Convoy intelligence documents, Catholic class action: In The News for Aug. 17

The partially redacted memo, obtained by The Canadian Press through the Access to Information Act, was among several Integrated Terrorism Assessment Centre analyses produced before, during and after the protests that paralyzed downtown Ottawa for three weeks beginning in late January.

The centre, overseen by the Canadian Security Intelligence Services, brings together security and intelligence professionals to draft terrorism threat assessments for senior decision-makers.

The assessment said ideologically motivated extremists would likely use police enforcement “to encourage violent revenge or as further evidence of government ‘tyranny’.”

Protesters, many with large trucks, occupied central Ottawa streets to rail against COVID-19 health measures and Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government. The influx, including some participants who had roots in the far-right movement, prompted many businesses to shut their doors and aggravated residents with noise, diesel fumes and harassing behaviour.

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Also this …

A Quebec Cardinal who was once considered a front-runner to become pope has been accused of sexual assault in a class-action lawsuit against the archdiocese of Quebec.

The lawsuit says 101 alleged victims have accused 88 priests or diocesan staff of sexual assault.

The archdiocese of Quebec said in a statement Tuesday it was aware of the allegations, but it declined to comment.

A woman identified as “F.” in court documents accused Quebec Cardinal Marc Ouellet of unwanted touching, including sliding his hand down her back and touching her buttocks at a 2010 event in Quebec City.

The lawsuit involving Ouellet is one of two introductory applications for class action brought by a Montreal-based law firm.

The second lawsuit says 193 alleged victims have accused 116 members of the Brothers of the Christian Schools of francophone Canada of sexual assault. The Brothers did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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What we are watching in the U.S. …

Liz Cheney, the fiercest Republican adversary in Congress to Donald Trump, vowed her work was far from over as she accepted defeat in a Wyoming GOP primary.

The third-term congresswoman fell Tuesday to Harriet Hageman, a rival backed by the former president, in a rout that reinforced Trump’s grip on the party’s base.

Cheney told supporters she would do whatever it takes to ensure Trump does not return to the Oval Office.

Her political future could include a 2024 presidential run, potentially putting her on another collision course with Trump.

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What we are watching in the rest of the world …

South Korea says it has no plans to pursue its own nuclear deterrent in the face of growing threats from North Korea.

President Yoon Suk Yeol made the comments at a news conference Wednesday, as he urged the North to return to dialogue aimed at exchanging denuclearization steps for economic benefits.

The news conference came hours after South Korea’s military detected the North firing two cruise missiles toward its western waters.

Tensions could rise further next week as the United States and South Korea kick off their biggest combined military training in years to counter the North Korean threat.

The North describes such drills as invasion rehearsals and has often responded to them with missile tests or other provocations.

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On this day in 1945, the George Orwell novel “Animal Farm,” an allegorical satire of Soviet Communism, was first published in London by Martin Secker & Warburg.

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In entertainment …

Opening statements set for Wednesday will give prosecutors and R. Kelly’s attorneys their first chance to address jurors directly about the charges that accuse the R&B singer of enticing minors for sex, producing child pornography and rigging his 2008 pornography trial.

One central focus of the trial will be on whether Kelly threatened and paid off a girl with whom he allegedly videotaped himself having sex when he was about 30 and she was no older than 14. That’s the allegation underpinning another of the charges against Kelly, conspiracy to obstruct justice.

Jurors in the 2008 child pornography trial acquitted Kelly, with some later explaining that they felt they had no choice because the girl did not testify. The woman, now in her 30s and referred to in court filings only as “Minor 1,” will be the government’s star witness in the federal trial that’s expected to last four weeks.

Kelly, 55, already has already been sentenced by a New York federal judge to a 30-year prison term for a 2021 conviction on charges that he used his fame to sexually abuse other young fans.

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Did you see this?

The world junior hockey championship in Edmonton this month has seen more empty seats than usual as Hockey Canada says the scandals surrounding the organization are, in part, holding fans back.

Hockey Canada has come under fire in recent months for its handling of sexual assault allegations levelled against two former world junior teams.

The tournament usually sees thousands of hockey lovers turn out for each game.

But this year, attendance for the postponed tournament’s 20 preliminary round marches was 1,319. The first three games of the tournament failed to crack 1,000 fans.

The 2022 tournament was originally scheduled to be played in Edmonton and Red Deer, Alta., in December, but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 17, 2022.

The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press

Convoy intelligence documents, Catholic class action: In The News for Aug. 17

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