Immigration levels too high in Canada, more Canadians are saying: survey

REHOBOTH BEACH, Del. (AP) — The Israeli strike that killed Hezbollah’s Hassan Nasrallah was a “measure of justice” for victims of a four-decade “reign of terror,” President Joe Biden said Saturday.

The comments came after Lebanon’s Hezbollah group confirmed earlier Saturday that Nasrallah, one of the group’s founders, was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut the previous day.

Biden noted that the operation to take out Nasrallah took place in the broader context of the conflict that began with Hamas’ massacre of Israelis on Oct. 7, 2023.

“Nasrallah, the next day, made the fateful decision to join hands with Hamas and open what he called a ‘northern front’ against Israel,” Biden said in a statement.

He also noted that Hezbollah under Nasrallah’s watch has been responsible for the deaths of thousands of Americans, Israelis and Lebanese.

Hezbollah attacks against U.S. interests include the truck bombing of the U.S. Embassy and multinational force barracks in Beirut in 1983 and the kidnapping of the Central Intelligence Agency chief of station in Beirut, who died while held captive. The U.S. said Hezbollah leaders armed and trained militias that carried out attacks on American forces during the war in Iraq.

The White House sees the death of Nasrallah as a huge blow to the group. At the same time, the administration has sought to tread carefully as it has tried to contain Israel ‘s war with Hamas, which, like Hezbollah, is backed by Iran, from exploding into an all-out regional conflict.

The White House and Pentagon were quick on Friday, shortly after the strike, to say publicly that Israel offered it no forewarning of the operation.

“President Biden and I do not want to see conflict in the Middle East escalate into a broader regional war,” Vice President Kamala Harris said in a statement Saturday that echoed Biden’s description of a “measure of justice.” She added, “Diplomacy remains the best path forward to protect civilians and achieve lasting stability in the region.”

The confirmation of Nasrallah’s death comes during a week that began with Biden’s top national security aides working on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly to build support for a 21-day Israel-Hezbollah cease-fire that they hoped might also breathe new life into stalled efforts to secure a truce in Gaza.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a defiant speech Friday to the United Nations, vowing to keep up operations against Hezbollah until tens of thousands of Israeli citizens displaced by rocket attacks can return home. Shortly after, Israel carried out the strike killing Nasrallah.

Biden reiterated on Saturday that he wants to see cease-fires both in Gaza and between Israel and Hezbollah.

“It is time for these deals to close, for the threats to Israel to be removed, and for the broader Middle East region to gain greater stability,” Biden said.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian accused the United States of supporting the killing that took out Nasrallah and dozens of others.

“The world community will not forget that the order of the terrorist strike was issued from New York and the Americans cannot absolve themselves from complicity with the Zionists,” Pezeshkian was quoted as saying in a statement read on Iranian state television.

The State Department on Saturday ordered the departure of the families of U.S. diplomats who are not employed by the embassy in Beirut and authorized the departure of those who are, as well as nonessential employees because of “the volatile and unpredictable security situation” in Lebanon’s capital.

The State Department has previously advised American citizens to consider leaving Lebanon and reiterated its warning against all travel to the country.

“Due to the increased volatility following airstrikes within Beirut and the volatile and unpredictable security situation throughout Lebanon, the U.S. Embassy urges U.S. citizens to depart Lebanon while commercial options still remain available,” the department said in a statement Saturday.

The State Department routinely orders or authorizes the departure of nonessential embassy staffers and the families of diplomats when security conditions deteriorate in the country where they are posted.

An ordered departure is not technically an evacuation but does require those affected to leave. An authorized departure allows those affected to leave the country voluntarily at government expense.

Biden, who was spending the weekend at his vacation home in Delaware, and Harris, who was campaigning in California, held a call with national security aides on Saturday to discuss the situation in the Middle East.

In a brief exchange with reporters as he left church on Saturday, Biden did not directly respond to questions about the conflict potentially escalating further.

“It’s time for a cease-fire,” he said.

The president on Friday directed the Pentagon to assess and adjust as necessary the U.S. force posture in the region to enhance deterrence, ensure force protection and support the full range of U.S. objectives.

He called for the assessment after the Pentagon earlier in the week announced it was sending an unspecified number of additional U.S. troops to the region because of rising tensions.

TORONTO – Scott Cresswell was behind the wheel of an unmarked white police truck as he drove across the Greater Toronto Area looking for compounds that might be used to hide stolen vehicles.

The York Regional Police detective entered a crowded commercial zone in Mississauga, Ont., where dozens of cars were parked, scanning for suspicious signs. He then drove to a neighbourhood outside the Halton Hills region, where a large, isolated home sat near farmland, surrounded by a fenced yard.

After inspecting the property from the outside, Cresswell said he had strong reason to suspect it could be a “cool off” site where stolen vehicles are kept for a few days to ensure they aren’t being tracked.

“That is the spot,” Creswell told his colleague over the phone. “This is a dynamite spot.”

The country has an auto theft problem so severe the Insurance Bureau of Canada has called it a “national crisis.” The issue is particularly acute in the Greater Toronto Area, where police forces have been refocusing efforts on tackling the situation.

In York Region, made up of nine communities north of Toronto, Cresswell’s unit of 10 officers is on the front lines of attempts to combat auto theft. The unit is tasked with surveillance, tracking and arresting suspects. The team also aims to return stolen vehicles to their owners.

While driving from site to site on a surveillance mission, Cresswell said dozens of criminal groups are involved in auto theft across southwestern Ontario, motivated by what he called a massive supply of high-end vehicles parked on easily accessible driveways.

“The issue is that the cars are super valuable,” he said. “They’re very easy to steal, they’re in high demand overseas.”

That creates a “perfect situation” for thieves, the detective said, particularly as stolen vehicles can fairly easily be taken to the Port of Montreal and shipped out of the country.

Most stolen cars head to countries in Africa and the Middle East, where Toyotas and Hondas as well as luxury brands such as Lexus and Range Rovers are in demand, Cresswell said. Electric vehicles often aren’t targeted because of a lack of charging infrastructure in those countries. A small percentage are disguised as new cars and resold in Canada, he said.

More than 70,000 private vehicles were stolen across Canada last year, with more than 30,000 taken in Ontario, according to the Équité Association, an anti-crime organization funded by insurance companies.

Those statistics have been noticed internationally: in a report published earlier this year, Interpol said Canada was among the top 10 worst countries out of 137 for stolen vehicles, based on data collected between February and May.

The overall picture might be looking slightly better this year –the first six months of 2024 saw a decline of 17 per cent in auto theft over the same period in 2023, according to the Équité Association.

But a new problem has emerged.

“There has been a decrease in overall car theft,” Cresswell said. “But there has been an uptick … in carjackings as well as overnight break-and-enters for car keys.”

Last month, York Region’s police chief said the force had seen 64 violent carjackings this year, a surge of 106 per cent over the same period in 2023 and a 400 per cent jump compared to 2019.

The force announced it would form a task force specifically to combat carjackings.

In Toronto, police said in June that there had been 149 carjackings, a hike of 86 per cent compared to the year before.

Mark Mendelson, a former police officer who now runs a consulting firm in Toronto, said the rise in carjackings is worrying because those are far more “traumatic.”

“When you’re stealing a car from somebody’s driveway at four in the morning, yes, it’s a violation to the victims but there was no threat of violence,” he said.

“When you are the victim of physical violence, like a robbery in an intersection or a shopping mall parking lot, it’s very, very different.”

Auto theft has surged dramatically since the COVID-19 pandemic hit, with thieves donning masks and hoodies and using devices to clone key fobs before breaking into parked cars and driving off.

Car owners are now trying to safeguard their vehicles with steering wheel locks, Faraday pouches for their keys to hide fob signals and air tags to track vehicles.

The barriers might have prompted thieves to resort to more brazen attempts, Mendelson said.

“They realized that sometimes the simplest method is to follow the vehicle that they wanted, wait until they got to a red light or a stop sign … where people are not on guard,” he said. “The next thing you know people were running up to the vehicles armed with knives and firearms.”

A multipronged approach involving all levels of government, law enforcement and auto manufacturers is needed to address the issue, Mendelson said.

The federal government convened an auto theft summit in February, urging closer collaboration between law enforcement, border services, the insurance industry and automakers.

The Insurance Bureau of Canada has said the cost of insurance claims for stolen vehicles surpassed $1.5 billion in 2023, which was 20 per cent more than 2022.

The situation is making it more expensive for car owners to insure their vehicles. In Ontario, the bureau estimates auto theft adds around $130 to the average annual premium.

“If you drive one of the vehicles on the high theft list, there is a chance you’re going to be paying a little bit extra for your insurance,” said Morgan Roberts, vice-president of insurance at Ratehub.ca.

The incredible pace of technological advances has contributed to the evolution of car thefts, said Cresswell, the York Region detective.

“They could still break into the car, reprogram a key, but it would take them 10 minutes, seven minutes,” he said about theft in the past. “Now they do it in one minute.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 28, 2024.

RED DEER, ALBERTA, CANADA – A Calgary city councillor’s plea to have permanent residents be given the right to vote in municipal elections, an idea long dismissed by Premier Danielle Smith as unconstitutional, has been defeated.

Coun. Courtney Walcott made his case to fellow municipal officials from across the province this week during the Alberta Municipalities annual conference.

In an emotional and lengthy debate, mayors and councillors from municipalities big and small implored one other to reconsider who exactly they represent in office.

Walcott’s resolution needed a majority to pass but only got about 42 per cent support in the end — 46 votes short.

If the votes were in his favour, Alberta Municipalities, the organization that represents villages, towns, and cities throughout the province, would have adopted the motion and lobbied the provincial government to make the necessary changes to the Local Authorities Election Act.

Those with permanent residency status hold many of the same privileges as Canadian citizens — individuals can work, own property, pay taxes and more — but they can’t vote in elections or obtain a Canadian passport.

The debate on Walcott’s proposal Thursday was the longest of all 21 resolutions up for discussion as officials from over a dozen municipalities weighed in.

Concerns about “watering down” the privileges of citizenship were expressed, a passport was used as an argumentative prop and tears were shed.

Barrhead, Alta., town councillor Rod Klumph argued that giving permanent residents the ability to vote in municipal elections would “diminish the right of Canadians to rule themselves.”

“The people who have permanent residency also retain their citizenship in the country they left, and that’s what concerns me,” he said.

Edmonton Mayor Amarjeet Sohi, who is also a former member of Parliament, disagreed with the implication that permanent residents aren’t engaged or loyal to Canada.

“It took me about 10 years to gain citizenship because of various reasons … but I have been loyal to this country from the day I landed here,” said Sohi.

“I volunteered for politicians. I made donations to politicians. I went door to door to convince Canadian citizens to vote for a politician. But as a permanent resident for 10 years while I was doing that, I was not able to have my right to vote.”

Sam Munckhof-Swain, a councillor in Beaumont, Alta., echoed Sohi, saying his path to citizenship was also prolonged.

“That took years, and all that time I paid taxes in my municipality, and I never had a chance to vote for the people who I wanted to make my community better,” said Munckhof-Swain.

“It’s not taking anything away from you. It’s giving more rights to people and making our communities more welcoming.”

When it was his turn to speak, Penhold, Alta. town councillor Cam Galisky held up a Canadian passport and said it was one of two “sacred” privileges of being a citizen.

“The other most sacred and most fought over was the right for the citizens to control their own destiny through their own votes,” Galisky said.

“This will diminish that sacred right.”

Edmonton city councillor Aaron Paquette, who is Métis, said through tears that Indigenous people were long denied the right to vote in Canadian elections, and he didn’t want to see history continue to repeat itself by denying permanent residents that same right.

“It wasn’t until the 1960s that Indigenous people in Canada were finally granted the full right to vote without having to give up our identity,” Paquette said. “There were people at that time who felt that granting Indigenous people the right to vote would water down or dilute that sacred responsibility.

“They were wrong, and they could not have been more wrong.”

Other personal connections to the issue were shared during debate to argue both for and against the resolution,

Charis Aguirre, the mayor of Clyde, Alta., said she was married to a permanent resident, but she was against the proposal.

Airdrie, Alta., councillor Heather Spearman cited her stepmother, and said that since her stepmother’s tax money was just as valuable as a Canadian citizen’s, she should have the right to vote on how it’s spent.

The debate, to some extent, was already a moot point.

In the spring, Smith rejected the idea shortly after Calgary city council approved the resolution for consideration at the Alberta Municipalities conference.

She said on social media at the time that while non-Canadian citizens are welcome to work and live in Alberta, only citizens should have the right to vote.

“That’s how it works,” she said.

Walcott said Thursday that he knew his resolution would generate a hearty discussion.

“I knew that the discussion would be about citizenship on (a) grander scale, but I was hoping that the nuance of local government would win out,” he said.

“We are not talking about provincial governments. We are not talking about the federal government. We’re talking about your neighbours.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 28, 2024.