Ottawa Observations: Tuesday-Wednesday, December 19-20, 2023

Our compilation of some of the stories of note from the day, reviewing the political developments from the Federal scene for Tuesday-Wednesday December 19-20, 2023

Hamas/Israel/Gaza 

UN Security Council again delays vote on Gaza aid resolution amid talks on wording to avoid US veto

Antisemitism should be treated as a significant threat to national security 

Teen boy accused of anti-Jewish terror plot appears in court

As US, UK, and EU sanction violent Israeli settlers, Canada hangs back

Killings of Palestinian children are soaring in the West Bank. Advocates say it happens with impunity

A ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war won't bring peace 

Israel uncovers major Hamas command centre in Gaza City as cease-fire talks gain momentum

EMBARRASING': Hamas thanks Liberal government for ceasefire support 

Jewish doctors told to watch what they say on social media

Forget intifada, only thing 'progressives' should globalize is liberal democracy 

Weak political will allowing anti-Semitism to rise in Montreal 

Protests out of control, time for police and political action 

Hamas thanks Canada for backing ceasefire in Gaza: 'We welcome these developments' 

Director of Gaza hospital says clinics were used by Hamas fighters  

Canadian police enabling antisemitic hate - someone's going to get killed 

I returned to Israel to find a nation in shell-shock

The unwritten and mostly effective, rules of protesting in Canada 

Ottawa youth terrorism case included chemical used in homemade explosives: RCMP

Hamas leader in Egypt amid intensive talks on new Gaza ceasefire 

Trudeau says antisemitism rise is 'terrifying' after teen terror charges

Ukraine/Russia War           

Ukraine not on cusp of losing war with Russia, Zelenskyy says

Why Ukraine's counteroffensive has stalled 

The West cannot afford to allow Russia to win its war against Ukraine 

Globe and Mail

Global Affairs unit ran afoul of Vienna Convention, national-security watchdog review finds

Canada's health care system overwhelmed with steep rise in respiratory viruses 

Number of CRA staff fired for taking CERB climbs to 185

Regulator denied Trans Mountain variance request due to pipeline safety concerns 

Auto industry wins concessions on hybrid vehicles under Canada's zero-emissions regulations 

Of all top-heavy Liberal climate policies, electric-vehicle mandate is the worst 

Danielle Smith won't let old resentments be forgot 

Is a Liberal resurgence possible under Trudeau?

CBC boss must reveal and justify decision on executive bonuses, minister says 

New Liberal ads in Prairie ridings target Conservatives over Ukraine trade deal 

Pharmacare not the top health priority for most Canadians, survey suggests 

Freeland or Carney more popular choices for Liberal leader than Trudeau, survey finds

Bombardier says it won't contest Ottawa's sole-source deal on new Boeing military planes  

BC drafted a bold housing blueprint. The rest of Canada should copy it 

As BC's chief coroner retires in frustration, we should all lament the province's drug crisis response

CBC

Trudeau says he's sensed a 'tonal shift' from India since US reported alleged murder plot  

Pierre Poilievre voted CP's 2023 Newsmaker of the Year 

India will examine any information on pilot to kill Sikh separatist in US, Modi, says 

Olympic medallist among 3 new senators appointed by Trudeau 

Canada lays out plan to phase out sales of gas powered cars, trucks by 2035

Canada has fired 185 employees for 'inappropriately' claiming pandemic CERB benefits 

Sweden set to join Canadian-led brigade in Latvia once roadblocks to NATO membership end

Canada's inflation rate holds steady at 3.1%

Canada needs hundreds off thousands of public EV charging ports. Who is going to build them?

PM Trudeau gives Poilievre credit for tapping into Canadians' concerns about affordability  

Jody Thomas, PM's national security adviser, set to retire in the new year 

Canadian military buying armed drones for $2.49B

Turkey's Erdogan links Canada's drone embargo to Sweden NATO bid 

Toronto/Vancouver Star

Toronto to open 240 bed respite centre at Exhibition Place as hundreds turned away from shelters 

'Lost Canadians' win court battle to reclaim citizenship rights

Justin Trudeau fears Pierre Poilievre is bringing Trump-style politics to Canada

How Olivia Chow manages to confound both critics and supporters - and get things done 

Toronto Police make dramatic arrest downtown in gunpoint abduction, stolen truck 

Court certifies class action alleging decades of 'systemic' anti-Black racism inside Canadian prisons

'Woke' tops list for most searched-for definition by Canadians in 2023

One thing Doug Ford, Bonnie Crombie and Marit Stiles agree on? Tis the season for holiday cards

Bonnie Crombie ridicules Doug Ford's 'government driving in reverse'

Mortgage rates are finally dropping as five-year rates fall below 5%

Intelligence watchdog's delayed report says Global Affairs program risks blowback

Is that Justin Trudeau buying batteries in Canadian Tire?

Prince Edward Island second province to sign health-care funding deal with Ottawa 

Teachers in Ontario's French-language public school system to hold strike vote 

Toronto Sun

Yonge-Dundas Square chair resigns over renaming of landmark: Report 

VIA Rail terrorist blames 'unfit' co-accused for unfair trial 

Food hard to come by for some this Christas in Freeland's riding

Off duty cop, security guards 'pepper sprayed' during jewellery store heist 

Police track down stolen U-Haul after alleged gunpoint abduction 

Car chase, one nabbed for alleged stabbing of off duty cop

Poilievre says Trudeau's electric car policy amounts to a 'car tax'

Reading and math scores plummet after COVID school closure 

Another costly Liberal solution to a non-existent problem

Liberal plan to phase out gas powered-vehicles needs jolt of reality 

Canada has added more than 1 million people and counting in 2023, its unsustainable 

'Warm and fuzzy' He should be ashamed 

National Post

Freedom Convoy trucks showed Ottawa is 'authoritarian' US presidential hopeful says

Whoops! 'Sankofa Square' comes with a slave trade connection of its own 

Fossil fuels aren't going anywhere, we benefit too much from them 

Army stops promoting Conservative Party material online after receiving complaint 

CRA has fired 185 employees who illegally received CERB while working at tax agency

'There may be more': Alberta's Danielle Smith on the fights she'll take to Trudeau in 2024

Rents would be tapering off if not for high immigration, hints BoC governor

Calgary mayor Jyoti Gondek's approval rating reaches historic low: poll 

Liberals go on attack after Pierre Poilievre interview by Rex Murphy: 'He does not have a plan'

Ontario mail-order cannabis is a government monopoly, and licensed retailers want in

New  net-zero rules for automakers will boost companies who build elsewhere, says expert 

Pierre Poilievre voted CP's Newsmaker of the Year 

Global          

Toyota, Lexus recall nearly 100K vehicles in Canada due to airbag issue

Cutting rates too soon could spur housing market 'rebound': Bank of Canada 

Canadian parents having 'sleepless' nights amid rising cost of living: poll

Metro says Loblaw conspired to implicate it in bread price fixing scheme  

Buying an electric car? What to know about costs, logistics of at-home charging 

Canada's population booms by 430K over 3 months. What's behind the spike?

Quebec, Inuit to reopen self-government negotiations in new year 

Federal Conservatives successfully take a page out of Liberals' 2-15 ad campaign

Surgery wait times bigger health priority for Canadians than pharmacare: poll

Investment deal sends stockpiled minerals from NWT rare earths mine to China

Canada lays out road map for electric vehicle key 2035 targets 

Quebec delays January school exams as teachers' strike continues 

Canadian MPs take Christmas themed jabs ahead of the holidays 

Woman, 72, chases nude man from her Vancouver home 

BC woman dies after 14 hour hospital wait, family wants someone 'held accountable' 

Health minister defends film shoot at Peace Arch Hospital 

Ranger concerns become ammunition in Vancouver Park Board debate  

When police fail, this First Nations tracker steps in: 'I'm searching for our people'

BC teen waiting 7 years gets surgery cancelled again just hours before time slot 

Langley RCMP need help identifying senior in critical condition after Monday crash 

Fee inflation pushing many kids out of sports, BC non profit warns 

New surgeons lead renewal of cardiac care at BC Children's Hospital 

Hundreds of overseas doctors now working in BC family medicine, Dix says 

84 deer killed on Sidney Island in controversial eradication program

Vancouver Island woman accused of forging Id to apply for nursing jobs   

Protracted drought leaves hydro-power dependent BC importing electricity 

Miscellaneous            

So How did Ken Sim do? ABC Vancouver, One year in

The long, slow path to Vancouver's 10 tiny homes 

BC doesn't know how kids with Dyslexia are doing in School 

Transportation Secrecy Board? Federal Investigator slow to release Lytton Docs 

John Rustad's Big Plans for 2024 

The online news act is in force. How we got here, what's next