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WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Alleged serial killer Bruce McArthur faces seventh charge of first-degree murder
Abdulbasir Faizi disappeared from Toronto’s Gay Village more than seven years ago. Now, authorities have charged alleged serial killer Bruce McArthur with first-degree murder related to Mr. Faizi’s death. The charges are the seventh against Mr. McArthur, who is in custody and has previously been charged with first-degree murder in the deaths of six other men who have ties to Toronto’s LGBTQ community. Police had previously investigated Mr. Faizi’s disappearance as part of Project Houston, which probed the disappearances of Skandaraj Navaratnam and Majeed Kayhan as well. All three men went missing between 2010 and 2012, but Project Houston was closed in 2014. Mr. McArthur, who has been charged in the deaths of Mr. Navaratnam and Mr. Kayhan as well, was questioned by police during Project Houston.
‘It was more than hockey today’: Team tied to Humboldt Broncos back on ice with heavy hearts
The Delisle Chiefs usually draw two or three hundred fans. Last night, 625 came to Delisle, Sask. to watch the team. The Chiefs play Junior B hockey and are currently in a best-of-seven series for the President’s Cup, the championship of the Prairie Junior Hockey League. Several of the Chiefs players were once on the Humboldt Broncos, the Junior A team whose bus was involved in a deadly crash Friday. Five players with direct links to the Broncos were part of the Chiefs’ starting lineup and several wore Broncos jerseys during warm-ups.
Alberta Transportation has suspended the safety fitness certificate of the Calgary-based company that owned the truck involved in the crash. Investigators are trying to piece together other information on the collision, in an effort to understand how it all happened. Fifteen people died in the crash and several more remain in the hospital with injuries, some of which are life-threatening. If you need to get caught up on how it happened, and everything that’s happened since, we’ve built a guide.
Trump warns missiles ‘will be coming’ to Syria; Mattis strikes cautious tone
U.S. President Donald Trump threatened imminent military action against Syria after a suspected chemical gas attack in Ghouta. Mr. Trump also called out Russia and warned it to “get ready” because “nice and new and ‘smart’” missiles would be coming. He said that Russia should not be supporting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The World Health Organization says that 500 Syrians have been treated for “signs and symptoms consistent with exposure to toxic chemicals.” U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis struck a cautious tone after Mr. Trump’s threats, which were communicated via Twitter, saying that the U.S. was reviewing intelligence about the situation. He said that the U.S. military was prepared to provide military options, if appropriate.
If you need to get caught up on the situation in Syria, and whether Mr. Trump will launch airstrikes, we’ve broken down what we know so far.
Former McGuinty chief of staff Livingston sentenced to four months in jail over deleted gas-plants records
David Livingston, who served as former Ontario premier Dalton McGuinty’s chief of staff, has been sentenced to four months in jail, one year in probation and 100 hours of community service for his part in gas-plant scandal. Mr. Livingston was found guilty of destroying government records. He spent 10 months in Mr. McGuinty’s office, most of which was spent handling the fallout over the Ontario Liberals decision to axe two power plant projects ahead of the 2011 provincial election. Justice Timothy Lipson said Mr. Livingston’s conduct was “an attack on democratic values,” and that he “abused his position of power to promote the interests of the governing party at the expense of the democratic process.”
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MARKET WATCH
Canada’s main stock index was little changed on Wednesday as higher commodity prices, due to geopolitical concerns, boosted the shares of energy and materials companies, offsetting a decline in the heavily weighted financials sector. The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index closed down 0.03 per cent to finish at 15,257.9. Meanwhile, Wall Street fell as possible U.S. military action against Syria stoked investor concerns about geopolitical risks and minutes from the latest Federal Reserve meeting sparked worries about a more hawkish view on interest rate increases. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.9 per cent to close at 24,189.38, the S&P 500 lost 0.55 per cent to end at 2,642.19 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.36 per cent to finish at 7,069.03.
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WHAT’S TRENDING ON SOCIAL
U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan has announced that he won’t be seeking re-election during this fall’s midterm elections. The Republican from Wisconsin said Mr. Trump’s presidency did not influence his decision to retire from electoral politics.
TALKING POINTS
National leadership is the missing link in the Trans Mountain controversy
“Compromises are hard to achieve and never fully satisfy the interests of all parties. But it is time for the federal government to show national leadership by avoiding the urge to ‘get tough,’ and instead forge a compromise that meets the economic needs of the oil sector with lower risks to the environment.” — Thomas Gunton
How Tim Hortons lost its connection with the Canadian public
“Things are different now, and Canadians can feel it. Franchisees have known for a while that RBI’s game is disconnected from Canadian beliefs and that the company is distanced from Canada and the restaurant business. Since the RBI takeover, the traditional uniforms, the successful Roll Up the Rim to Win campaign and the welcoming, friendly smiles have all been a façade. They hid the troubling truth about the Tim Hortons conversion. The recent Léger-National survey confirms that chain’s transformation into a foreign company is now complete.” — Sylvain Charlebois
Cardi B, Nicki Minaj and the absolute reign of women in rap
This might seem like the moment female emcees have been waiting for, a much deserved ascendance of talented queens. To dub this a moment, though, is to obscure both the long history of women in hip hop and the continued existence of stubborn barriers. While women’s current success is enjoyable, a male-dominated establishment continues to hoard resources and stability. — Denise Balkissoon
LIVING BETTER
How can you reduce the sugar in your baking and cooking? Lucy Waverman offers up her suggestions. She never adds sugar to pastry, because the filling will usually have enough sugar and she’s found that in cake recipes, reducing sugar by a third can still create a tasty final product. One final tip: using bananas as an alternative to sugar and incorporating puréed dates or dried figs in the baking process.
LONG READ FOR A LONG COMMUTE
Formed as a place for her daughter to play, all-girls baseball league expanding across Canada
Dana Bookman’s daughter loves baseball, but she was less enthusiastic about being the only girl out of 400 kids in her age division. Sensing a need, Bookman founded Toronto Girls Baseball in 2016, the only all-girls baseball league in Canada. Bookman’s since expanded to Manitoba and Nova Scotia.
Evening Update was written by Mayaz Alam and Kristene Quan. 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.
Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that Mr. McGuinty, not Mr. Livingston, was found guilty. This version has been corrected.