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DEVELOPING Jasper updates: Wildfire reaches townsite
One of two wildfires threatening Jasper National Park has reached the townsite.
Pope Francis on Friday made his first public appearance outdoors since being stricken by bronchitis two weeks ago, which forced him to cancel a planned trip to the COP-28 climate conference in Dubai.
The pope has been steadily recovering, and for the Dec. 8 holiday devoted to Mary kept a traditional appointment to pray at the Spanish Steps. He arrived in a black car, and blessed a crowd of onlookers before taking a seat in a chair facing a statue of the Madonna.
The pontiff prayed for Mary's mercy for "all the people oppressed by injustice and poverty, tried by war," adding a special prayer for "the tormented Ukrainian people," as well as Palestinians and Israelis "who have fallen back into a spiral of violence."
Francis also addressed violence against women, a topic that has resonated in Italy in recent weeks following the killing last month of a 22-year-old female student in northern Italy. "Mary, we need you as a woman, to entrust all of the women who have suffered violence and those who are still victims in this city, in Italy and in every part of the world," the pope said.
Before his appointment at the Spanish Steps, Francis went to the St. Mary Major basilica to pray before one of his favorite icons to Mary. He entered the basilica in a wheelchair.
Francis earlier addressed the faithful from an open window overlooking St. Peter's Square for the traditional blessing, appearing for the first time to the public since his illness.
Francis, who turns 87 on Dec. 17, came down with the flu on Nov. 25 and was forced to cancel a planned trip to Dubai to participate in the U.N. climate conference. He later revealed he had been diagnosed with an acute case of infectious bronchitis that made breathing difficult.
It was the second time this year he has had a serious case of bronchitis; in spring he was hospitalized for three days to receive intravenous antibiotics.
One of two wildfires threatening Jasper National Park has reached the townsite.
Alberta has called in the Canadian Armed Forces to help assist with the worsening wildfire situation in the province.
U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday delivered a solemn call to voters to defend the country's democracy as he laid out in an Oval Office address his decision to drop his bid for reelection and throw his support behind Vice President Kamala Harris.
Staff at a Barrie child care centre say they are frustrated by what they call a local MPP's inadequate response after a car crashed through a window in one of the toddler rooms.
The North American Aerospace Defence Command (Norad) intercepted two Russian and two Chinese bombers flying near Alaska Wednesday in what appears to be the first time the two countries have been intercepted while operating together.
An analyst and an assistant coach with Canada Soccer are being removed from the Canadian Olympic Team and 'sent home immediately,' according to the Canadian Olympic Committee.
After a handful of Australian water polo players tested positive for COVID-19 this week, questions have emerged around how the spread of the disease will be mitigated at the Summer Olympic Games in Paris.
A B.C. man who was hired to help a non-profit build a food hub but instead spent the money on personal expenses – including travel, restaurants, booze and cannabis – has been ordered to pay more than $120,000 in damages.
Two people are dead and two others suffered serious injuries following a shooting that police have described as a 'gun battle' outside a plaza in Scarborough, Ont. early Wednesday morning.
A local First Nations elder and veteran is helping to bring the Ojibwe language to a well-known film for the first time.
A cat who fled her Montreal home nearly a decade ago has been reunited with her family after being found in Ottawa.
A woman in Waterloo, Ont. is out thousands of dollars for a car crash she wasn’t involved in.
A swarm of bees living in a lamppost in Winnipeg’s Sage Creek neighbourhood has found a new home for its hive.
Around 100 acres of Manitoba Crown Land near the Saskatchewan border is being returned to the Métis community.
Nova Scotia is suspending the licensed Cape Breton moose hunt for three years due to what the province is calling a “significant drop” in the population.
A well-known childhood prank known as 'nicky nicky nine doors,' or 'ding dong ditch,' has escalated into a more serious game that could lead to charges for some Surrey, B.C. teens.
It's been more than a month since their good friend was seriously hurt in an accident and two teens from Riverview, N.B., are still having a hard time dealing with it.
Halifax bridges have collected thousands of coins from around the world.