Couple randomly attacked, 1 stabbed, by group of teens in Toronto, police say
A man has been transported to hospital after police say he was stabbed in a random attack carried out by a group of teens in Toronto on Friday night.
Afghan interpreters trying to escape a resurgent Taliban had another challenge Thursday in seeking Canada’s help: the email inbox for immigration forms stopped working.
Global Affairs says the mailbox issue has since been resolved. But for interpreters and other Afghan nationals who helped the Canadian Forces and are looking for a way out of Afghanistan, it was yet another obstacle to their safety.
Earlier this week, they were told they had to submit the forms within three days. That turned out to be an error on behalf of the Canadian government.
Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan says the three-day timeline to apply for resettlement in Canada that the federal government extended to Afghan interpreters and others who assisted Canadian military during the war was a “mistake.”
Speaking to reporters in B.C. on Thursday, Sajjan said he had just spoken with Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino about the matter and they are “committed” to ensuring these individuals’ safety regardless of when they submit their immigration package.
“That 72 hours was a mistake, that we put out – actually it’s not going to be 72 hours,” he said. “I can assure you that intense planning daily is taking place, I personally get daily briefings on this and things are moving very rapidly so that we can bring home all those Afghans safely.”
Last week, the government offered hope to the estimated 600 families of interpreters, security guards, cooks and cleaners who worked with the Canadian Armed Forces on their 10-year deployment and are under threat from the Taliban.
However, Canadian veterans, advocates, and family members of these individuals have argued the resettlement application process is confusing, restrictive, and too extensive to complete in three days.
“The way the program has been set up to get people to apply right now seems to put more barriers in place then are possible for people to deal with, particularly in a three-day period given the lack of internet access in more remote places of Kandahar,” Howard Coombs, a veteran and military historian at the Royal Military College of Canada told CTV News Channel on Thursday.
“The government has created a process that doesn’t reflect the realities on the ground”
The application guidelines, which are written entirely in English, require applicants to gather and fill out at least three lengthy electronic forms that require computer and internet access, in 72 hours.
Ottawa claims the deadline is not firm, but reflects the urgency of a deteriorating situation.
“The requested response time is a reflection of the urgency on the ground to get as many applications as possible as quickly as possible so that we can get people to safety. Applications received outside of that window will still be processed,” said Emilie Simard, director of issues management and parliamentary affairs for the immigration minister, in a statement to CTV News on Wednesday.
“This policy was developed to be as inclusive as possible, and although it is too soon to provide an exact estimate on how many people may be arriving, we expect that several thousand people will benefit from these special immigration measures.”
Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland also responded to criticism of the government’s approach on Thursday, saying the issue touches her personally.
“My husband actually worked as a reporter in Afghanistan and he became very close to many of the translators and interpreters he worked with so there’s been a lot of personal concern in my home about this,” she said.
She stated that the government is committed to extracting Afghan nationals who helped Canadian military on the frontlines “as quickly as possible.”
“That is what has driven our approach and I want to be absolutely clear, this is not a question of restricting the right of people who served Canada and may now therefore be in danger. What we are really, really focused on is ensuring that the logistics work, and that these brave people have a chance to come to Canada,” she said.
The Taliban claims it now controls about 80 per cent of Afghanistan after the U.S. began extracting its military forces – a move U.S. President Joe Biden announced will be complete by Aug. 31.
The first group of interpreters that assisted U.S. troops – an estimated 750 people – are expected to arrive in the country this week.
During a news conference Thursday in Kuwait, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the White House is committed to helping those that helped their troops over the last 20 years.
“We’re actively engaged in that process, notably in relocation planning, for those brave Afghans and their families. That is a subject that came up today, as it’s come up in conversations with a number of other allies and partners,” he said.
Coombs said the Canadian government could follow in the steps of their American counterparts and take evacuees to a third location for screening.
“Screen them there, take a look at their cases, but do it in a place where we have time, where we have safety, where we have security and if there are people that don’t meet our criteria then we decide at that point in time what to do,” he said.
The Conservatives also weighed in on the situation earlier in the day, calling on the federal government to extend the application deadline.
“While the Trudeau Liberals sat on their hands for weeks and failed to put forward a plan to help these brave Afghans – they are now giving these same individuals three days to save their lives. This is the height of hypocrisy and wrong,” said party leader Erin O’Toole in a statement.
With files from CTV National News Parliamentary Correspondent Creeson Agecoutay
A man has been transported to hospital after police say he was stabbed in a random attack carried out by a group of teens in Toronto on Friday night.
Dozens of Ontarians are expressing frustration in the province’s health-care system after their family doctors either dropped them as patients or threatened to after they sought urgent care elsewhere.
Mother's Day can be a difficult occasion for those who have lost or are estranged from their mom.
One of greatest climbing guides on Mount Everest has scaled the world's highest peak for the 29th time, extending his own record for most times to the summit, expedition organizers said Sunday.
Israeli forces were battling Palestinian militants across the Gaza Strip on Sunday, including in parts of the devastated north that the military said it had cleared months ago, where Hamas has exploited a security vacuum to regroup.
Amid significant criticism from advocates, Diversity, Inclusion and Persons with Disabilities Minister Kamal Khera is defending her government's long-promised, newly unveiled Canada Disability Benefit, calling the funds an "initial step," but without laying out a timeline for future expansion of the program.
With carriers' flight volumes above the 60th parallel hovering below pre-pandemic levels, Canadian North’s first Inuk CEO now bears the task of balancing those financial and logistical challenges with the needs of communities for which she feels a deep affinity.
Two daughters and a mother were reunited online 40 years later thanks to a DNA kit and a Zoom connection despite living on three separate continents and speaking different languages.
RCMP commissioner Mike Duheme says he wants the government to look at drafting a new law that would make it easier for police to pursue charges against people who threaten elected officials.
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
A Listowel, Ont. man, drafted by the Hamilton Tigercats last week, is also getting looks from the NFL, despite only playing 27 games of football in his life.
The threat of zebra mussels has prompted the federal government to temporarily ban watercraft from a Manitoba lake popular with tourists.
A small Ajax dessert shop that recently received a glowing review from celebrity food critic Keith Lee is being forced to move after a zoning complaint was made following the social media influencer’s visit last month.
The Canada Science and Technology Museum is inviting visitors to explore their poop. A new exhibition opens at the Ottawa museum on Friday called, 'Oh Crap! Rethinking human waste.'
The Regina Police Service says it is the first in Saskatchewan and possibly Canada to implement new technology in its detention facility that will offer real-time monitoring of detainees’ vital health metrics.
Just as she had feared, a restaurant owner from eastern Quebec who visited Montreal had her SUV stolen, but says it was all thanks to the kindness of strangers on the internet — not the police — that she got it back.
The stakes have been set for a bet between Vancouver and Edmonton's mayors on who will win Round 2 of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
A grieving mother is hosting a helmet drive in the hopes of protecting children on Manitoba First Nations from a similar tragedy that killed her daughter.