Elyas Zabihullah and his wife arrange the furniture in their newly rented home in downtown Regina.
It’s been about two months since they moved to Canada.
“It’s my fourth time starting my life from scratch,” Zabihullah told CTVNews.ca. “I hope this time it will be permanent.”
Zabihullah was 16 years old when he left Afghanistan for Ukraine in 2000 after the Taliban, during their first regime, killed his aunt and forced other family members to leave their homes.
“The situation was really bad. My father asked me to leave the country otherwise I wouldn’t survive,” added Zabihullah.
In 2014, when the situation got worse in Ukraine over the protests to suspend the signing of an association agreement with the European Union, Zabihullah left his home and belongings in Ukraine and went back to Afghanistan.
Years later in 2021, when the Taliban retook power in Afghanistan, Zabihullah—who was now a father—had to flee once again, leaving everything behind.
“When the war intensified in Kabul, I decided to leave the country and go back to Ukraine. Because I now had bigger responsibilities: my wife and my son,” Zabihullah recalled.
The 39-year-old Afghan, who also holds a Ukrainian passport, had to leave Ukraine after Russia’s invasion more than a year ago. But this time compared with 2014, the situation in Ukraine was much more dire.
“It was an early morning in Kyiv when the war started. My wife woke me up and said that she had seen rockets had landed close to their home,” recalled Zabihullah. “I did not believe it at first, but minutes later I saw the rockets with my own eyes.”
A long, bitter pause engulfed the house after Zabihullah and his family realized war has been following them wherever they go.
After calling some of his friends, the Afghan-Ukrainian man decided to leave the house in order to save everybody’s lives.
“I ran from one war to save my family, but now have to run again,” said Zabihullah.
Since the war erupted in Ukraine last February, over 13 million people have been displaced inside and outside of Ukraine. Of this number, over 197,000 people came to Canada.
“On the way leaving Kyiv, the armoured vehicles and tanks were going to Kyiv and I saw several rockets hit the tanks. Thousands of people were on the streets, and everyone was leaving.”
Together with his wife and four-year-old son, Zabihullah had to walk vast distances to cross the border into Poland. However, when trying to cross into the country, Zabihullah had to separate himself from his wife and son.
After weeks in Poland, Zabihullah learned that his wife and son made it to Australia. Soon, he started contacting refugee volunteers to reunite him with his family.
It was a cold, rainy day when Zabihullah reunited with his wife and son in Frankfurt, Germany. After nine months in the country, they came to Canada.
Finally, Zabihullah and his family found a place to call home.
Although he says he is happy and at peace in Regina, he is worried about their future as they’re here with a temporary work visa.
“I request the Canadian government to help me and grant me permanent residence. No energy left to go to another country and start again,” Zabihullah said.
Reporting for this story was paid for through The Afghan Journalists in Residence Project funded by Meta.
MONTREAL – One expert says entry-level pay under the tentative deal between Air Canada and its pilots could be a stumbling block ahead of a union vote on the agreement.
Under their current contract, pilots earn far less in their first four years at the company before enjoying a big wage increase starting in year five.
The Air Line Pilots Association had been pushing to scrap the so-called “fixed rate” provision entirely.
But according to a copy of the contract summary obtained by The Canadian Press, the proposed deal announced Sunday would merely cut the four-year period of lower pay to two years.
John Gradek, who teaches aviation management at McGill University, says as many as 2,000 of Air Canada’s roughly 5,200 active pilots may earn entry-level wages following a recent hiring surge.
After the airline averted a strike this week, Gradek says the failure to ditch the pay grade restrictions could prompt pushback from rank-and-file flight crew and jeopardize the deal, which is up for a vote next month.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 18, 2024.
ROME (AP) — Salvatore “Totò” Schillaci, the Italy striker who was top scorer at its home World Cup in 1990, has died. He was 59.
Schillaci had been hospitalized in Palermo following treatment for colon cancer.
The Palermo Civico hospital said in a statement that Schillacci died on Wednesday morning after being admitted 11 days ago.
Schillaci scored six goals for Italy during the 1990 World Cup. He came on as a substitute during Italy’s opener against Austria, scored in a 1-0 victory, and went on to earn the Golden Boot awarded to the tournament’s top scorer. He only scored one other goal for Italy in his career.
Italian soccer federation president Gabriele Gravina announced that a minute of silence would be held in memory of Schillaci before all games in the country for the rest of the week.
“The uncontrollable celebrations, in which his face was the symbol of shared joy, will remain forever part of Italian soccer (history),” Gravina said. “Totò was a great player, a symbol of tenacious desire and redemption. … His soccer was full of passion. And that fearless spirit made everyone appreciate him and will make him immortal.”
Schillaci also won the Golden Ball award at the 1990 World Cup as the tournament’s top player ahead of Lothar Matthaus and Diego Maradona.
Schillaci played for Messina, Juventus, Inter Milan and Japanese team Jubilo Iwata during his club career.
“You made an entire nation dream during the Magical Nights of Italia ’90,” Inter said on its social media channels.
West Germany won the 1990 World Cup, beating Argentina in the final, while Italy beat England for third place with a winning penalty kick from Schillaci.
Roberto Baggio, who scored Italy’s opening goal in the third-place match, wrote on Instagram, “Ciao my dear friend.”
Having been born and raised in Palermo, the Palermo soccer team announced that it would hold a public viewing of Schillaci at its Renzo Barbera stadium ahead of the funeral, the Gazzetta dello Sport reported.
French soccer player Wissam Ben Yedder will stay free ahead of his trial on charges of sexual assault while intoxicated, one of his lawyers told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
Marie Roumiantseva said Ben Yedder will remain under strict judicial supervision after a woman filed a lawsuit for sexual assault earlier this month.
The 34-year-old Ben Yedder, a prolific striker in the French league, was briefly detained then released after the alleged incident in his car on the French Riviera. Ben Yedder had been stopped by police after he first refused to do so. He was then put in a jail cell.
After he was summoned to appear in court on Oct. 15 and placed under judicial supervision, the Nice prosecutor’s office appealed the decision not to remand the player in custody. The investigative chamber of the Court of Appeal of Aix-en-Provence did not grant this request and kept Ben Yedder under judicial supervision.
Ben Yedder attended a hearing Tuesday during which he offered to go to rehab. He has admitted he drove while under the influence of alcohol but has denied any sexual assault.
In a separate legal case last year, Ben Yedder was charged with “rape, attempted rape and sexual assault” over another alleged incident in the south of France.
Ben Yedder has been without a club since his contract with Monaco expired at the end of last season.
