Good evening, let’s start with today’s top stories:
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said today that Israel would press forward with its military campaign into Rafah, one of the last remaining relatively safe areas for 1½ million Gazans.
“We will finish the job in Rafah while enabling the civilian population to get out of harm’s way,” he said in a video address to a conference of the pro-Israel AIPAC organization in Washington, D.C.
A growing number of voices have been urging Israel not to enter Rafah. This past weekend, U.S. President Joe Biden said Netanyahu was “hurting Israel more than helping” by waging war in a way that goes against the country’s values.
Meanwhile, an aid ship with 200 tonnes of flour, rice and protein bound for Gaza left Cyprus today, part of a pilot project to open a sea route for delivering supplies to Palestinians on the brink of famine.
- Also: Finding that some hostages were victims of sexual violence doesn’t justify Israeli attacks, UN envoy says
- Elsewhere: Surrey, B.C., council restricts access over ‘disruptive’ pro-Palestine protests
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Former prosecutors make up most of Ford government’s judicial picks, raising concerns over balance
A Globe and Mail analysis of the 107 judges appointed since Premier Doug Ford’s election in 2018 shows that more than two-thirds of the appointed judges had worked as prosecutors. This marks a dramatic increase compared with the previous Liberal government, and one that some defence lawyers call a concerning trend for the fairness of the justice system.
- Globe editorial: How to take the politics out of judicial appointments
Haitians wonder what’s next after Prime Minister pledges to step down
Armed members of the G9 and Family gang stand guard at their roadblock in the Delmas 6 neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, March 11, 2024. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has spoken with Haiti's prime minister about the ongoing humanitarian, security, and political crises in that country.Odelyn Joseph/The Associated Press
Haiti’s political future remained uncertain after Prime Minister Ariel Henry said he would step down. Stranded in Puerto Rico, Henry released a recorded video late yesterday pledging to resign as soon as a transition council and temporary leader could be chosen. Today, U.S. officials said that members of the council should be appointed by tomorrow or Thursday, after talks this week in Jamaica. There were also signs in the capital Port-au-Prince of a improved security situation, with the streets quiet and no attacks on government offices or police stations reported.
- The latest: Kenya’s pause to Haiti deployment follows growing doubts about mission
- Explainer: What’s going on in Haiti? Latest news from a Caribbean nation in crisis
- Opinion: The plan to contain Haiti’s gangs won’t be enough
ALSO ON OUR RADAR
Banking: TD Bank CEO Bharat Masrani took a $1-million cut to his bonus pay last year in response to the terminated takeover of Tennessee-based First Horizon Corp. and a U.S. regulatory and law enforcement probe into weaknesses in the bank’s anti-money laundering practices. He was one of several bank CEOs to see their compensation fall in 2023 as Canada’s five largest lenders missed their profit targets.
Insurance: Auto insurers are facing criticism over preferential deals struck with health care providers that control patients’ choices about treatment after car accidents.
Boeing: Boeing whistle-blower John Barnett has been found dead in South Carolina. He was a former employee who had reportedly raised concerns about the company’s production issues. Authorities said he was found dead of an apparent suicide.
U.S. politics: President Joe Biden and former president Donald Trump are set to win enough delegates today to clinch their respective parties’ nominations and officially kick off the first U.S. presidential election rematch in nearly 70 years.
Airbnb: The online rental platform says it’s banning the use of indoor security cameras in listings on its site worldwide by the end of April. It had allowed the use of indoor cameras in common areas, as long as their locations were disclosed. Now, hosts will still be allowed to use doorbell cameras and noise-decibel monitors, as long as their locations are known.
Sports: Canadian curler Briane Harris was ineligible to compete in the national women’s championship after testing positive for a banned substance. A statement from her legal representation today says that Harris, 31, was unknowingly exposed to the substance through bodily contact.
Media moves: Canadian production company 9 Story Media Group is being acquired by American publishing giant Scholastic Corp., which will pay US$186-million in cash, marking the largest acquisition the company has made since 2000.
Callout: How did you grow your unusually large TFSA balance? Share your story with The Globe
MARKET WATCH
U.S. stocks ended sharply higher today, with the S&P 500 registering a record high close as Oracle shares surged and consumer price data failed to dampen investor hopes of interest rate cuts in the coming months. The TSX also rose, albeit more modestly, coming within 300 points of its own record high.
The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 61.80 points at 21,831.02. The Dow Jones industrial average was up 235.83 points at 39,005.49. The S&P 500 index was up 57.33 points at 5,175.27, while the Nasdaq composite was up 246.37 points at 16,265.64.
The Canadian dollar traded for 74.08 US cents.
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TALKING POINTS
The Kate photo chaos is a portent of things to come in this disinformation age
“Whatever has happened to Kate – and maybe it is just abdominal surgery with a long recovery period – this opaque situation offers a peek into the information chaos ahead.” - Marsha Lederman
The U.S. economy is riding high. So why is Joe Biden heading for election defeat?
“One theory is that we’re living in a world post-truth age. There’s no actual recession, just a vibe-cession. The economy may not be objectively awful, but people still feel awful.” – Tony Keller
Stop undervaluing the contributions that international students make to Canada
“International students present an invaluable opportunity for Canada. Though the effect is slower-acting, international students can alleviate critical labour shortages in the same way that experienced immigrants can.” – Daniel Bernhard
It is not wrong to memorialize a teen who died by suicide in a high-school yearbook
“There is no question that there are suicide clusters, especially in close-knit spaces such as schools and small Indigenous communities. But the response to this should be an open, sensitive discussion, not an effort to sweep it under the carpet.” – André Picard
LIVING BETTER
How to get the CRA to butt out of your intergenerational family finances
Bringing on your adult children as joint owners of their parents’ banking and investment accounts may have seemed like a good idea at the time. Not so much now, as these accounts may qualify as a trust relationship, notably a bare trust, and thus be subject to complex new reporting requirements from the Canada Revenue Agency to verify exactly who owns what. Rob Carrick digs into what to do in this scenario.
TODAY’S LONG READ
The small-town opioid crisis hidden in the big-city shadow
As concerns mount about drug use in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., some businesses now close early in Jamestown, the blue-collar neighbourhood near the Algoma Steel factory. The Sault's population of 72,000 puts it in a cohort of cities that, according to recent health data, have the highest rates of opioid hospitalization.Kenneth Armstrong/The Globe and Mail
Early last month, an alarming rash of overdoses in Belleville, Ont. – 13 in just two hours, none of them lethal but resulting in people dropping on the sidewalks of the town – generated national headlines. Shannon Proudfoot reports on how the opioid crisis is not only just as severe in small cities and towns as in its largest cities – it is often much worse, partly due to fewer resources and supports.
- One night in Oshawa: Overdoses and dramatic rescues offer a glimpse at the opioid crisis
- Also: For those living on Belleville’s streets, the Ontario city’s overdose emergency is nothing new
Evening Update is written by Maryam Shah. If you’d like to receive this newsletter by e-mail every weekday evening, go here to sign up. If you have any feedback, send us a note.