Good evening, let’s start with today’s top stories:
Ukrainian troops bolstered by stepped-up military supplies from the West on Monday started a long-awaited counteroffensive to reclaim territory in the south from Russian forces, the Ukrainian military said.
Moscow acknowledged a new offensive had been launched but said it had failed and the Ukrainians had suffered significant casualties.
The southern port city of Mykolaiv, meanwhile, came under heavy Russian shelling, with the mayor saying homes had been hit and at least two people killed.
Read more:
- IEA chief says Russia’s oil output has exceeded expectations, but pressure looms
- Zelensky accuses Russia of economic terrorism as Europe prepares for winter gas crunch
- Ukraine’s agriculture exports to double in next few months now ports open, says minister
This is the daily Evening Update newsletter. If you’re reading this on the web, or it was sent to you as a forward, you can sign up for Evening Update and more than 20 more Globe newsletters here. If you like what you see, please share it with your friends.
Harassment of Chrystia Freeland prompts government to review security for cabinet ministers
Federal Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino said security protocols for cabinet ministers and MPs are under review after Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was verbally harassed over the weekend while entering an elevator at a city hall in Alberta.
Mendicino said the threats do not only affect the individual politicians and their families and staff. “It represents a threat to our democracy,” he said.
U.S. Justice Department completes review of documents seized in Mar-a-Lago search
The U.S. Justice Department has finished its review of potentially privileged documents recovered this month from the Florida estate of former president Donald Trump and has identified “a limited set of materials that potentially contain attorney-client privileged information,” according to a court filing Monday.
The department’s filing follows a judge’s weekend order indicating that she was inclined to grant the Trump legal team’s request for a special master responsible for overseeing documents taken during the Aug. 8 search of the Mar-a-Lago estate and ensure that any that might be protected by claims of legal privilege be set aside.
NASA delays launch of new moon rocket over engine trouble
NASA postponed the launch of its mighty new moon rocket on its crewless debut flight Monday after a last-minute cascade of problems that culminated in unexplained engine trouble.
Its next launch attempt could take place Friday at the earliest or could be off until mid-September or later.
When the mission kicks off, it will be the first flight in NASA’s Artemis project, a quest to put astronauts back on the moon for the first time since the end of the Apollo program 50 years ago.
- ‘Still a good day for Canada’ despite delay of Artemis moon rocket launch, minister says
ALSO ON OUR RADAR
Six victims of Barrie, Ont., crash identified: Tributes are pouring in after police say four men and two women in their 20s, who were reported missing on Saturday, are believed to be six people found dead in a vehicle crash in Barrie, Ont., early Sunday.
Analysis: Brazil’s Jair Bolsonaro pins re-election hopes on the global rise of the far right: Brazil’s president finds himself in the unusual situation of being the incumbent but not the front-runner in October’s election. But Bolsonaro is hoping the rising popularity of right-wing politics around the world, from France to the Philippines, in recent years will work in his favour.
Rogers outage relevant to hearings on Shaw takeover, tribunal rules: The service outage that affected millions of Canadians is relevant to the upcoming hearings on the telecom giant’s $26-billion takeover of Shaw, Canada’s Competition Tribunal ruled after hearing submissions from Rogers and the Commissioner of Competition on the matter.
All eyes on Serena Williams at U.S. Open: Every time the tennis legend steps on court in New York will be treated as if it might be the last time. Even her practice sessions have been attended by throngs of fans in the days prior to the tournament’s start.
- Cathal Kelly: Serena Williams comes full circle as she prepares for her final bow
- Bianca Andreescu advances to second round at US Open with three-set win over Tan
Sweeney Todd, Is God Is lead Dora Awards nominations: Theatre, dance and opera came back with vengeance this season, with a pair of shows about revenge scoring the most nominations for the first in-person Dora Mavor Moore Awards since COVID-19 brought the industry to a standstill.
MARKET WATCH
U.S. stocks closed lower on Monday, adding to last week’s sharp losses on nagging concerns about the Federal Reserve’s determination to aggressively hike interest rates to fight inflation even as the economy slows.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 184.41 points, or 0.57 per cent, to 32,098.99, the S&P 500 lost 27.05 points, or 0.67 per cent, to 4,030.61 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 124.04 points, or 1.02 per cent, to 12,017.67.
The S&P/TSX composite index was down 37.17 points at 19,836.12. The Canadian dollar traded for 76.87 cents US compared with 76.99 cents US on Friday.
Got a news tip that you’d like us to look into? E-mail us at tips@globeandmail.com. Need to share documents securely? Reach out via SecureDrop.
TALKING POINTS
Paying for blood and plasma donations is not the answer to our shortages
“...Blood is a public resource. Sufficient blood should be collected in Canada so that importation from other countries is unnecessary. Only one national operator should collect blood and plasma, and no part of those duties should be contracted out to others. Access to blood should be free and universal. The safety of the blood system is paramount.” – Allan Rock
Cycling in the Netherlands was a balm to my spirit. How can we replicate this in Canada?
“Anywhere you ride in the Netherlands you get your own lane, often your own road. Most cyclists dress for their destination, not the journey. It’s the ordinariness of it all that’s so extraordinary.” – Peter Kuitenbrouwer
LIVING BETTER
Breakfast belongs on the back-to-school menu
The adage that “breakfast is the most important meal of the day” certainly holds true for school-aged children.
Research shows there are several benefits to eating breakfast regularly, with children who don’t skip the morning meal having improved concentration and academic performance, increased energy and better moods than those who do.
A brain-friendly breakfast should include carbohydrate-rich foods, such as whole grain cereal, whole grain bread, whole fruit, yogurt, milk and plant milks made from soy, oats and rice, writes Leslie Beck.
TODAY’S LONG READ
The investigation of a young girl’s death in Nova Scotia points to flaws in rural policing
Sia Van Wyck, 7, runs through the garden at her grandparents' farm in Clementsvale, N.S., on July 18, 2017, the day before a farmer driving a tractor struck her with a hay mower and killed her.Effie Eraklis/Supplied
On July 19, 2017, Sia Van Wyck awoke to the smell of bacon sizzling and pancakes on the stove. It was her first time visiting her paternal grandmother and step-grandfather at their century-old farmhouse in Clementsvale, two hours southwest of Halifax. Seven-year-old Sia, sun-kissed and lithe, lay in a cot with her pink teddy bear. She was 600 kilometres away from her mom, her five-year-old brother Niko, her orange tabby, the Colonel, and golden retriever, Rudy, in the town of Kennebunk, Me.
The weather was perfect. It was one of those summer days Nova Scotians yearn for all year: arid with a slight breeze. A sky so azure that it seemed immune to the cloak of fog that always loomed off the coast.
Sia’s grandmother and her husband lived in a sun-drenched white gabled farmhouse set back from the road among the rolling fields. Their neighbour across the road was Roland Potter, better known as Snooky. He was king of the countryside, suspendered with a red spider-veined nose. He had worked from the age of 15 cutting lumber in the woods. Now he was retired but raised beef cattle and cut hay. He hired local men to work on the farm and had the expensive machines people needed to get by in these parts: a half-tonne truck, a backhoe, a tractor, a hay cutter. Read the full story by Lindsay Jones.
Evening Update is written by Beatrice Paez. 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.