Ahmed Eissa
Senior Staff Writer
Canada
Prime Minister Stephen Harper vowed on Thursday that Canada will redouble and refocus its efforts to combat terrorist organizations abroad. The announcement came after Michael Zehaf-Bibeau killed a soldier at an Ottawa war on Wednesday.
After killing the soldier, Zehaf-Bibeau entered parliament and fired dozens of shots, but no government officials were killed or injured. Parliament was placed on lockdown for several hours, barring individuals from entering or leaving the premises.
Canadian police said that Zehaf-Bibeau had a criminal record and recently applied for a passport, planning to travel to Syria after undergoing a radicalization process.
Earlier that week, another Muslim man ran over and killed another Canadian soldier in Quebec.
Both attacks follow Canada’s announcement that it would send six jets to take part in coalition air strikes against the Islamic State fighters in the Middle East. However, there is no confirmation that the attacks are linked to Canada’s new military campaign or that the perpetrators had any connection to the Islamic State.
United States
Dr. Craig Spencer, Doctors Without Borders volunteer who recently returned to the United States from a trip to Guinea to treat Ebola patients, became the first person in New York City to test positive for the disease.
Spencer was rushed to Bellevue Hospital Center with a 103-degree temperature and placed in isolation. His fiancée and two of his friends have also been told that they will be quarantined, but it is unclear whether they will be relocated or kept at home.
Spencer finished his volunteer work in Guinea on October 12 and left the country on October 17, landing in New York City on October 17.
New York City health officials are retracing Spencer’s steps to find locations and individuals he may have come into contact with. So far, city officials have closed the bowling alley he visited and have sealed off his Harlem apartment building.
Hong Kong
Historic negotiation talks between student protesters and government representatives in Hong Kong intended to resolve a standoff over proposed political reforms ended without substantive progress.
The two hour debate between five student representatives and five government representatives was broadcasted to the public.
The current crisis centers over whether the people of Hong Kong will be able to choose their own representatives free from the government’s interferences.It represents the biggest challenge to the mainland’s rule over the region since China regained control of it in 1997.
Hong Kong’s chief secretary, Carrie Lam, said that the government would submit a report to Beijing about the discontent that resulted from the party’s decision to vet Hong Kong political candidates for office.
