American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer denied bail after being charged with killing Canadian couple
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer, one of two men charged in the killings of a Canadian couple in Dominica, has been denied bail.
Florida won't put any state money into the parent company of Ben & Jerry's unless it reverses a decision to stop selling ice cream in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and contested east Jerusalem, Gov. Ron DeSantis said Tuesday.
The Republican governor said the State Board of Administration added London-based Unilever to its list of "scrutinized companies" that boycott Israel. This means that if Ben & Jerry's position on Israel is not reversed in 90 days, Florida will not invest in or contract with Unilever or its subsidiaries.
"As a matter of law and principle, the state of Florida will not tolerate discrimination against the state of Israel or the Israeli people," the Republican governor said in a news release. "I will not stand idly by as woke corporate ideologues seek to boycott and divest from our ally, Israel."
The decision, similar to those in other states, comes after Vermont-based Ben & Jerry's announced last month that it will stop selling its products in territories sought by the Palestinians.
The company's founders, Bennett Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, said in a recent New York Times opinion piece that they no longer control the company but approve of the action in Israel as reflecting their progressive values. The company has a long history of advocating for social justice.
"We are also proud Jews. It's part of who we are and how we've identified ourselves for our whole lives. As our company began to expand internationally, Israel was one of our first overseas markets. We were then, and remain today, supporters of the State of Israel," the founders said. "But it's possible to support Israel and oppose some of its policies, just as we've opposed policies of the U.S. government."
Unilever's 400 brands include a wide variety of familiar consumer goods such as Dove personal care products, Lipton tea, Hellmann's mayonnaise, Sunlight soap and, of course, Ben & Jerry's ice cream.
Unilever CEO Alan Jope said last week that Unilever is "fully committed" to doing business with Israel despite Ben & Jerry's decision on the West Bank and east Jerusalem.
In an email Tuesday, Unilever said it employs more than 2,000 people in Israel and the company "rejects completely and repudiates unequivocally any form of discrimination or intolerance."
"Anti-Semitism has no place in any society," the company said, adding that Ben & Jerry's will continue selling ice cream in parts of Israel "through a different business arrangement."
Florida officials say the company told them in a call Wednesday that there are no plans to change Ben & Jerry's stance on Israel. It wasn't immediately clear what kinds investments or contracts Florida currently has with Unilever or its subsidiaries.
"We'll continue working with the SBA to ensure Florida law is upheld for those who target our friends in Israel," said Jimmy Patronis, Florida's chief financial officer.
Israel does not differentiate between the West Bank settlements and the rest of its territory. When home-rental company Airbnb announced in 2018 that it would no longer list properties in the West Bank, Israel harshly condemned the move and eventually pressured the company into canceling the decision.
Israel's ambassador to the United States and United Nations, Gilad Erdan, recently sent a letter to the governors of 35 U.S. states urging them to punish Unilever under anti-boycott laws such as that in Florida.
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer, one of two men charged in the killings of a Canadian couple in Dominica, has been denied bail.
Cabinet minister Dominic LeBlanc says he plans to run in the next election as a candidate under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's leadership, amid questions about his rumoured interest in succeeding his longtime friend for the top job.
A male columnist has apologized for a cringeworthy moment during former University of Iowa superstar and college basketball's highest scorer Caitlin Clark's first news conference as an Indiana Fever player.
The judge presiding over the trial of a man accused of fatally running over a Toronto police officer is telling jurors the possible verdicts they may reach based on the evidence in the case.
Nearly half of China's major cities are suffering 'moderate to severe' levels of subsidence, putting millions at risk of flooding especially as sea levels rise.
Health Canada will change its longstanding policy restricting gay and bisexual men from donating to sperm banks in Canada, CTV News has learned. The federal health agency has adopted a revised directive removing the ban on gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men, effective May 8.
Prince Harry, the son of King Charles III and fifth in line to the British throne, has formally confirmed he is now a U.S. resident.
The United States has vetoed a widely backed UN resolution that would have paved the way for full United Nations membership for the state of Palestine.
Sophie Kinsella, the best-selling author behind the 'Shopaholic' book series, has revealed that she is receiving treatment for brain cancer.
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.
Molly Knight, a grade four student in Nova Scotia, noticed her school library did not have many books on female athletes, so she started her own book drive in hopes of changing that.
Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.
When Les Robertson was walking home from the gym in North Vancouver's Lower Lonsdale neighbourhood three weeks ago, he did a double take. Standing near a burrow it had dug in a vacant lot near East 1st Street and St. Georges Avenue was a yellow-bellied marmot.
A moulting seal who was relocated after drawing daily crowds of onlookers in Greater Victoria has made a surprise return, after what officials described as an 'astonishing' six-day journey.
Just steps from Parliament Hill is a barber shop that for the last 100 years has catered to everyone from prime ministers to tourists.
A high score on a Foo Fighters pinball machine has Edmonton player Dave Formenti on a high.
A compound used to treat sour gas that's been linked to fertility issues in cattle has been found throughout groundwater in the Prairies, according to a new study.
While many people choose to keep their medical appointments private, four longtime friends decided to undergo vasectomies as a group in B.C.'s Lower Mainland.