conservative group that used a quote from Adolf Hitler in its inaugural newsletter earlier this year. Moms for Liberty, a group classified as an “anti-government extremist group” by the Southern Poverty Law Center, is a national organization that champions “parental rights” and...

S&P/TSX composite down as energy and base metals lead the way, U.S. stocks also lower

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 22:00:30 GMT

TORONTO — Canada’s main stock index was down in late-morning trading with base metal and energy stocks helping to lead the way lower as prices for oil and other commodities fell. The S&P/TSX composite index was down 27.27 points at 19,548.32.In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 24.90 points at 34,127.70. The S&P 500 index was down 3.49 points at 4,374.89, while the Nasdaq composite was down 23.73 points at 13,616.13.The Canadian dollar traded for 72.48 cents US compared with 72.67 cents US on Tuesday.The December crude contract was down US$1.63 at US$75.74 per barrel and the December natural gas contract was down three cents at US$3.11 per mmBTU.The December gold contract was down US$14.50 at US$1,959.00 an ounce and the December copper contract was down three cents at US$3.65 a pound.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2023.Companies in this story: (TSX:GSPTSE, TSX:CADUSD) The Canadian Press

Gavin Rossdale celebrates 3 decades of Bush songs with a greatest hits album, ‘Loaded’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 22:00:30 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Putting together a collection of Bush’s greatest hits was relatively easy. Convincing frontman Gavin Rossdale to do it was a bit harder.“I never really wanted to do one because I always thought it was like a bit of a farewell, like a sayonara, a swan song,” the lead singer and songwriter says. “And I couldn’t be more swimming against that tide. I’m enjoying the music and the band so much that it feels like we never stopped.”Rossdale relented and that’s why we have “Loaded: The Greatest Hits 1994-2023,” a 21-song set that includes such Bush classics as “Glycerine,” “Machinehead,” “Comedown” and “Everything Zen.”“Every book, when you read it for a second time or a third time, you start seeing more details and start hearing it or reading in different ways. And so I hope it’s a bit like that,” says Rossdale.The collection includes hits from each of the band’s nine studio albums, as well as a cover of the Beatles’ “Come Together” that the band ofte...

Former top prosecutor for Baltimore declines to testify at her perjury trial

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 22:00:30 GMT

GREENBELT, Md. (AP) — A federal jury is expected to hear attorneys’ closing arguments on Wednesday in the perjury trial of a former top prosecutor for the city of Baltimore.Marilyn Mosby, who served two terms as state’s attorney for Baltimore, declined to testify before her attorneys rested their case on the third day of her trial.Prosecutors said Mosby lied about the finances of a side business to improperly access retirement funds during the COVID-19 pandemic, using the money to buy two Florida homes. Mosby’s attorneys said she legally obtained and spent the money.Mosby gained a national profile for prosecuting Baltimore police officers after Freddie Gray, a Black man, died in police custody in 2015, which was Mosby’s first year in office. His death led to riots and protests in the city. None of the officers were convicted.A grand jury indicted Mosby on two counts of perjury before a Democratic primary challenger defeated her last year.Mosby’s 2022 indictment acc...

Hydro One reports $357M Q3 profit, up from $307M a year earlier

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 22:00:30 GMT

TORONTO — Hydro One Ltd. reported a third-quarter profit of $357 million, up from $307 million a year ago.The power utility says the profit amounted to 59 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended Sept. 30, up from 51 cents per diluted share a year earlier.Revenue totalled $1.93 billion, down from $2.03 billion in the same quarter last year, while revenue, net of purchased power, totalled $1.08 billion, up from $1.07 billion a year earlier.Hydro One says the increase in revenue, net of purchased power, was helped by a hike in transmission rates and higher average monthly peak demand.Since the end of the quarter, the company says it was awarded the right to develop and construct three new transmission lines to meet growing demand in Northeastern and Eastern Ontario. It says it has been collaborating with First Nations on early planning and that First Nations will have the opportunity to invest in a 50 per cent equity stake in the transmission line component of the projects.This r...

Handful of Virginia races that will determine Democratic edge in both chambers remain uncalled

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 22:00:30 GMT

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Only a handful of ultra-competitive Virginia legislative races remained undecided late Wednesday morning, after Democrats won enough contests to take control of both the House and Senate in a blow for Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin. After Republican Tara Durant prevailed over Democrat Joel Griffin and independent Monica Gary in a northern Virginia Senate race, only one seat in that chamber was too early to call, along with two in the House of Delegates. Those contests will determine the final margins in each chamber. Democrats, who centered their message to voters around protecting abortion rights, won at least 21 seats in the 40-seat Senate and at least 51 in the 100-member House of Delegates. “Governor Youngkin and Virginia Republicans did everything they could to take total control of state government, but the people of the Commonwealth rejected them,” Susan Swecker, chairwoman of the Democratic Party of Virginia, said in a statement. Senate Republicans conce...

‘Goin’ Down the Road’ director Donald Shebib, who paved way for Canada’s road movie, dies

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 22:00:30 GMT

TORONTO — Donald Shebib, whose seminal 1970 drama “Goin’ Down the Road” became a cultural touchstone for its gritty realism, has died at age 85.The director’s family says he died Sunday at St. Joseph’s Health Centre in Toronto. A cause of death was not immediately available.The Toronto-born Shebib is widely considered one of Canada’s most influential filmmakers with critics positioning “Goin’ Down the Road” as among the country’s greatest films. It tells the story of two young Maritimer men who depart Cape Breton for Toronto in search of better lives. The film featured the music of Bruce Cockburn and starred Doug McGrath, Paul Bradley and Jayne Eastwood.Shebib financed the project on a government grant and money he pocketed from selling his beloved black and white Morgan sports car.“Goin’ Down the Road” won the feature film prize at the Canadian Film Awards the year it was released, and spawned a sequel in...

Mexican president wants to force private freight rail companies to schedule passenger service

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 22:00:30 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s president announced Wednesday that he will require private rail companies that mostly carry freight to offer passenger service or else have the government schedule its own trains on their tracks.President Andrés Manuel López Obrador denied any notion that his decree to be issued later this month amounted to expropriation of private property. He said existing law guarantees passenger trains priority. “This is not an expropriation, it is in the Constitution and the law,” he said. ”According to the law, passenger trains have priority.” Still, almost no regular passenger service remains in Mexico following a 1995 reform that gave concessions to two private railway companies: Mexico’s Ferromex and a subsidiary of U.S. railway Kansas City Southern. A few tourist trains run on relatively short, unconnected routes to tourist attractions like northern Mexico’s Copper Canyon and the western tequila-producing region around Jalisco.López Obrador is ...