Close to 30,000 people have fled so far due to fighting in the country
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CONTENT WARNING: This story contains information about violence and death. Consider reading it with a trusted adult. It’s common to have an emotional reaction to the news.
Since April 15, two opposing sides have been in conflict in Sudan.
Sudan is a large country in northeastern Africa, with a population of about 45 million people.
On April 23, the Canadian government announced it was pulling its workers out of the country.
More than 1,600 Canadians remain in Sudan as food runs low and a crisis unfolds.
Learn why there is so much unrest in Sudan. ⬇️ ⬇️ ⬇️
The Canadian government is pulling its representatives out of Sudan and stopping their work in the country.
On April 23, Canadian diplomats were evacuated from Sudan, a country in northeastern Africa, because of concerns about safety.
This evacuation is the latest news in the ongoing conflict in Sudan, where a power struggle between two military leaders has caused serious violence and unrest to spread over the last 10 days.
The situation in Sudan
In Sudan’s capital Khartoum and other nearby cities, millions of people are without power, internet, phone services and are trapped in their homes.
Graphic design by Philip Street/CBC
This is while explosions, gunfire and conflict erupt in the streets.
Much of Khartoum and the surrounding areas are running low on food supplies and hospitals are struggling to keep up with people’s needs.
Close to 30,000 people have fled fighting in the country to neighbouring countries such as Egypt and Chad.
This building in Khartoum, Sudan, was damaged by the fighting. (Image credit: AFP/Getty Images)
It’s believed there are nearly 1,600 Canadians in Sudan, according to Global Affairs Canada. That number is likely higher, according to a former Canadian diplomat who worked in Sudan.
Why is this happening?
Sudan is home to more than 45 million people. Throughout its history, the country has often been under military control.
The current violence is because two Sudanese armies and their leaders are battling for victory and control over the country.
The two leaders are: General Abdel Fattah al-Burhanand and General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo.
Fattah al-Burhan has been in control of the country’s army since 2019.
Hamdan Dagalo is the leader of an unofficial army called the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, left, and General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo in Sudan at separate events in June 2019. (Image credit: Yasuyoshi Chiba and Ashraf Shazly/Getty Images)
More than 420 people, including 264 civilians, have been killed and more than 3,700 have been wounded in the fighting between the two sides, according to The Associated Press on April 24.
This current battle follows years of unrest, conflict and a food crisis in the country.
What is Canada doing?
Global Affairs Canada issued a statement on April 23 after pulling its workers out of the country.
It urged both sides to agree to a ceasefire, meaning to stop all battles for power, and instead talk about ways to create a “lasting peace.”
“Canada remains committed to supporting the people of Sudan in their desire to secure a democratic future and a peaceful transition to a civilian-led government,” the statement read.
In Toronto, members of the Sudanese Canadian community spoke out over the weekend, calling on the federal government to “do more” to help people trapped in Sudan.
Some Sudanese Canadians gathered at Nathan Phillips Square in Toronto, on Sunday to call for an end to the war. (Image credit: Heather Waldron/CBC )
“Unfortunately for Sudanese Canadians currently trapped over there, they are hopeless, they are not able to evacuate,” Ashraf Ahmed, president of the Sudanese Canadian Community Association, told CBC News.
“They are running out of food supplies and no one knows what’s going to happen given the desperateness.”
“We hope that our government will do something to help,” he said.
On April 25, Global Affairs Canada told CBC Kids News that every Canadian registered as being in Sudan has been contacted and is being provided with information and advice.
The government is also looking at different options to help with departures from Sudan, including evacuations.
“We are coordinating flights with our friends and allied countries out of Sudan to neighboring countries,” said spokesperson Charlotte MacLeod.
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With files from Reuters, the Associated Press, and Desmond Brown/CBC News
LONGUEUIL, Que. – People in a part of Longueuil, Que., were being asked to stay indoors with their doors and windows closed on Thursday morning after a train derailed, spilling an unknown quantity of hydrogen peroxide.
Police from the city just east of Montreal said it didn’t appear anyone was hurt, although a CN rail official told a news conference that three employees had been taken to hospital as a precautionary measure.
The derailment happened at around 9 a.m. in the LeMoyne area, near the intersection of St-Louis and St-Georges streets. Mathieu Gaudreault, a spokesman for CN rail, said about eight cars derailed at the Southwark rail facility, including four that toppled over.
“As of this morning, the information we have is it’s hydrogen peroxide that was in the rail car and created the fumes we saw,” he said, adding that there was no risk of fire.
François Boucher, a spokesman for the Longueuil police department, said police were asking people in the area, including students at nearby schools, to stay indoors while experts ensure the air is safe to breathe.
“It is as a preventive measure that we encourage people to really avoid exposing themselves unnecessarily,” he told reporters near the scene.
Police and fire officials were on site, as well as CN railworkers, and a large security perimeter was erected.
Officers were asking people to avoid the sector, and the normally busy Highway 116 was closed in the area. The confinement notice includes everyone within 800 metres of the derailment, officials said, who added that it would be lifted once a team with expertise in dangerous materials has given the green light.
In addition to closing doors and windows, people in the area covered by the notice are asked to close heating, ventilation and air exchange systems, and to stay as far from windows as possible.
Gaudreault said it wasn’t yet clear what caused the derailment. The possibilities include a problem with the track, a problem with a manoeuvre, or a mechanical issue, he said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 14, 2024.
HALIFAX – Nova Scotia’s Liberal party is promising to improve cellphone service and invest in major highways if the party is elected to govern on Nov. 26.
Party leader Zach Churchill says a Liberal government would spend $60 million on building 87 new cellphone towers, which would be in addition to the $66 million the previous Progressive Conservative government committed to similar projects last year.
As well, Churchill confirmed the Liberals want to improve the province’s controlled access highways by adding exits along Highway 104 across the top of the mainland, and building a bypass along Highway 101 near Digby.
Churchill says the Liberals would add $40 million to the province’s $500 million capital budget for highways.
Meanwhile, the leaders of the three major political parties were expected to spend much of today preparing for a televised debate that will be broadcast tonight at 6 p.m. local time.
Churchill will face off against Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Houston and NDP Leader Claudia Chender during a 90-minute debate that will be carried live on CBC TV and streamed online.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 14, 2024.
TORONTO – A group of hotel service workers in Toronto is set to hold a rally today outside the Fairmont Royal York to demand salary increases as hotel costs in the city skyrocket during Taylor Swift’s concerts.
Unite Here Local 75, the union representing 8,000 hospitality workers in the Greater Toronto Area, says Royal York employees have not seen a salary increase since 2021, and have been negotiating a new contract with the hotel since 2022.
The rally comes as the megastar begins her series of six sold-out concerts in Toronto, with the last show scheduled for Nov. 23.
During show weekends, some hotel rooms and short-term rentals in Toronto are priced up to 10 times more than other weekends, with some advertised for as much as $2,000 per night.
The union says hotel workers who will be serving Swifties during her Toronto stops are bargaining for raises to keep up with the rising cost of living.
The union represents hospitality workers including food service employees, room attendants and bell persons.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 14, 2024.
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