LOCAL
Dr. Henry Morgantaler, who led the abortion movement in Canada, has died at age 90. He died a peaceful death in his Toronto home, surrounded by family. [CBC]
Mayor Rob Ford walked out of a press conference after reporters asked him questions related to crack. The afternoon news conference came shortly after accusations surfaced that his office ordered that email and phone records of three former senior staffers be destroyed. [National Post]
RioCan, Canada’s largest real estate investment trust, has submitted plans to the city to develop a Wal-Mart just outside Kensington Market. Neighbourhood residents and councillors are already fuming. [Toronto Star]
NATIONAL
An al-Qaeda letter found in an abandoned building in Mali indicates that Canada paid the terrorist group $1.1-million for the release of kidnapped diplomats Richard Fowler and Louis Guay in 2009. Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird denied it, saying, “our government…does not negotiate with terrorists.” [CBC]
Canada has ended all trade with Iran out of concern about the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program and their lack of meaningful negotiations. The ban on all imports and exports comes nine months after Ottawa severed diplomatic relations with Iran. [National Post]
Omar Khadr has been moved to a maximum security prison in Edmonton after a tumultuous eight months in custody in Ontario’s Millhaven prison. He was largely segregated and cut off from other inmates in the Kingston area penitentiary after his life was threatened by another inmate only three weeks after transferring from Gauntanamo Bay. [Toronto Star]
INTERNATIONAL
Michele Bachmann, a Tea Party favourite, announced she will not run for another term in the U.S. House. She claims this decision has nothing to do with the ongoing investigation over finances related to her unsuccesful run as Republican presidential nomination. [National Post]
A suspected American drone strike has killed the deputy leader of the Pakistani Taliban, Pakistani officials and militants said. If confirmed, it would be a serious blow to an insurgency that has killed thousands in Pakistan and has encouraged Islamist attacks against the U.S. [The New York Times]
An Israeli government committee approved a proposal to phase out exemption from military service for ultra-Orthodox Jewish men. The proposal has yet to gain the approval of either the cabinet and th Parliament, and may yet be amended before becoming law. [The New York Times]
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