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As the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah escalates, more than a thousand Canadians have left Lebanon over the past nine days through commercial flights, with more seats available this week. Since Sept. 29, a total of 1,162 people, including Canadians, permanent residents and immediate family members, have flown out of Lebanon, Global Affairs Canada said in an update on Monday evening.The federal government began co-ordinating commercially assisted departures for Canadians looking to get out of Lebanon at the end of last month amid an intensifying conflict between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. 3:36 Feds commit another $15M in humanitarian aid to Lebanon ...

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre on Tuesday doubled down on his call for Israel to pre-emptively strike Iran’s nuclear facilities, saying such an act would be “a gift by the Jewish state to humanity.” Poilievre first voiced his support Monday at a commemoration event in Ottawa marking the one-year anniversary of Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack against Israel. The ensuing conflict in the Middle East reached a new crescendo last week, when Iran — which supports Hamas and other proxy militant groups fighting Israel — fired a barrage of ballistic missiles at Israel, which has vowed retaliation.U.S. President Joe Biden and other world leaders have warned against striking Iran’s nuclear facilities over fears of further escalating the conflict into an all-out war between two of the region’s most ...

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre lamented the House of Commons remains “paralyzed” Tuesday as his party extends a debate about turning government documents over to the RCMP. Poilievre was referring to the delay in the government producing seven years’ worth of records related to the Sustainable Development Technologies Canada (SDTC) organization within 30 days.The now-defunct organization, which was federally funded but at arm’s length from government, was found earlier this year to have broken conflict of interest rules and made “significant lapses” in managing public funds by the Auditor General of Canada. The Conservatives have taken to calling it a “green slush fund.”If you’re already feeling lost, don’t worry. It’s a natural reaction to the political posturing that typically comes...

When Prime Minister Justin Trudeau lands in Laos on Wednesday, he will have spent almost a full day in the air and yet, despite spending 24 hours to get to the Laotian capital of Vientiane, he won’t even spend 48 hours there. But senior government officials travelling with the PM this week say the time and treasure spent so that Trudeau can attend the annual summit of leaders from the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) is an important part of a “strategic long-term bet” his government made several years ago to raise Canada’s profile in the region.It’s part of the country’s Indo-Pacific strategy aimed at boosting rules-based trade and enhancing the kind of multilateral security relationships that a middle power like Canada must have to survive and thrive.“Canada has to be build...