Don MacLean sworn in as first permanent Black chief for Halifax police

Montreal police arrested three people, including two teenagers, after gunshots were fired Tuesday night at a building owned by a man with two properties targeted by deadly fires.

Police say gunfire hit the building in Old Montreal owned by Emile Benamor, the man who owns two other buildings in the district that were targeted since 2023 by alleged arson, leading to the deaths of nine people.

Benamor owns the Notre-Dame Street East building that went up in flames last Friday, claiming the lives of a mother and daughter from France.

And he is the owner of a heritage property on nearby Place D’Youville that was allegedly set on fire in March 2023, leading to the deaths of seven people.

After the building on Berri Street was hit by gunfire, police arrested three suspects — aged 17, 19 and 20 — in a small white truck that was spotted by witnesses leaving the scene. A firearm was found inside the truck.

A lawyer who represents Benamor did not return a message today, and police wouldn’t say if there are any links between the arrests and the two fires.

There were no injuries stemming from the shooting, which occurred just before midnight and left shell casings scattered on the ground.

Two suspects are expected to appear in Quebec court today and the minor will appear in youth court. Charges recommended by police include discharging a firearm, unauthorized possession of a firearm, conspiracy and breach of probation and conditions.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 9, 2024.

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OTTAWA – Canada is adding another $15 million to its humanitarian aid package for Lebanon after an escalation in the conflict between Israel and the Lebanon-based militant group Hezbollah.

International Development Minister Ahmed Hussen says the new money will help Canadian and international aid groups provide food, water, emergency health care and other assistance in Lebanon, though the exact allocations are yet to be determined.

The funding comes on top of $10 million in aid announced by Hussen at the end of September.

He says $6 million of the total will be split between the Red Cross and the Humanitarian Coalition to match up to $3 million each in donations made to their individual Lebanon aid campaigns.

As well, $4 million will be split between the UN relief agency for Palestinian refugees and the World Food Program.

Global Affairs Canada says more than 1,150 Canadians, permanent residents and their immediate family members have now left Lebanon on flights chartered by the government.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 9, 2024.

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WARE, England (AP) — The Chicago Bears remain focused on the city’s lakefront as the location for a nearly $5 billion stadium development project, team president Kevin Warren said Wednesday.

Warren held a news conference at the team’s hotel outside London ahead of Chicago’s game on Sunday against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

A proposal unveiled earlier this year calls for an enclosed stadium next door to their current home at Soldier Field as part of a major project that would transform the lakefront. The Bears are asking for public funding to help make it happen.

The Bears also own property in Arlington Heights, but Warren maintained that the preference is Chicago.

“That Museum Campus is fantastic, and especially with the backdrop of Chicago and the architecture of that city,” he said. “That remains our focus at this point in time.”

The plan calls for $3.2 billion for the new stadium plus $1.5 billion in infrastructure, potentially including a publicly owned hotel.

“The status is we’re continuing to make progress. We stay focused still to be able to be in the ground, start construction sometime in 2025,” Warren said. “We’re having regular meetings with key business leaders, key politicians, just staying focused and on course.

“This is a long journey. This takes time,” he added. “I’ve been there before. We’re exactly where I thought we would be at this point in time.”

Warren, the team’s president and CEO, was asked if the Chicago site is “imminent or inevitable” and he responded: “I don’t know (about) saying imminent or inevitable. I think it’s the best site as of now.”

The proposal calls for just over $2 billion from the Bears, $300 million from an NFL loan and $900 million in bonds from the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority.

The next step, Warren said, is to “get approval from a political standpoint.”

Warren noted that the plans for a new building will be generic enough to fit more than one site.

“You want to build a stadium where it really becomes agnostic from a location standpoint, because it takes so much time from a planning standpoint,” he said.

In his previous leadership role with the Minnesota Vikings, Warren oversaw plans and development of U.S. Bank Stadium.

“Anything that’s great in life, anything that lasts 50 years, takes a lot of energy and effort,” he said Wednesday.

“I’m confident in the political leadership, the business leadership, our fan base, that we’ll be able to figure this out,” he added. “It will become a crown jewel for the National Football League.”

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