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The latest on U.S.-Iran tensions as Tehran scraps its nuclear limitations
Iranians march Sunday through the streets of the northwestern city of Ahvaz to pay homage to General Qasem Soleimani. (Hossein Mersadi/AFP/Getty Images)WANA NEWS AGENCY/Reuters
The aftershocks from the assassination of General Qassem Soleimani continue to reverberate – and U.S. President Donald Trump is stoking new tensions with fiery rhetoric. Here’s a glimpse at some key issues:
The nuclear deal: Iran ended the final limits on its nuclear program, allowing it to enrich uranium without restrictions. Trump had abandoned the 2015 agreement in 2018, imposing new sanctions on Iran. Tehran said it won’t expel nuclear inspectors; experts say it doesn’t appear to be escalating the program as quickly as some had feared.
Military operations in Iraq: The country’s parliament voted to demand the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq in response to Soleimani’s death. There are currently 5,200 U.S. soldiers there; their withdrawal would allow Iran to further exert influence in Iraq. The NATO mission in Iraq, which is led by a Canadian and includes 200 Canadian Forces members, has been suspended amid security concerns.
Trump and Iran trade rhetoric: The U.S. President said his country has a list of 52 potential Iranian target sites – including cultural sites – if Iran launches a counterattack. Iran said such an action on cultural sites would be a war crime and called Trump a “terrorist in a suit.” Hezbollah, Iran’s proxy in Lebanon, vowed action against U.S. targets. Lebanon’s neighbour, Israel, is on high alert for any potential attacks.
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A lottery for lives: Canadian parents of babies with a deadly disease are looking to a treatment draw
The Swiss pharmaceutical company that makes a US$2.1-million gene therapy treatment is planning to give away as many as 100 doses of the one-time treatment for a rare muscle-wasting disease. The draw will be for those in countries where the drug is not yet approved, including Canada.
Novartis, which has limited production capacity, will draw one name at random every two weeks.
“It’s a lottery where we’re leaving children’s lives up to chance,” said Ricardo Batista, whose five-month-old daughter, Eva, has the disease. “I don’t think it’s a game that any of us want to play.” Still, the Toronto family will likely put Eva’s name forward amid worries that time is running out.
The best, worst and weirdest moments from the Golden Globes
First World War film 1917 surprised with awards for Best Director and Best Motion Picture (Drama), while Quentin Tarantino took home a couple trophies for Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood, including Best Original Screenplay.
Film editor Barry Hertz says highlights included Tom Hanks’s emotional acceptance speech and Michelle Williams using her podium time to advocate for abortion rights. Tarantino, Hertz writes, only added to his reputation for uber-cockiness.
Harvey Weinstein’s criminal trial is set to begin
Jury selection will get under way in New York this week in the only case against Weinstein, the disgraced movie mogul who has been accused of sexual assault by dozens of women – kickstarting the #MeToo movement in 2017.
Prosecutors will allege that Weinstein raped one woman in a Manhattan hotel room in 2013 and performed a forcible sex act on a different woman in 2006. Weinstein, 67, has pleaded not guilty. He could face a mandatory life sentence if convicted of predatory sexual assault.
Coastal GasLink has halted pipeline construction as a dispute escalates
Wet’suwet’en Nation hereditary chiefs have issued an “eviction notice” on the unceded northeastern B.C. territory days after a court extended an injunction against protesters.
“We must reassert our jurisdiction over these lands, our right to determine access and prevent trespass under Wet’suwet’en law,” a letter from the chiefs reads.
Construction workers had been scheduled to return to work this week, but they won’t be able to gain access because of a blockage along a remote logging road. Coastal GasLink said the felled trees were a “clear violation” of the court injunction.
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ALSO ON OUR RADAR
Canada wins gold at world junior hockey championship: Akil Thomas scored the winner with just 3:58 remaining, completing a remarkable three-goal Canadian comeback in the third period to beat Russia 4-3.
Death toll climbs in Australia fires: At least 24 have died since the blazes began, with others feared missing. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, facing criticism over what many said was a slow response, dismissed the commentary as unproductive.
Carlos Ghosn used ex-Green Beret to help escape: The former Nissan boss turned to a pair of Americans, including a one-time U.S. special forces member who served jail time for fraud, to assist in his escape from Japan.
Mother of Doug and Rob Ford dies: Diane Ford, the mother of the current Ontario Premier as well as the late Toronto mayor, has died at the age of 85.
MORNING MARKETS
World shares erase new year gains: Tensions in the Middle East after the killing of a top Iranian general by the United States erased new year gains for a gauge of world shares on Monday as investors pushed safe-haven gold to a seven-year high, and oil jumped to its highest since September. In Europe, Britain’s FTSE 100 was down 1.11 per cent around 6 a.m. ET. France’s CAC 40 slid 1.30 per cent and Germany’s DAX fell 1.65 per cent. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei finished down 1.91 per cent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng lost 0.79 per cent. New York futures were lower. The Canadian dollar was trading above 77 US cents.
Looking for investing ideas? Check out The Globe’s weekly digest of the latest insights and analysis from the pros, stock tips, portfolio strategies and what investors need to know for the week ahead. This week’s edition includes big bank bets, a dividend growth guru’s results and TSX predictions for 2020.
WHAT EVERYONE’S TALKING ABOUT
In search of a less partisan approach: Let’s use Conservative-agreed upon climate targets
Green Leader Elizabeth May: “What if the federal Liberals finally begin to walk their talk, and pull out all the stops to meet the climate target developed when Stephen Harper was prime minister? A target negotiated by the late Jim Prentice, then- federal environment minister? A target agreed to by a cabinet that included Jason Kenney?”
TODAY’S EDITORIAL CARTOON
(David Parkins/The Globe and Mail)David Parkins/The Globe and Mail
LIVING BETTER
A new program aims to break the taboo around endometriosis
It’s a common condition that affects an estimated one in 10 females of reproductive age. But because few discuss endometriosis, many suffer for years before getting treatment.
Now, researchers at BC Women’s Hospital and Health Centre have launched an experimental program to teach high-school students about the condition as part of their sexual-health curriculum.
MOMENT IN TIME
For more than 100 years, photographers have preserved an extraordinary collection of 20th-century news photography for The Globe and Mail. Every Monday, The Globe features one of these images. This month, we’re marking the 100th anniversary of the start of Prohibition.
Prohibition begins in the U.S., 1920
(UPI)UPI
The U.S. had a drinking problem – and this was its intervention. Dumping alcohol, such as these barrels of beer in Chicago, became common across the United States as Prohibition took effect, officially banning the “manufacture, sale or transportation of intoxicating liquors." It was hoped the ban – “a great social and economic experiment,” as President Herbert Hoover later called it – would keep families together, curb domestic violence and redirect money spent on alcohol to other sectors of the economy. But the jubilant atmosphere of these public dumping parties would soon sour, as tax revenue from alcohol sales were wiped out and governments came to depend on income taxes; the broader economic benefits never materialized, as drinking rates quickly returned to pre-Prohibition levels; and all that illegal drinking fuelled the rise of criminal organizations such as the one led by Al Capone. – Massimo Commanducci
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