Year in review: A look at news events in January 2024

A look at news events in January 2024:

1 – Former world cycling champion Rohan Dennis is charged in connection with the death of his wife, 32-year-old Olympic cyclist Melissa Hoskins. She died late Dec. 30 after being struck by a vehicle while riding in suburban Adelaide, Australia. Dennis is charged with causing death by dangerous driving, endangering life and driving without due care.

1 – Hockey history takes place as the new Professional Women’s Hockey League opens its inaugural season with New York playing the first game against Toronto at the Mattamy Athletic Centre in front of a sold-out crowd. New York topples host Toronto 4-0.

2 – Ottawa announces that Canada is set to accept 1,000 applications from people looking to get out of Gaza who have Canadian relatives, but advocates say the number of available applications is too low. The National Council of Canadian Muslims says there should be no cap on the number of applications for people trying to get out of Gaza who have Canadian relatives.

2 – Environment Canada announces that December was warm enough to set new temperature records in parts of British Columbia. Meteorologist Brian Proctor says Vancouver’s mean temperature for the month was 7 C, tying 1939 as the city’s warmest December on record.

2 – Czechia scored with just 11.7 seconds left in the third period to break a tie and knock Canada out of the World Junior Hockey Championship in Sweden. Czechia was down 2-0 before scoring three goals in the come-from-behind win to advance to the semifinals at the under-20 tournament.

2 – Hamas says an explosion in Beirut has killed one of its top officials. Saleh Arouri was one of the founders of Hamas’s military wing, and had headed the group in the West Bank. A report by Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency says the blast was the work of an Israeli drone.

2 – It took about six hours to put out the flames after a Japan Airlines flight with 379 people aboard collided with a Japanese coast guard aircraft on a runway at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport. Five of the six people aboard the coast guard plane died. It was preparing to take off to deliver aid to survivors of the previous day’s earthquake when it collided with the Airbus A-350 that was landing.

2 – The death toll from a series of powerful earthquakes Jan. 1 in western Japan rises to at least 55 people (that number would later climb to more than180). Japanese media reports tens of thousands of homes were destroyed.

3 – An unnamed school district in British Columbia has been ordered by the province’s human rights tribunal to pay $5,000 to a student for failing to accommodate her anxiety disorder. Tribunal vice-chair Devyn Cousineau wrote in a decision released in December that the school district “failed to take reasonable steps” to investigate and address the student’s anxiety.

3 – San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge finishes installation new suicide-prevention netting. City crews installed stainless-steel nets on both sides of the 2.7-kilometre bridge, responding to years of pleading from advocate groups.

3 – The PEI Coalition for Women in Government says there is a concerning trend of online harassment targeting women and non-binary candidates. The coalition says two-thirds of female and non-binary candidates in last year’s provincial election who were interviewed said they faced some sort of online harassment during the campaign.

3 – The U.S. calls on the United Nations Security Council to take urgent action against Yemen’s Houthi rebels for attacking ships in the Red Sea trade route. The rebels say the ships they have attacked are either linked to Israel or are heading to Israeli ports. Canada was one of 12 countries today, including the U.S., that signed a statement warning the Houthi rebels they will bear the responsibility for the consequences of their continued actions.

3 – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s office clarifies comments it made about the cost of his family’s vacation in Jamaica. After initially saying the family was paying for their stay, the Prime Minister’s Office says they are vacationing “at no cost at a location owned by family friends.” In a statement, the PMO’s office also says the federal ethics commissioner was consulted on the details of the trip prior to it to ensure that the rules were being followed.

3 – Russian and Ukraine exchange hundreds of prisoners in the single biggest release of captives since the start of the war almost two years earlier. Ukrainian authorities say 230 prisoners of war have returned home while Russia’s Defence Ministry says 248 Russian servicemen have been freed under the deal that was sponsored by the United Arab Emirates. It’s also the first prisoner exchange between the warring nations in almost five months.

3 – At least 100 people were killed and more than 200 others injured in Iran today after two bombs went off at a memorial ceremony for a slain Iranian general. The attack appears to be the deadliest attack against Iran since its Islamic Revolution in 1979. The explosions happened near the grave site of General Qassem Soleimani, who was killed in a U.S. drone strike in Iraq four years earlier.

3 – Curling Canada appoints three-time Canadian champion and former world curling men’s champion Nolan Thiessen as its new chief executive officer. The 43-year-old retired from competitive curling in 2016 before becoming an athlete liaison for Curling Canada. He replaces Katherine Henderson, who left the organization in August to become CEO of Hockey Canada.

4 – A B.C. conservation group buys the hunting rights in part of a provincial rainforest in an effort to protect the wildlife there. The Raincoast Conservation Foundation says it took two years to raise $1.92 million to buy a quarter of the Great Bear Rainforest on the province’s north and central coast. The group has been buying hunting rights in B.C. since 2005, four years after a moratorium on grizzly bear hunting was overturned.

4 – Canada’s safety watchdog takes part in a probe of a fatal Japan Airlines crash that happened on Jan. 2. The Transportation Safety Board of Canada says a representative, along with technical advisers from Transport Canada, De Havilland Canada and Pratt and Whitney Canada will give information to Japanese authorities about the destroyed Dash 8 aircraft and its engines. The Dash 8 regional planes were manufactured by De Havilland Canada.

4 – Vancouver police say dozens of police officers are now recording their interactions on body-worn cameras as part of a pilot project that has been launched in an effort to improve public trust in the force.

4 – Two New Brunswick men are exonerated for a 1983 murder after their convictions were overturned. Chief justice Tracey DeWare of the Court of King’s Bench says Robert Mailman and Walter Gillespie are innocent in the eyes of the law of the killing of George Gilman Leeman. The two men were convicted of second-degree murder and spent years behind bars before both were paroled.

4 – The Islamic State group claims responsibility for two suicide bombings Wednesday at a ceremony honouring an Iranian general killed in a 2020 U.S. drone strike in Iraq.

4 – About 50 automotive journalists from Canada and the U.S. name the Kia EV-9 large electric SUV the 2024 North American Utility of the Year. The Automotive Press Association has chosen the Toyota Prius hybrid as the Car of the Year and Ford’s Super Duty pickup as Truck of the Year. Electric vehicles made up more than half of the finalists.

4 – The largest male specimen of the world’s most venomous spider has been found in Australia. The deadly Sydney funnel-web spider, who has been named “Hercules,” was found by chance by a civilian on the Central Coast 50 kilometres north of Sydney. The 7.9-centimetre long arachnid is much bigger than the average size of one to five centimetres for Sydney funnel-webs. “Hercules” will live at the Australian Reptile Park, contributing to its antivenom program.

4 – The Canadian Press identifies 17 green charities whose top executives drew annual compensation in the $200,000 to $250,000 range or higher, in 2022 and 2023. The news agency reviewed Canada Revenue Agency filings for charities in the environment, conservation and animal protection sectors. The charity with the highest-paid executives was Manitoba-based Ducks Unlimited Canada. But the review found most of the 864 registered charities in the two sectors rely on volunteers or a modestly paid workforce.

4 – Thirteen-year-old Willis Gibson is identified as the first player to officially defeat the original Tetris Nintendo version of the game. Late last month, Gibson — who has the streaming handle “blue scuti” — made it to what gamers call a “kill screen,” where the Tetris code glitches, crashing the game. It’s a highly coveted achievement in the world of video games, especially in Tetris, which doesn’t actually have a scripted ending.

5 – Actor David Soul dies in London, England, at the age of 80, after what his wife calls a valiant battle for life. Soul’s rise to fame was as the blond half of crime-fighting duo “Starsky & Hutch” in the popular 1970s television series.

5 – Family announces the death of Mary Dawson, Canada’s first conflict of interest and ethics commissioner, at the age of 81. Her son, Dave Dawson, says she died on Dec. 24 from a rare type of thyroid cancer. He says after 50 years as a civil servant, she was most proud of drafting the Constitution Act, 1982, which included the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

6 – Hezbollah fires 62 rockets at an Israeli air surveillance base just days after the killing of a top Hamas leader in Beirut. The rocket attack follows comments from Hezbollah’s leader saying his group will retaliate for the killing of Saleh Arouri, the deputy political leader of Hamas.

6 – U.S. federal officials order the immediate grounding of all Boeing 737-9 Max jetliners a day after a mid-air fuselage blow-out on an Alaska Airlines plane shortly after takeoff above Oregon, forcing pilots to make an emergency landing. The required inspections will take around four to eight hours per aircraft and will affect about 171 airplanes worldwide.

7 – Israel says its mission is accomplished in northern Gaza, with officials confirming the end of major combat in the territory after dismantling Hamas and its military infrastructure there. Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari says forces will “continue to deepen the achievement” in the area, but shift focus to the central and southern parts of Gaza.

8 – The Toronto Maple Leafs sign forward William Nylander to the largest contract in franchise history by total value. The US$92-million extension will keep the 27-year-old under contract for eight more seasons.

9 – Hundreds of families in Canada compete for 1,000 visas to bring loved ones trapped in the Gaza Strip to safety. Canada’s existing program is available only to immediate family members of Palestinian-Canadians, including spouses and children. The expansion adds parents, grandparents, adult children, grandchildren and siblings of Canadians and Canadian permanent residents, as well as their immediate family members.

9 – Quebec’s public-school students are back to class after an FAE teachers’ strike shut down 800 schools, keeping 368,000 students home for 22 days.

9 – France’s youngest-ever prime minister and first openly gay one – former education minister and government spokesman Gabrial Attai – is named to the post by President Emmanuel Macron a day after his predecessor resigns.

9 – The investigation into a door panel that blew off an Alaska Airlines jet on Friday is focusing on whether four bolts that were supposed to help hold the panel in place might have been missing when the plane took off. Both Alaska and United Airlines are reporting they have found loose parts in the panels — or door plugs — of some other Boeing 7-37 Max 9 jets.

9 – The Pittsburgh-based company that was trying to become the first private business to land on the moon says its mission appears doomed. Astrobotic Technology’s spacecraft developed a critical fuel leak just hours after it was launched from Florida.

9 – The European climate agency Copernicus reports 2023 was the hottest year on planet Earth. It says the year was 1.48 C above pre-industrial times.

9 – South Korea’s parliament passes a landmark ban on production and sales of dog meat. The bill would make slaughtering, breeding and sales of dog meat for human consumption illegal starting in 2027 and punishable by two to three years in prison.

9 – The Manitoba government promises improvements to a section of highway that saw 17 seniors die in a bus crash last year. The NDP Government announced $12 million to improve a section of Highways 1 and 5 before releasing an outside review of the intersection.

10 – A study published in the journal Nature suggests a sharp decline in spring snowpack across large parts of the Northern Hemisphere, including parts of Ontario and Quebec, is the result of human-caused climate change. Researchers at New Hampshire’s Dartmouth College say their study indicates anthropocentric climate change was responsible for a seven-per-cent drop in March snowpack per decade over 40 years.

10 – Four provinces have now signed a new federal health accord Prime Minister Justin Trudeau offered to premiers early last year. Nova Scotia will receive $355 million to improve access to health care after signing the one-on-one-deal with Ottawa, joining B.C., P.E.I. and Alberta.

10 – It is the 25th anniversary of the first episode of the popular HBO series The Sopranos, which premiered on Jan. 10, 1999. In honour of the anniversary, the show has posted 25-second long recaps of all of its episodes on TikTok.

10 – CBC radio services are restored after programming across the country was brought down by what the public broadcaster calls a major server failure. CBC says the problem with its ability to produce and broadcast radio content started early in the morning, but was resolved in the afternoon.

10 – Air Canada is investigating after a passenger who boarded a flight to Dubai at Toronto’s Pearson Airport on Monday opened a door and fell onto the tarmac.

10 – L.A. Lakers superstar LeBron James and his son, Bronny, will appear together on a unique sports trading card to mark his new multi-year partnership with Fanatics Collectibles.

10 – A judge in Nevada sets bail at $750,000 for a former Los Angeles-area gang leader charged with orchestrating the 1996 killing of hip-hop legend Tupac Shakur. The judge said at a bail hearing the day before in Las Vegas that Duane “Keffe D” Davis can serve house arrest ahead of his June trial.

10 – A Canadian astronaut will have to wait an extra year before he can take his first trip to space. The Artemis-Two lunar flyby scheduled for this November is being pushed back, meaning London, Ont, native Jeremy Hansen and three crewmates must wait until September 2025 for their voyage around the moon. NASA blames the postponement on technical issues with the Orion capsule.

11 – Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment names veteran sports and broadcasting executive Keith Pelley as its new president and CEO. Pelley has previously served as president of Rogers Media, the Olympic Broadcast Media Consortium, TSN and the CFL’s Toronto Argonauts.

11 – Six-time Super Bowl winning coach Bill Belichick and New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft confirm reports Belichick is leaving the team but don’t take any questions. The 71-year-old’s departure ends his 24-year tenure as the architect of the most decorated dynasty of the league’s Super Bowl era. Belichick teamed up with quarterback Tom Brady to lead the Patriots to six Super Bowl victories, nine AFC titles and 17 division championships.

11 – Former federal NDP leader Ed Broadbent dies at the age of 87. Broadbent led the party for more than 14 years before stepping down in 1989. Broadbent, who was born in Oshawa, Ont., served as a member of Parliament for a riding in the area for 21 years, leading the federal NDP from 1975 to 1989.

11 – The B.C. Association of Chiefs of Police gather with representatives from several departments at RCMP headquarters in Surrey to tout the introduction of body-worn cameras that will soon be worn by thousands of officers. RCMP Chief Superintendent Holly Turton says between 10,000 and 15,000 body cameras are set to be deployed across Canada after field testing in Alberta and elsewhere.

11 – Meta offers $51 million to settle a class action lawsuit in four Canadian provinces. The lawsuit was launched over the use of some Facebook users’ images in advertising on the social media site without their knowledge.

11 – The United States and British militaries launch a massive retaliatory strike against the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen, attacking more than a dozen sites used by the group. In a statement, U.S. President Joe Biden says Canada, along with other countries, supported the strikes. Biden says the strikes are in direct response to unprecedented Houthi attacks against international maritime vessels in the Red Sea.

12 – Canada’s top award for French-language television is reviving separate acting categories for male and female actors. The change comes one year after introducing gender-neutral categories, citing an expert review of its categories and consultations with its members and other industry stakeholders.

12 – The Prime Minister’s Office confirms Chief of the Defence Staff General Wayne Eyre is stepping down, saying Eyre plans to retire this summer after a military career that’s spanned 40 years.

13 – Much of Canada is blanketed by weather warnings related to arctic outflows sweeping across British Columbia’s coast to extreme cold through the Prairies and storms through southern Ontario, Quebec and the Maritimes. Parts of B.C. and the Prairies hover around -50 C.

13 – Ruling-party candidate Lai Ching-te emerges the winner in Taiwan’s presidential election after Lai’s opponents concede the race. The president-elect vows to safeguard the Asian island’s de facto independence from China while further aligning it with other democracies.

13 – Thousands of people take part in a global day of pro-Palestinian protests in cities including London, Paris, Rome and Washington, D.C., with the plight of the children of Gaza their main focus nearly 100 days after the start of the Israel-Hamas war.

13 – Manitoba Progressive Conservative Leader Heather Stefanson – the province’s first female premier – sets Monday, Jan. 15, as the day she will step down as party leader, fulfilling her plan to resign after losing the Oct. 3 provincial election.

14 – Denmark Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen proclaims Frederik X king after his mother Queen Margrethe the Second formally signs her abdication after 52 years. Margrethe is the first Danish monarch to voluntarily relinquish the throne in nearly 900 years.

14 – Actor Joyce Randolph of the TV show “The Honeymooners” dies at the age of 99 of natural causes at her home in New York City. Randolph – who played Ed Norton’s sarcastic wife Trixie – was the last surviving main character of the 1950s comedy.

15 – Members of the Public Service Alliance of Canada and the Union of National Defence Employees, representing nearly 500 civilian workers on military bases in Ontario and Quebec, begin a strike over wages and job security.

15 – Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant says the military’s offensive in southern Gaza will soon be scaled back as it expects to take control of the region. He rules out a ceasefire and says Israel is still targeting Hamas leaders believed to be hiding in the city of Khan Younis.

15 – Donald Trump wins the leadoff presidential caucuses in Iowa with about 51 per cent of the vote, paving the way for a strong start to the 2024 U.S. presidential election race. The former president’s victory helps him secure the Republican presidential nomination as the contest moves to New Hampshire next.

16 – New York architect Rex Heuermann, accused in the Gilgo Beach killings, is formally charged in the death of Maureen Brainard-Barnes, a Connecticut woman who vanished in 2007. Her remains were found more than three years later along a coastal highway in New York. Heuermann, arrested in July in the deaths of three other women, insists he is innocent of all charges.

16 – Alberta NDP Leader Rachel Notley announces she is stepping down after almost a decade in the role, but plans to stay on as leader until her replacement is chosen.

16 – Thousands of teachers in Saskatchewan are striking across the province to push the government to bargain on key demands. Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation president Samantha Becotte says teachers want the province to address critical issues, such as classroom sizes and support for students with higher needs.

16 – A Jean Chrétien-era effort to soften the United Nations Indigenous language is casting a pall on the current Liberal government. Newly released Australian cabinet documents from 2003 show the two countries worked together on putting forward a softer version of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which was amended before it was adopted by the UN in 2007– with Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the United States the only countries to vote against it.

17 – A shipment of medicine for dozens of hostages still held by Hamas arrives in Gaza after France and Qatar arrange the delivery by brokering the first agreement between Israel and the militant group since a weeklong ceasefire broke down in November. The deal also includes the delivery of additional medicine and humanitarian aid to Palestinians in the besieged enclave.

17 – Cities on both the East and West coasts are dealing with or bracing for blasts of snowy weather. Vancouver is under a snowfall warning, with as much as 30 centimetres in some parts of B.C. Snowsquall warnings are in effect for St. John’s and parts of Newfoundland’s Avalon and Burin peninsulas, with expectations of up to 30 centimetres of snow and winds gusting as high as 100 kilometres an hour, causing whiteout conditions from Jan. 18 until Jan. 19.

17 – A second feasibility study assessing the scope of a Manitoba landfill search for the remains of two First Nations women believed murdered is completed. The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs says the research will be forwarded to the federal government after it’s reviewed by the families of Morgan Harris and Marcedes Myran and legal counsel. Police have yet to search the landfill due to safety concerns after an initial study’s finding that toxic materials could put workers at risk.

18 – A planned 10-year investment, costing $36 billion, aims to expand B.C.’s electrical system by the public energy utility, Crown-owned BC Hydro. Premier David Eby says the investment will see economic opportunities and a steady power supply brought to the province.

18 – Canada’s financial intelligence agency sounds the alarm over illicit cash getting laundered through online gambling sites. In a newly published bulletin, the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada says prospective money launderers have been buying prepaid cards with their shady cash and depositing the funds into gambling accounts.

18 – It is deadline day for Canadian businesses to repay pandemic loans and receive partial forgiveness, but business groups warn it could mean closure for many firms. Hundreds of thousands of businesses and non-profits took advantage of the Canada Emergency Business Account loan.

18 – The recent cold snap in B.C. and on the Prairies put the spotlight on electricity grids in Canada and their dependability during extreme weather conditions. During the deep freeze, Alberta residents received an emergency alert urging them to reduce power use to avoid potential rotating blackouts.

18 – Kensington Palace says Kate Middleton, the Princess of Wales, has been hospitalized after undergoing planned abdominal surgery and will remain at the private London Clinic for up to two weeks. Meanwhile, Buckingham Palace says 75-year-old King Charles will undergo a “corrective procedure” for an enlarged prostate.

18 – A 22-year-old man from Villagedale, N.S., faces three charges under the Forests Act for allegedly lighting the largest wildfire in the province’s recorded history. The Barrington Lake fire that started southwest of Shelburne last May torched 23,000 hectares of land. RD

18 – The U.S. Justice Department says police officers who responded to the May 2022 school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, failed to treat it as an active shooter situation. The report identifies “cascading failures” in the handling of one of the deadliest massacres at a school in American history. Nineteen children and two staff members died as police stood around in a hallway.

18 – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Nunavut Premier PJ Akeeagok and other signatories finalize what is formally called the “Nunavut Lands and Resources Devolution Agreement.” The agreement transfers powers over public lands, waters and the non-renewable resources each contain to the territory and away from the federal government. It’s the largest land transfer in Canadian history. The Northwest Territories and Yukon went through similar processes, known formally as devolution, years ago.

18 – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Canada remains steadfast in its position that a two-state solution to the conflict in Gaza is necessary. Trudeau’s comments come after Israel’s prime minister struck a defiant tone today, saying that Israel would not halt its offensive until it realizes its goals of destroying Hamas.

18 – Space-X launches Turkey’s first astronaut along with astronauts from Sweden and Italy to the International Space Station. The Falcon rocket blasted off from Florida, carrying the three aviators and their escort, a former NASA astronaut. The two-week mission will cost each of their countries an estimated $55 million or more.

18 – Best Buy Canada and Bell Canada announce a partnership to rebrand and revamp 165 The Source stores. The companies say The Source, a wholly owned subsidiary of Bell, will be rebranded as Best Buy Express, with locations expected to start opening in the second half of 2024.

18 – Hockey players in Newfoundland and Labrador will once again be lining up to shake hands after their games. Hockey Newfoundland and Labrador, the governing body for amateur hockey in the province, reversed a controversial decision to end the custom because it sometimes led to altercations.

19 – Quebec’s premier asks Ottawa to slow the influx of asylum seekers entering his province, which he said is nearing a breaking point. Francois Legault’s letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the number of newcomers entering the province is excessive.

19 – Settlement agencies prepare for the arrival of tens of thousands of Ukrainians before the end-of-March deadline for those fleeing the Russian invasion to enter Canada on emergency visas. Operation Ukraine Safe Haven says pre-arrival surveys show as many as 90,000 more emergency visa holders are thinking of coming before the deadline.

19 – The Saskatchewan government announces it is banning health-care providers from giving out drug pipe kits. It has also changed how they can provide needles, saying they must only give out the same number they get back. Harm reduction workers say the changes will exacerbate the transmission of viruses.

19 – Oxfam International predicts the first trillionaire could emerge in the next decade. It pulled data on net worth from Forbes’ billionaires list to point to the growing wealth gap that skyrocketed globally during the pandemic. The world’s five richest people are Tesla owner Elon Musk, French businessman Bernard Arnault, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison and Berkshire Hathaway chairman Warren Buffett.

19 – It appears Japan’s unmanned spacecraft has landed on the moon. But the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s mission control says it is still checking on the status of the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon, or SLIM. If it did land successfully, Japan would be only the fifth country to accomplish the feat after the U-S, the former Soviet Union, China and India.

19 – Nova Scotia announces an investment of $3 million a year into its first screening program for lung cancer, which will include CT scans. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in Nova Scotia and the province has the highest rates of the disease in the country. RD

19 – Loblaw is bringing back its 50-per-cent off stickers due to public outcry following its decision to reduce discounts. Canada’s largest grocery retailer announced earlier in the week that last-day sale items would be marked down by 30 per cent instead of between 30 and 50 per cent.

19 – A delegation of top Hamas officials meets with the Russia’s Foreign Ministry in Moscow to discuss ways to end the conflict in Gaza. Russia has condemned Hamas for the Oct. 7 assault on southern Israel that triggered the conflict, but has also criticized Israel for using excessive force in its responding bombardment of Gaza.

19 – American fighter jets strike Iranian-backed Houthi rebel sites for the sixth time with U.S. officials saying they have taken out anti-ship missile launchers that were ready to fire. President Joe Biden acknowledges that the bombardment of Houthi sites has yet to stop the militants’ attacks on vessels in the Red Sea that have disrupted global shipping.

20 – Iran launches a satellite, the latest for a program the West fears improves Tehran’s ballistic missiles. The announcement, on state television, says the launch is part of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards’ space program.

20 – An overnight protest outside the home of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu grows as people join a group representing families of hostages still in Gaza, demanding more be done to secure their release.

20 – Canadian ski jumpers earn Canada’s first-ever medal in a World Cup super team ski-jumping event. Calgarians Alex Loutitt and Abigail Strate finish second with a combined 709.7 points behind the top pair from Slovenia.

20 – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he will not compromise on full Israeli control over Gaza once the war with Hamas is over, while thousands of anti-government protesters in Tel Aviv demand new elections.

20 – Hall of Fame goaltender Patrick Roy is the new head coach of the New York Islanders after the firing of coach Lane Lambert. Roy, 58, is a four-time Stanley Cup champion who has spent the past five seasons coaching and serving as general manager for the junior Quebec Remparts.

20 – Renowned Canadian filmmaker Norman Jewison and Academy Award lifetime winner dies at age 97. Jewison’s work ranges from Doris Day comedies and “Moonstruck” to social dramas such as the Oscar-winning “In the Heat of the Night.”

21 – Skaters are allowed on an almost two-kilometre stretch of Ottawa’s Rideau Canal, kicking off its 54th season after closing for the first time in its history last winter.

21 – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s governing team kicks off a cabinet retreat in Montreal, starting with a working dinner followed by two full days of meetings preparing for the House of Commons to resume sitting next week. Trudeau’s spokespeople say the biggest emphasis will be on policies that help Canada’s middle class, with affordability measures initially at the forefront.

21 – Florida Governor Ron DeSantis suspends his Republican presidential campaign, ending his White House bid, on the eve of the New Hampshire primary and endorses Donald Trump, saying in a video online that it’s clear to him that a majority of Republican primary voters want to give Trump another chance.

21 – Israel’s military announces the death of another hostage, 19-year-old Sergeant Shay Levinson, saying he died during the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks and his body was taken to Gaza.

21 – A spokesperson says Sarah, the 64-year-old Duchess of York and ex-wife of Prince Andrew, has been diagnosed with melanoma – a malignant skin cancer – discovered during her treatment for breast cancer. Doctors are now analyzing it to see if it was caught early.

22 – A 48-hour strike by transit supervisors at the Coast Mountain Bus Company begins, shutting down bus and SeaBus service in Vancouver, affecting hundreds of thousands of commuters, after an unsuccessful effort by the union to attain a 25-per-cent raise for its members.

22 – Federal Immigration Minister Marc Miller announces plans to cap international student visas for the next two years, saying there will be a 35-per-cent reduction in new study visas issued this year as part of the government’s efforts to deal with the housing crisis. Miller says new visas in 2024 will be capped at 364,000, down from nearly 560,000 in 2023.

22 – Cameroon starts the world’s first malaria vaccine program for children, stating it hopes to vaccinate 250,000 by the end of 2025. There are about 250 million cases of malaria each year in Africa, including 600,000, mostly in young children.

22 – Thousands of Saskatchewan teachers hold another one-day strike to try to get Premier Scott Moe’s government to negotiate on class sizes and student supports. The Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation argues funding to schools has not kept up with rising enrolment.

22 – Newfoundland and Labrador cabinet minister Derrick Bragg dies at age 59 months after revealing his cancer diagnosis in June. He was first elected with the Liberals in 2015 and held several portfolios after being named to cabinet in 2019, the last before his diagnosis being fisheries, forestry and agriculture.

22 – The American and British militaries bomb multiple sites in Yemen that the Iranian-backed Houthis are using to attack shipping in the Red Sea, marking the eighth set of U.S. strikes on the rebel’s missile launching and storage capabilities.

22 – Dozens of family members of hostages held captive in Gaza by Hamas militants storm a committee meeting in Israel’s parliament to demand a deal be struck to win their loved ones’ release. The bold move by civilians in Israel comes as European foreign ministers join growing international calls for Israel to negotiate the creation of a Palestinian state after the war, something Israel strongly rejects.

23 – A Northwestern Air Lease charter flight takes off from the airport in Forth Smith, N.W.T., bound for the Diavik Diamond Mine, when it hits the ground and catches fire, killing six people (four mine workers and two crew members) and injuring another passenger airlifted to hospital in Yellowknife.

23 – A judge rules the Liberal government’s use of the Emergencies Act in early 2022, during the multi-week protests against COVID-19 restrictions in Ottawa and at key border points, was unreasonable under the law and led to the infringement of constitutional rights for Canadians. Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland says the federal government will appeal the Federal Court decision.

23 – Hamas rejects an Israeli proposal for a two-month ceasefire, and the release of Israeli hostages in exchange for the release of Palestinians being held by Israel, according to a senior Egyptian official. Hamas is insisting on a permanent ceasefire before any further release of hostages and the Egyptian official says Hamas leaders are refusing to leave Gaza.

23 – Shots are fired and a Molotov cocktail is thrown inside Edmonton’s City Hall. No one is injured in the incident. Twenty-eight-year-old Bezhani Sarvar faces several charges including arson, possessing incendiary materials and discharging a firearm into a building.

23 – Former U.S. president Donald Trump wins the New Hampshire primary, seizing command of the race for the Republican nomination. Former UN ambassador Nikki Haley places second, vowing after the results are announced to continue her campaign.

24 – A military transport plane carrying 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war crashes in a Russian region near Ukraine, killing all 74 people aboard. The Russian military accuses Ukraine of shooting down the plane. Russian state news agency R-I-A Novosti, citing the Russian Defence Ministry, reports that the POWs were being transported to the border region for a prisoner exchange.

24 – The Bank of Canada keeps its key interest rate at five per cent. But Governor Tiff Macklem says the central bank’s talks are now shifting from whether the rate is high enough to how long it needs to keep it there. After about 18 months of steady declines, inflation rose to 3.4 per cent in December.

24 – Five players from Canada’s 2018 world junior team are taking leaves of absence from their professional hockey clubs amid a report that five members of that roster have been asked to surrender to police in London, Ont., to face sexual assault charges Over the past four days, Carter Hart of the Philadelphia Flyers, Dillon Dube of the Calgary Flames, Michael McLeod and Cal Foote of the New Jersey Devils and Alex Formenton – who plays in Switzerland – have all been granted indefinite leave. The Globe and Mail is citing unnamed sources in reporting the players are facing charges connected to an alleged group sex assault of a woman in a London hotel room. No charges have been laid.

24 – Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist N. Scott Momaday dies at the age of 89 at his home in New Mexico. Momaday’s debut novel “House Made of Dawn,” is widely credited as the starting point for contemporary Native American literature. Publisher HarperCollins says Momaday had been in failing health.

25 – In a speech as part of the Liberals’ three days of caucus meetings, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says his very first call of the year was to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Trudeau says he told Zelenskyy the Canadian government and most of the parties in the House will continue to stand with him. RD

25 – North Korea says it has conducted the first flight test of a new cruise missile, expanding its military capabilities in the face of deepening tensions with the United States and neighbours.

25 – Two robots named Tarzan and Jane that work with artificial intelligence are processing up to 70 per cent of microbiology samples at St. Paul’s Hospital in Vancouver. Lab automation is not new, but the hospital says WASPLab’s use of A-I is a first for Western Canada.

25 – After a few days of analyzing data, Japan’s space agency reports its first lunar mission did hit the tiny patch of the moon’s surface it was aiming for. But while its pinpoint landing system worked, it looks like the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon, or SLIM, is lying upside down.

25 – Cardinal Gerald Lacroix faces allegations of sexual assault as part of a class-action lawsuit against the Roman Catholic archdiocese of Quebec City. A Montreal law firm is asking Quebec Superior Court to approve amending the list of alleged perpetrators to include Lacroix’s name and that of 14 others.

25 – A judge in Prince Albert, Sask., finds 55-year-old RCMP officer Bernie Herman guilty of a lesser offence of manslaughter in the shooting death of his 26-year-old lover. Herman had pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the 2021 shooting death of Braden Herman.

25 – The U.K. suspends trade negotiations with Canada. Both countries are each accusing the other of not budging on trade agreements, despite both insisting they want a fair deal for each other’s businesses, farmers and workers. London announced the pause in negotiations today after Ottawa decided to not extend two temporary measures put in place after Brexit.

25 – Turkey’s parliament votes in favour of having Sweden join NATO. For over a year, Turkey delayed Sweden’s membership accusing the country of being too lenient toward groups it regards as security threats. Hungary is now the only NATO member that hasn’t given Sweden the green light.

25 – Vancouver is unveiled as the host city for the 2025 Juno Awards. It’s the fifth time the city has hosted Canada’s biggest music bash.

25 – Former New Orleans district attorney Harry Connick Sr., 97, dies peacefully at home surrounded by family. Connick Sr., father to famous singer Harry Connick Jr., was popular as a prosecutor and as a part-time crooner who moonlighted in New Orleans cabarets.

25 – Alabama executes a man with nitrogen gas, putting him to death in a way an American prison has never done before. Officials say Kenneth Smith was pronounced dead at 8:25 p.m. for his role in a 1988 murder-for-hire slaying of a pastor’s wife. The use of nitrogen gas is the first new method used in the U.S. since lethal injection was introduced in 1982.

26 – The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs says it has submitted a new report to governments that addresses safety concerns around searching a Winnipeg-area landfill for the remains of two slain First Nations women. The report says the proposed search could cost $90 million. Grand Chief Cathy Merrick says she expects the findings will expedite the funding required to begin the search and recovery operation for Morgan Harris and Marcedes Myran.

26 – The UN’s top court says it will not throw out South Africa’s case accusing Israel of genocide in Gaza, instead ordering six provisional measures to protect Palestinians in Gaza. The decision by the panel of 17 judges to not toss the case is an interim one. It could take years for the full case brought by South Africa to be considered.

26 – The head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees says it has fired 12 employees and ordered an investigation after Israeli authorities provided him with information that some of its staff members took part in the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas militants. Philippe Lazzarini is calling the allegations shocking and a betrayal of the fundamental values of the United Nations. Canada and the U.S. are temporarily suspending assistance to the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees pending a review of the claims. International Development Minister Ahmed Hussen says Canada will channel humanitarian aid for Palestinians in Gaza through other agencies.

26 – A Mississauga, Ont., man accused of sending lethal substances to people who later took their own lives is now facing 14 first-degree murder charges. The Crown upgraded the charges filed against 58-year-old Kenneth Law and has elected to proceed by direct indictment, which means there will be no preliminary inquiry, and the case will go directly to trial. Police allege Law sold sodium nitrite through several websites, shipping more than 1,200 packages containing the potentially deadly chemical to people in more than 40 countries.

26 – Former U.S. president Donald Trump is ordered to pay US$83.3 million to former advice columnist E. Jean Carroll to settle a defamation case. A jury concluded last year she was sexually abused by Trump in 1996 before he defamed her in 2022. In a statement, Trump calls the verdict “absolutely ridiculous,” and says he will appeal.

26 – After nearly three decades under a moratorium, Fisheries Minister Diane Lebouthillier announces that redfish fishing is set to reopen in Quebec and Atlantic Canada. The minister says Nova Scotia will get the largest portion of the quota.

27 – Britain, Italy and Finland follow Canada and the U.S., along with several other countries in suspending aid to UNRWA, a United Nations agency serving Palestinians, after reports several of its employees may have played a role in the deadly Oct. 7 militant attacks in Israel.

27 – A ghostly shipwreck is drawing a steady stream of admirers to the southwestern tip of Newfoundland. The massive, overturned hull of a seemingly ancient ship has appeared without warning just off the beach in Cape Ray. Neil Burgess, president of the Shipwreck Preservation Society of Newfoundland and Labrador, says the ship was likely built in the 1800s, adding that if its hull is made of oak, it wasn’t built in North America.

28 – Ed Broadbent, the former leader of the federal NDPs, is honoured by generations of political leaders with a state funeral in Ottawa. Flags on all Government of Canada buildings across the country, including the Peace Tower, are flown at half-mast from sunrise to sunset today. Broadbent died Jan. 11 at the age of 87.

28 – Two senior Biden administration officials say U.S. negotiators are making progress on a potential agreement which would pause Israel’s military operations in Gaza. The exchange would see a two month pause in exchange for the release of more than 100 remaining hostages held by Hamas. The officials requested to stay anonymous to discuss the sensitive negotiations. The emerging deal also calls for Israel to allow more humanitarian aid into Gaza.

28 – A drone strike in Jordan kills three U.S. service members and wounds “many” others in an attack President Joe Biden is attributing to Iran-backed militia groups. The attack marks the first targeting of American soldiers in Jordan since Israel’s war on Hamas began in October.

28 – Former NHL player Alex Formenton surrenders to police in London, Ont., in the case of an alleged sex assault of a woman in 2018 involving five players from that year’s world junior hockey roster.

29 – Housing Minister Sean Fraser says the federal government is going to offer colleges and universities low-interest loans to build student housing and will start taking applications this fall. Post-secondary institutions will have access to an existing program that offers developers low-cost financing to build rental apartments, which is being topped up with an additional $15 billion in funding.

29 – Health Minister Mark Holland says Canada is not ready to expand eligibility for medical assistance in dying. Holland says the Liberal government agrees with a final report from a joint parliamentary committee that more time is needed before expanding eligibility to those whose only medical condition is a mental illness. Justice Minister Arif Virani says a plan will be in place before the March 17 expansion deadline.

30 – After suspending funding to the UN agency that helps Palestinians, Canada is instead sending $40 million in aid to other organizations that support people in Gaza. The money is being diverted to the World Food Program, UNICEF, the World Health Organization and the International Committee of the Red Cross.

30 – Some Alberta daycare operators start a series of rolling closures to push for changes to the federal government’s $10-a-day child-care program. Operators in several provinces are threatening to pull out of the system or even close their doors, saying the federal-provincial agreements limit the fees they can charge and don’t include enough support to cover all their costs.

30 – Tony award-winning actress Chita Rivera dies at the age of 91. The dynamic dancer, singer and actress first gained widespread recognition for playing Anita in the original production of “West Side Story” in 1957.

30 – The federal ethics watchdog announces that it does not plan to investigate Prime Minster Justin Trudeau’s recent holiday trip to Jamaica. Konrad von Finkenstein told a House of Commons ethics committee he considers the case closed because the trip came from a friend with whom Trudeau has a “true depth of friendship.”

30 – Jurors start deliberations at the coroner’s inquest into a mass stabbing on James Smith Cree Nation, and in nearby Weldon, in Saskatchewan, in 2022, that killed 11 people and injured another 17. The jury will deliberate recommendations that could help to prevent similar attacks in the future.

30 – Greg Fergus will continue on a Speaker of the House after the House of Commons votes to let him keep his job. The vote comes almost two months after the Conservatives and Bloc Quebecois called for Fergus to resign after he gave a video tribute to the outgoing interim leader of the Ontario Liberals, which was shown at a party event in December. He was wearing his Speaker robes in the video which was recorded in his office, leading opposition MPs to question his impartiality in the House.

30 – Lawyers for three NHL hockey players confirm that their clients have been charged in a 2018 sexual assault case in London, Ont. Dillon Dube, Michael McLeod and Carter Hart were all members of Canada’s world junior hockey team in 2018. Days earlier, the lawyer for former NHL player Alex Formenton confirmed his client had been charged in the case and would plead not guilty.

30 – The president of CBC and Radio-Canada says the broadcaster could pay out bonuses to executives in the midst of it planning to slash 10 per cent of its workforce. Catherine Tait testified before MPs in Ottawa, who questioned her about bonus pay at a time when it’s planning job cuts. Tait told the MPs that bonuses would be paid if the executives achieve their targets.

30 – Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew commits $30 million to expand the province’s school nutrition program. Following through with an election campaign promise made last fall, Kinew says the money will be in place for the next school year.

30 – Ontario Power Generation is moving ahead with its refurbishment plans for the aging Pickering Nuclear Generating Station. Energy Minister Todd Smith says the construction phase will create about 11,000 jobs.

31 – The Ontario government orders municipalities that directly operate child-care centres to do a value-for-money audit of their programs to determine if they could instead be operated by a “third party.” The move is raising concerns about privatization.

31 – A case of old hockey cards uncovered in Regina is being hailed as a treasure trove of the Great One. Jason Simonds from Heritage Auctions went to a home to look at 16 sealed boxes of O-Pee-Chee’s 1979 hockey card collection. He says the boxes could include 25 or more highly coveted Wayne Gretzky rookie cards. Simonds put them up for auction with an estimated value of at least $2 million. The latest bid as of this morning was $1.375-million.

31 – Russia’s Defence Ministry says Russia and Ukraine held a prisoner swap. They exchanged 195 prisoners of war each.

31 – The Alberta government’s liquor wholesaler tells B.C. wineries that if they don’t stop shipping wine directly to Albertans, their wines will no longer be stocked in retail stores. Alberta Liquor, Gaming and Cannabis says it is trying to protect revenue for Alberta retailers and governments.

31 – The final report from the inquiry into why a former soldier in Nova Scotia killed his wife, daughter and mother, then himself in 2017, is released with 25 recommendations. The bottom line is health-care professionals could have done a better job of sharing Lionel Desmond’s complex medical history so that he got the help he needed for post-traumatic stress disorder. The report includes recommendations aimed at improving supports for veterans and their families, strengthening the firearms licensing process and providing support for people dealing with intimate partner violence.

31 – The Canadian Border Services Agency says agents in Manitoba made the largest seizure of illegal narcotics ever seen in the Prairies. The agency says more than $50-million worth of suspected methamphetamine was seized at the Boissevain, Man., border entry point on Jan. 14.

31 – The Transportation Safety Board of Canada says a lack of planning among Montreal fire department officials contributed to the capsizing of a rescue boat in the St. Lawrence River that left a firefighter dead. A TSB report on the October 2021 incident says the firefighters who were dispatched to the Lachine Rapids off the southern tip of Montreal Island to pull a pleasure vessel from the water didn’t have an action plan. It also identifies deficiencies within the fire department, even if the shortfalls didn’t contribute to the death of firefighter Pierre Lacroix.

31 – Alberta becomes the latest province to announce parental consent will be required for students looking to change their names or pronouns at school. Premier Danielle Smith says parental consent will be required for those students aged 15 and under who want to make such changes at school. She says while students aged 16 and 17 will not need consent, their parents will need to be notified. Smith made the announced changes on the social media platform X. She also announced limitations on gender affirmation surgeries and hormone treatment for teens in Alberta as well as policy changes for transgender athletes.

31 – Canada’s largest school board approves a revision to its school calendar so students can stay home on the day a rare solar eclipse will chart a course through parts of Canada. After it approved the change at its meeting, the Toronto District School Board joined at least seven other Ontario school boards, as well as two school service centres in Quebec, which have already notified parents classes are cancelled on April 8 in preparation for the celestial event.

The Canadian Press