The Friday news briefing: An at-a-glance survey of some top stories

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Highlights from the news file for Friday, Aug. 12

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CANADA STRIKES GOLD IN RIO: Canada has had back-to-back golden days at the Rio Olympics.  Rosie MacLennan won the gold in women’s individual trampoline on Friday while teenage swimming sensation Penny Oleksiak tied for gold in the women’s 100-metre freestyle on Thursday with Simone Manuel of the United States. They’re the first gold medals Canada has picked up in the games.

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ZIKA DETECTED IN FETUS: Canada has its first case of Zika-related congenital problems in a fetus. The Public Health Agency of Canada says the fetus shows “severe congenital neurological anomalies.” It’s Canada’s second case of maternal-to-fetal transmission of the virus which has been linked to microcephaly, where babies are born with abnormally small heads. The first case occurred in a baby that was confirmed to have the virus — but did not have related birth defects and so far appears normal.

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HEALTH OFFICIALS GRAPPLE WITH CYCLOSPORIASIS OUTBREAK:  Public health officials are trying to get a handle on an outbreak of the intestinal illness cyclosporiasis that has left 51 people ill in four provinces. Most of the cases since May have been in Ontario, with a handful in Quebec, Alberta and British Columbia. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency says it has not identified the source of the outbreak but is zeroing in on imported fresh produce.

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TERROR SUPECT’S DAD SAYS SON WAS TROUBLED AS A CHILD: The father of the man who died during a confrontation with RCMP in Ontario on Wednesday says his son was troubled as a child but seemed to have turned his life around after converting to Islam.  Wayne Driver says his son Aarron stopped using drugs and got a full-time job. However Driver says things changed last year when Canadian officials contacted him about disturbing posts his son had made on social media that talked about killing babies and other Christians. The RCMP say Driver was planning a bombing attack on an urban centre before the Mounties stopped him in the small community of Strathroy.

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HIRE JUDGES, SENATE SAYS:  A new Senate report is calling on the Liberal government to immediately fill judicial vacancies as a way to tackle the delays in the criminal justice system. A Senate committee says failing to take steps to help speed criminal cases through the courts will lead to a lack of public confidence in the justice system. The Supreme Court of Canada issued a ruling on a case last month that set out a new framework for whether a criminal trial has been unreasonably delayed. It blamed part of the problem on a “culture of complacency.”

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YOUTH COUNCIL FLOODED WITH RESUMES: Newly released figures show more than 8,400 young Canadians have applied to sit on a youth advisory board that will meet regularly with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Data provided to The Canadian Press shows 8,415 people applied — with a further 22,027 youth beginning the application process, but not finishing ahead of the deadline. Only 30 young Canadians will be selected to sit on the youth council. 

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GOVERNMENT CHALLENGES JABALLAH RULING: The federal government is appealing a court decision to strike down a national security certificate against Mahmoud Jaballah. The government says the judge made mistakes in concluding there was no credible evidence that Jaballah posed a threat to Canada. The government alleges the Egyptian-born Jaballah is a member of terrorist group al-Jihad, an accusation he denies. In May, Federal Court Justice Dolores Hansen ruled the government had not established reasonable grounds to believe that Jaballah is a danger to Canadian security.

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CHARGED LAID IN FARM SHOOTING: A Saskatchewan man is facing a charge of second-degree murder after another man was shot to death on a farm. Eric Meechance says they were driving onto the farm in the rural municipality of Glenside near Saskatoon when a man suddenly attacked their car. They tried to drive away, but ended up colliding with a parked car — gunshots sent the occupants of the car running for safety. Twenty-two-year-old Colten Boushie was killed. Meechance, Boushie’s cousin, says they were just looking for help with a flat tire. A suspect, 54-year-old Gerald Stanley, has been charged.

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TRUMP’S OBAMA COMMENT: Donald Trump has said he was just being sarcastic when he called U.S. President Barack Obama “the founder” of the Islamic State terror group. However, at a rally in Pennsylvania, the Republican presidential nominee added that he was “not that sarcastic, to be honest with you.” Democrats have attacked Trump for falsely claiming that Obama helped start the notorious extremist group. 

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HISTORIC WWII MEETING REMEMBERED THIS WEEKEND: A meeting of giants held in Newfoundland that helped shaped the course of the Second World War is being remembered this weekend.  British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt met in secret at Placentia Bay 75 years ago this month to discuss among other things how the Americans could help Britain withstand the onslaught of Nazi Germany. A number of events are being held this weekend to mark the historic gathering, including a reenactment of a stirring church service held aboard the British battleship Prince of Wales.

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The Canadian Press

©2016 The Canadian Press