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Canada's west coast battles high winds Heavy rain and high winds in British Columbia have left over 180,000 BC Hydro customers with no power. Buildings and many trees have been knocked down. The RCMP have advised people to stay home and off the highway. Alleged Russian spy captured in Montreal Canada An alleged Russian spy was arrested in Montreal. He had threatened national security. The man is identified as a Russian spy and has been living under a false name.

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Proposal for Buffalo, N.Y. hotel reportedly dead: parcels for sale "by owner" A proposed hotel that was supposed to be built at the corner of Elmwood and Forest Avenues in Buffalo, New York is apparently off the table and properties are for sale.

Wikipedia Current Events
Rioters smash windows and overturn cars in Tonga's capital Nuku'alofa following a pro-democracy rally. Ségolène Royal wins the Socialist Party's nomination to run for President of France in next year's election; she becomes France's first-ever female presidential candidate representing a major party. Nancy Pelosi is unamimously nominated by the Democratic Party to become the next Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. Steny Hoyer wins the election over Jack Murtha to become Majority Leader. Democratic Republic of Congo presidential candidate Jean-Pierre Bemba has rejected election results that gave victory to Joseph Kabila. The United Nations hold high-level talks in Ethiopia to find new ways for solving the crisis in the war-torn Sudanese region of Darfur. Fourteen security contractors are abducted as a supply convoy is ambushed at Nasiriya in southern Iraq. At least eight people die as a tornado hits Riegelwood, North Carolina as thunderstorms move through the southern United States. One other person died in the larger tornado outbreak. The European Commission plan to charge £27 ($51) green tax per return ticket on long haul flights from and to the EU by 2011, angering U.S. airline companies as they will need to buy permits to cover their European emissions. Mirza Tahir Hussain, a British citizen sentenced to death in Pakistan, has his sentence commuted to life imprisonment after intervention by the President of Pakistan, Pervez Musharraf. The Chinese Government unblocks Wikipedia in China after a banning the website for a year.

Alleged Russian spy captured in Montreal, Canada
An alleged Russian spy was arrested in Montreal, having threatened national security. The man is identified as a Russian spy and has been living under a false name.

As he prepared to board a plane out of Canada, Canada Border Services agents took the man into custody at Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport in Montreal on Tuesday. Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day and Immigration Minister Monte Solberg signed the document that authorized the man's arrest.

This document is called the national security certificate and is rarely used. The certificate alerts Ottawa about possible threats to the country. The ministers of immigration and public safety are obliged to sign the national security certificate.

"The government's most important duty is to ensure the security of all Canadians. A security certificate has been issued ... against a foreign national. He is now in custody in Montreal," said Melissa Leclerc, spokeswoman for Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day. "A foreign national alleging to be a Canadian citizen named Paul William Hampel was arrested in Montreal after a national security certificate under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act was issued against him."

The man came to Canada several years ago with the name of Paul William Hampel, and is now reported to be false. Officials at the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) are working on identifying the man who entered Canada years ago.

"He is now in custody in Montreal. This is not a counter-terrorism case. More information will become available as the Federal Court process unfolds. Any speculation about the individual's other nationality is premature at this point," Barbara Campion, a spokesperson for CSIS.

Ottawa believed the man had been "engaging in an act of espionage or an act of subversion," and "belonged to an organization that there are reasonable grounds to believe engages."

"I don't think we're going to get the most intimate of details, no, not at all," he told CTV Montreal....We'll see a public version of the allegations that will be released by the federal court judge who is going to be responsible for reviewing the basis upon which cabinet will have declared this individual subject to a security certificate. beyond that, though, we may see things settle more quietly between governments," said David Harris, former chief of strategic planning at CSIS.

"There are also influence operations where countries might try to influence their expatriates and émigré communities in Canada. Beyond that, there is a real appetite building among many countries for technological secrets," he said. "They can be of use to industries of the sponsoring nations and these things can have values in the billions for the economies of those countries undertaking these operations."

Reports say the man's methods in Canada matched the techniques used by the Russian intelligence agency's Directorate S, which runs the Russian spy network.

Twenty people since 1991 have been charged under the Security Certificate legislation in Canada. The last time it was used was in 2003.

A court hearing date will we set by a federal judge for the man being held in Montreal. It is still unclear if the hearing will be in Ottawa, the nations capital, or in Montreal.

London's "Grey Train Robbery" solved
Two elderly women whose CCTV pictures were shown in newspapers across the UK on Thursday after they were caught on camera stealing a bag at a railway station in Sunderland have turned themselves in.

The police has announced that women admitted the offence and have received an official caution in a case variously dubbed the "Grey Train Robbery" and "Gran Larceny."

The women contacted police services after the case received major newspaper and media coverage under headlines such as "Nans on the Run" and "Artful Codgers."

A security camera image released by police showed two grey-haired women, in their 60s or 70s, wearing knee-length skirts, white blouses and overcoats at Sunderland station.

Police had appealed for help in finding the women after a student's bag was stolen from a station platform.

"They handed themselves in," police announced in a statement. "They subsequently were interviewed and admitted the offence. Both received police cautions."

Proposal for Buffalo, N.Y. hotel reportedly dead: parcels for sale "by owner"
Buffalo, New York – A proposed hotel that was supposed to be built at the corner of Elmwood and Forest Avenues in Buffalo, New York is apparently off the table. The former proposal was going to be called The Elmwood Village Hotel and would have consisted of 72 rooms and cost between $7 to $10 million American dollars to build.

Today several unknown individuals were seen removing a sign that was dedicated to the "Elmwood Village Gateway," which signifies the begining of the Elmwood Village at the formerly proposed projects location.

Nearly an hour later the men replaced the sign with a different and unexpected sign: "For Sale: 5 commercial parcels and 1 carriage house, By: Owner." Those 5 "parcels" are 1109-1121 Elmwood and 999 Forest Avenue, which is loacted in an illegal alley, according to the City of Buffalo, behind the 5 other properties on Elmwood.

Sam Savarino, CEO of Savarino Companies never owned the properties and has repeatadly told Wikinews in exclusive interviews that he still had a "contract to buy the properties" and on October 2, 2006 told Wikinews in an exclusive interview that he "extended" the "agreement to purchase the property[s] and will have it under contract for what we hope is a sufficient period of time."

The welcome sign was; however, not removed entirely. The sign was placed, facing the same direction of north, on the side of the Forest Plaza Art Gallery, a new art gallery located on the corner of Forest and Elmwood.

Nancy Pollina, owner of Don Apparel whch was located at 1109 Elmwood, but closed on October 14, 2006 considers this a possible "victory" in regards to the lawsuit filed against the hotel to stop it from being built, alleging that several laws were broken, including not performing an Environmental Impact Study before the proposal was approved by the city, during its approval and the proposal was "rushed." Patricia Morris, who operates Don Apparel with Pollina, Angeline Genovese and Evelyn Bencinich, owners of residences on Granger Place which abut the rear of the proposed site, Nina Freudenheim, a resident of nearby Penhurst Park, and Sandra Girage, the owner of a two-family residence on Forest Avenue less than a hundred feet from the proposed hotel's sole entrance and exit driveway, were also plaintiffs in the lawsuit. They filed the suit with a lawyer representing them, Attorney Arthur J. Giacalone, on April 25, 2006 in New York State Supreme Court, but the case has never gone to a courtroom.

Sam Savarino has not yet replied to several attempts at reaching him for a comment. Giacalone has also not yet replied.

French inspection: North Korean ship has no illegal cargo
Officials on the Indian Ocean island of Mayotte said that a North Korean vessel they searched today had no illegal cargo.

The ship was searched by French Customs to enforce sanctions imposed by an October 14 resolution of the United Nations Security Council.

The UN passed Resolution 1718, imposing new sanctions on North Korea, in response to a nuclear weapon test in October. The ship was searched at the small French island of Mayotte. The BBC reports that this may be the first search of a North Korean vessel under the new sanctions regime.

Economist Milton Friedman dies at 94
Nobel laureate Milton Friedman has died at the age of 94, his family announced. Friedman is considered to be one the most influential economists of the past century.

Friedman won the Nobel Prize in Economics in 1976 and essentially defined the theory of Monetarism. He served on U.S. President Reagan's Economic Policy Advisory Board and significantly influenced post-WWII economic policy in the U.S.

He was a leading figure in the Chicago school of economics.

Two Brampton residents announce 2010 mayoral intentions
With the 2006 Ontario municipal elections out of the way since Monday, the next scheduled for 2010, one would think campaigning was over. However, Brampton Mayor Susan Fennell already has two competitors aiming to take her down in four years time.

Her first two announced competitors are set to complete: John R. A. Moulton, who finished third in the last election, and political newcomer Tom Argyll.

When asked by Wikinews for general comments about the election, Moulton replied "I will be back!!!!"

Argall, who pens under the self-described "pretentious" pen name of T. Gregory Argall, announced his intentions after asking candidates for information, and writing about this experience on website The Brampton News.

"This is no longer just a study in sociology. This not simply a game of "can-I-get-elected?" It is a serious undertaking and I will follow through if elected," Argall says on his campaign MySpace account. "I was born in Brampton and I have lived here all my life. This city is important to me."

Neither candidate can spend money on campaigning, nor accept donations, until registered for their shot at the top job until the city begins accepting submissions in 2010. This is believed to be the earliest any would-be Brampton mayoral candidate has stated their intention, due to the fact the span between previous municipal elections was two, then three years.

Moulton received 5.9% of the vote, for third place. Sunny Gandhi and Amjid Iqbal both received fewer votes, while front runners Susan Fennell and Raj Sharda took 74.8% and 14.1% respectively. Sharda had been endorsed by the Toronto Star newspaper.

Moulton's message also stated that "We can not put the enviroment on the back burner / We have to react now!!!"

Mobile homes exploded as tornado kills five in North Carolina
Touching down at 6:30 a.m.(EST) this morning in North Carolina, a tornado has killed eight people. It exploded mobile homes while moving some off their foundations, according to Bob High, a reporter for News Reporter newspaper. Strong winds threw one couple from their home into the neighbor's yard, he added.

Several people are reported to be missing and as many as 200 emergency services people, along with trained dogs, are currently searching for them. Fears are that some may be trapped under the rubble.

Red Cross teams are being assembled. They will enter the area as soon as Columbus County Emergency Services deem it is safe.

As of 12:32 p.m.(EST) there are still tornado warnings active in the area.

The storm has left thousands without power.

Joseph Kabila declared winner of Congo Presidential election
Incumbent President Joseph Kabila has been declared the winner of the 2006 Presidential elections by the Independent Electoral Commission of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Chairperson of the electoral commission, Apollinaire Malu Malu, announced that Kabila polled 58 percent of the vote to his rival Jean-Pierre Bemba's 42 percent, in the run-off vote held on October 29.

Kabila has called for calm following the announcement by the election commission.

Bemba has released a statement saying he does not accept the declared election result. Bemba and his supporters have previously disputed the provisional results announced by the commission.

Kabila is the world's youngest head of state, getting the title as leader of Congo in 2001, after his father, Laurent-Desiré Kabila was assassinated in 2001.

Election officials have rejected claims of fraud. International observers monitoring the polls have said that despite some problems, the polling was largely free and fair.

Kinshasa is tense amidst fears that violence between the two leaders' armed supporters may break out. The U.N. peacekeeping force has stepped up security, deploying tanks on the streets of the capital.

Queen Elizabeth II to visit the United States
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and the Duke of Edinburgh are set to visit the United States in May 2007 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the Jamestown Settlement.

This will be Her Majesty’s fourth State Visit to the United States.

Her Majesty and the Duke of Edinburgh welcomed President and Mrs. Bush on a State Visit to the United Kingdom at Buckingham Palace in November 2003 – during that visit, Her Majesty paid tribute to the 'special relationship' between the United Kingdom and the United States.

A statement released by the White House read:

"Laura and I welcome Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and His Royal Highness, Prince Philip, The Duke of Edinburgh, for a State Visit in May 2007 to celebrate the 400th Anniversary of the Jamestown Settlement.

"The United States and the United Kingdom enjoy an extraordinary friendship that is sustained by deep historical and cultural ties and a commitment to defend freedom around the world. We look forward to Her Majesty's State Visit as an occasion to celebrate these enduring bonds."

The Queen herself mentioned the upcoming visit in this week's Speech from the Throne during the British State Opening of Parliament.

"The Duke of Edinburgh and I look forward to our State Visit to the United States of America in May 2007 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the Jamestown Settlement."

Virginia officials coordinating the ongoing Jamestown commemoration have scheduled an America's Anniversary Weekend event on and near Jamestown May 11, 12, and 13.

Jamestown, the first British settlement of North America, was established in the name of His Majesty, King James I of England.

Flag-lowering ceremony at Wagah border becomes more peaceful
The flag-lowering ceremony at the Wagah crossing between India and Pakistan, known for the aggressive and hostile manner in which it is carried out, has become more peaceful; at least on the Indian side so far.

To cries of Pakistan Zindabad (Long live Pakistan) and Jai Hind (Long live India) from the audience the two Border guards detachments at the Wagah gate have entertained visitors each evening. With warrior-like stamping and gesturing, they perform the ritual of “beating the retreat” (the lowering the colours) on their respective sides of the Border and closing the gates for the night.

Until now, the ceremony has been performed symmetrically by the two detachments, but the aggression has been ameliorated by (very cursory) handshakes by the two duty officers.

India has announced that on the Indian side, at least, the tone will be much less aggressive in future. It has yet to be seen if Pakistan will follow suit.

Jolie finds playing slain journalist's wife challenging
Oscar-winner Angelina Jolie in a recent interview with the press acknowledged that playing slain journalist Daniel Pearl's wife was a challenge in itself as she has to portray her strength amid the loss of her husband. Jolie said she wants to make the world understand this woman and her family.

Dan Futterman portrays Pearl and Jolie plays Mariane Pearl who was kidnapped and murdered in Pakistan in 2002. He was on a research assignment on Islamic militants in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks.

"We need to tell the story of Daniel Pearl and the reason we are making this film is because it's very important to have a dialogue between the two cultures," she told an Indian daily.

Jolie is most famous for her roles in Girl, Interrupted for which she won an Oscar, and Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, the 2001 blockbuster.

Doctor: Hoodies are a health risk
According to New Zealand doctor, Doctor Glenn Twentyman from Child, Youth and Family Services at Wiri, South Auckland, hoodies can be a health risk because they block sunlight which causes a vitamin D deficiency, thus weak bones and low energy.

Dr Twentyman said: "It's the hoodies and the hats and the downward glance of the teenagers, shading your face all the time."

Dr Twentyman said that every young person that he had tested showed a deficiency of vitamin D. Vitamin D helps vital minerals to be absorbed into the bones. Vitamin D is given to our body from the sun. "A lot of these kids stay away from sunshine. They don't hang out at the beach or in the bush. Some are into drugs and alcohol and a lot of it is indoor activity and night-time activity. They sleep during the day. They are wearing those hoods and literally they don't get out in the sun."

Even though vitamin D is usually absorbed through sun it can also be found in: fatty fish, liver, eggs, full fat milk and butter.

There is an increase in reports of vitamin D deficiency in Oceania, this is most likely because of people trying to cover up because of the higher risk of getting skin cancer due to the ozone hole over New Zealand. His comments come as evidence mounts of increasing vitamin D deficiency in Australasia, partly caused by covering up to avoid skin cancer. Also one student from Tangaroa College, Vincent Wesche, said that he wears a hoodie because "I don't want to lose my hair," also referring to rugby player, Carlos Spencer, "Carlos Spencer is starting to lose his hair from the sun."

Doctor Cameron Grant, from Starship hospital in Auckland, said that he had done a study for four years which found that infants living in Auckland did have a deficiency of vitamin D. "We know that vitamin D deficiency is a health issue in New Zealand. We know that people who are at risk of vitamin D deficiency are for example groups who keep themselves clothed and keep themselves indoors for religious reasons ... so his idea is not an unreasonable one."

Another study also showed that 87% of pregnant woman living in Wellington were vitamin D deficient.

Dr Twentyman said that the people who are most likely to have a vitamin D deficiency are "depressed people and the elderly, such as those kept indoors in rest homes all day."

U.S. soldiers kill 9 suspected al-Qaeda members near Baghdad
United States forces killed nine suspected al-Qaeda members in a raid at a town around 12 miles south of Baghdad on Thursday.

Soldiers told residents in the area to get out of their homes after they noticed several armed men in a nearby wooded area. The soldiers then asked for air support, which killed nine of the insurgents. The insurgents were wearing high explosives, say the soldiers.

Nine other suspected insurgents were arrested in the raid.

Singapore student is world's fastest text messenger
Sixteen-year-old student Ang Chuang Yang of Singapore has earned a place in the record books, thanks to his fast thumbs.

Yang typed a 160-character SMS message in just 41.52 seconds, beating the previous record by seven-tenths of a second. The student was competing in a competition organized by SingTel.

The record was first set by 18-year-old Ben Cook of Utah, two years ago. He soon lost the record to a girl in Asia, then won it back last July, "significantly besting his own previous typing speed", says the website impulse.

Each record is set by typing a standard text chosen by Guinness World Records, the organization to which the record has been submitted. The message reads: "The razor-toothed piranhas of the genera Serrasalmus and Pygocentrus are the most ferocious freshwater fish in the world. In reality they seldom attack a human."

He claims his secret is using a phone with a larger keypad. Speech-to-text software recently introduced by mobile company Nuance is not allowed for use under Guinness rules.

Canada's west coast battles high winds
Currently, there are blackouts, heavy rain, and high winds in British Columbia. Over 180,000 BC Hydro customers have no power. Buildings have already collapsed and trees have been knowed down. Five Vancouver rivers were in danger of flooding, which rain fell at 10 mm an hour for more than six hours at midday.

The steel frame of a four-storey building under construction in Vancouver collapsed. Construction workers escaped injury, luckily they were on a coffee break at the time of the incident. The steel frame crushed cars in a parking lot and missed a truck driver.

Citizens had to evacuate a subdivision of 30 homes. The winds smashed trees into houses in West Vancouver.

"We have some real fears here with electrical problems," said Captain Rob Jones Cook of the Vancouver Fire Department. "This is impinging on electrical poles and lamp standards. We also have hydro bus lines running down two sides of the building." The Vancouver Fire Department says they have no idea as to why the building collapsed.

Winds are gusting at more than 100 kilometres an hour (62 mph) in some areas and rainfall amounts of 50 to 130 millimetres.

According BC Hydro spokeswoman Elisha Moreno, the hardest-hit areas are Vancouver, Surrey, Langley, Abbotsford and Mission, B.C. "We're trying to be optimistic and hoping it's by end of day today, but there may very well be customers that are into the early-morning hours before restoration," Moreno said.

Extensive ferry cancellations, road closures, and massive power outages are in effect until the storm ends.

The RCMP have advised people to stay home and off the highway.

The same heavy weather has also affected nearby Washington State, USA.

Bill Clinton jokingly named professor at Columbia University
President of Columbia University Lee Bollinger jokingly named former United States President Bill Clinton a professor at Columbia University Wednesday afternoon in front of a packed auditorium in Alfred Lerner Hall at Columbia's Morningside Heights campus. President Bollinger moderated a conversation between from Czech President Václav Havel and Mr. Clinton. Messrs. Clinton and Havel discussed the challenges of new democracies. Mr. Bollinger commented that last time Mr. Clinton visited he had visited so often [with Clinton's office being ten blocks away on 125th Street] that if he visited one more time he would have to appoint Mr. Clinton as a professor. Mr. Havel is currently midway through a seven week residency at Columbia.

Both presidents spoke some regarding the challanges they faced during their times in office in order to bring the former Warsaw Pact countries into the West. President Havel mentioned that no one anticipated the rise of mafias and a period of post-communism. He and other dissidents imaged a swift move from communisim to liberal democracy but this took time due to the destruction of civil society that occured in Czechoslovakia in 1948. President Clinton urged that the United States use its current hegemonic power to build a better world in anticipation of the day when the United States is no longer the hyperpower since all countries have an equal distribution of brain power and that the rise of nations such as China and India is inevitable. He hoped that as a truely good nation the United States can balance its foreign policy interests and ideals and thus make the world a worthwhile place for the day when his daughter, Chelsea, has children and they grow up.

Following President Bollinger's own questions, Mr. Bollinger brought up the topic of the war in Iraq. Mr. Havel questioned why not one of the thousands of planners anticipated the instability that followed initial combat. He also critized the dubious grounds, namely WMDs on which the United States invaded Iraq. Mr. Clinton was careful to not say too much due to his recent testimony before the Baker-Hamilton Commission and his wife's position as senator from New York. He reminded the audience that, "whatever she's for, he is for." He did however point out that shifting even a small percentage (about $25 billion) of the Department of Defense's buget (over $500 billion for FY2007) to third world development might be in the United States' own best interest citing the example that when we help Pakistan buy warplanes, young Pakistani boys must be educated in the madrassas due to lack of education funding.

Today in History
1558 - Elizabeth I ascended the English Throne.

1720 - Pirate captain Calico Jack and his entire crew except Anne Bonny and Mary Read were hanged.

1869 - The Suez Canal, linking the Mediterranean Sea with the Red Sea, was inaugurated in an elaborate ceremony.

1950 - Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, was enthroned as Tibet's head of state at the age of fifteen.

1969 - The SALT I negotiations between the Soviet Union and the United States began in Helsinki.

1989 - A student demonstration in Prague is quelled by riot police, sparking the Velvet Revolution aimed at overthrowing the Czechoslovakian communist government.

November 17 is International Students' Day

Quote of the Day

Political freedom means the absence of coercion of a man by his fellow men. The fundamental threat to freedom is power to coerce, be it in the hands of a monarch, a dictator, an oligarchy, or a momentary majority. ~ Milton Friedman

Word of the Day

tremulous; adj

Trembling or shaking.

Timid or unconfident.

About Wikinews
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