NEWS IMAGE COLLAGE / for 09-2008

A B.C. pilot project that paid hospitals more money for cutting emergency wait times seems to have been a success.

Israel's foreign minister declared victory Thursday in a tight race to replace Prime Minister Ehud Olmert as the head of the governing party, getting a chance to be the country's first female leader in 34 years.

A nine-year-old B.C. boy is emerging from a coma 21 days after being injured by a truck that smashed through the front of a Maple Ridge sushi restaurant

An Air Canada Airbus jet carrying about 300 passengers hit an Air Canada Jazz regional carrier with about 40 people on board Thursday afternoon

Pharmacists in B.C. will have the ability to renew prescriptions, alter dosages and dispense substitute drugs without the oversight of a doctor beginning in January.

The Afghan war is going to end up costing the Defence Department more than $22 billion, both in actual money spent on the mission and future payments to rebuild equipment and provide long-term care for veterans, a military conference heard Wednesday. T

Football lost a legend today with the passing of former CFL quarterback and coach Ron Lancaster. He was 69-years old. A native of Clairton, Pennsylvania, Lancaster began his CFL career with Ottawa in 1960, winning the Grey Cup in his rookie season. H

Vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin's private Yahoo e-mail account was hacked, and some of its contents posted on the internet Wednesday.

OTTAWA -- Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz unnerved some public servants at the height of the listeriosis crisis by resorting to gallows humour during a conference call about a public health scare that has now killed 17 people.

OTTAWA -- Elections Canada has concluded that online vote-swapping schemes aren't illegal in themselves -- but it's warning voters to be careful what they're getting into if they decide to participate.

Maple Leafs Foods announced Wednesday they are reopening the Toronto meat processing plant linked to a nationwide Listeria outbreak that has killed at least 17 people.

SHERBROOKE, N.S. -- Canada is closing in on a deal to cut lengthy delays in delivery of a new fleet of maritime helicopters, but it's going to mean a bigger price tag, says the defence minister.

TORONTO -- Universal health care is something many Canadians cherish and want to fiercely protect, but a new study finds it lags far behind the standard of care that is commonplace in Western Europe.

OTTAWA -- Stephen Harper says he will allow the release of a report on the true cost of the Afghan war -- information that could dash his hopes for a majority government. Parliamentary budget officer Kevin Page has tallied the full cost of the mission

A U.S. spokesman says the American Embassy in Yemen was hit by a car bomb and that there were unspecified casualties.

Many Canadians across the country got some relief at the pumps Tuesday as gas prices fell by as much as nine cents a litre overnight.

Canada's ruling Conservatives have enough public support that they could convert their minority in Parliament to a majority, the Ekos polling company projected on Tuesday.

When Prime Minister Stephen Harper gathered the country's premiers at 24 Sussex Drive last fall, he wanted them to focus on what he saw as the country's No. 1 economic problem: Within a decade or two, there simply will not be enough workers in the country

California electric sports car-maker Tesla Motors is building a $250 million Silicon Valley plant to produce sedans that will roll onto U.S. highways in late 2010, the company said ahead of a Wednesday announcement.

As the Arctic summer comes to an end, scientists have determined that the sea ice has shrunk to the second-smallest size on record, continuing the disturbing trend associated with a warming planet.

For those of you who have been anticipating the so-called Google Phone as if it were the next iPhone, the wait is almost over.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. last year ended its U.S. efforts to obtain a bank charter following public outcry, but is looking beyond the border for a more receptive audience.

Ukraine's ruling pro-Western coalition has officially collapsed, the speaker of the Ukrainian parliament says.

DUBAI -- News reports say Arab television Al Jazeera has aired an interview with Canadian journalist Amanda Lindhout and Australian photographer Nigel Brennan who were kidnapped in Somalia last month.

A Regina man is asking why his son and other indirect casualties of war will not be awarded a new Sacrifice Medal to honour fallen soldiers

For the second time this month, the U.S. government put taxpayer money on the hook to rescue a private financial company, saying the failure of the huge insurer American International Group Inc. would further disrupt markets and threaten the already fragi

Canada's once-mighty Liberals risk finishing in third place in a hotly ideological election, behind the ruling Conservatives and the leftist New Democrats, according to the latest poll Tuesday.

OTTAWA - On a desk in bureaucrat's office sits a big number that could blast the Afghan war debate back into front-page headlines.

Mediator Tom McGrenere to meet with respective lawyers Dec. 15 in Toronto

16-year-old student is in critical condition in hospital after he was shot outside a Toronto high school, one of three shootings in the city on Tuesday that left two men dead.

Union officials are outraged after a group of migrant farmworkers who were harvesting vegetables in Abbotsford were sent back to Mexico after filing papers to unionize.

An American woman received five puppies Tuesday that were cloned from her beloved late pitbull, becoming the inaugural customer of a South Korean company that says it is the world's first successful commercial canine cloning service.

BISMARCK, N.D. - A man who once represented former NHLer Michael Danton in a murder conspiracy case has been accused of impersonating a lawyer in at least 10 U.S. states.

Stephen Harper on Tuesday acknowledged problems in the Canadian economy, but defended his Conservative government's record as continued uncertainty caused world markets to slide for a second straight day

BEIJING -- It was a perfect end to Chantal Petitclerc's incredible Paralympic career. The wheelchair racer won the 1,500 metres Tuesday to collect her fifth gold medal of the Beijing Paralympic Games. To celebrate her final Paralympic race, Petitclerc

Not looking good

OTTAWA - The Canadian Food Inspection Agency conducted spot checks at hundreds of retail stores over the weekend and has found no evidence that contaminated infant formula laced with melamine slipped into Canada from China.

LOURDES, France - People must accept death at "the hour chosen by God," Pope Benedict told ailing pilgrims Monday in an anti-euthanasia message at Lourdes

Vancouver Police say there have been eight arson fires since last Thursday in an area on the east side of the city.

Could it really happen again? Influenza scientists repeat like a mantra that when it comes to flu pandemics, the question is not if, but when.

While the mod's here do a pretty good job of keeping the tone of this forum fairly civil it's still a bit of an eye opener.

HALIFAX - The number of small spills reported by the energy companies that operate Canada's offshore oil and gas rigs has far exceeded their original predictions, a new study says.

THE risk of a worldwide recession deepened yesterday after the financial crisis toppled giant US investment bank Lehman Brothers and threatened the survival of the world's biggest insurance company, AIG.

A Quadra Island man says his family has been traumatized after their 14-week-old puppy was shot by a hunter.

The decision to withdraw the charges in this case was based on public interest considerations," Lt.-Col. Bruce MacGregor, deputy director of military prosecutions, said in a release.

REGINA -- Forty kilometres from nowhere, in the fictional town of Dog River, Saskatchewan, folks are filling up one last time at Canada's favourite gas station.

OTTAWA - If you hear the sound of a multi-engined roar next weekend, don't be surprised to see one of the world's two flying examples of the Lancaster bomber when you look into the sky.

TBILISI (Reuters) - NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said on Monday the EU-brokered deal for the withdrawal of Russian troops from Georgia was unacceptable and hard to swallow because it ceded too much ground to Moscow.

REGINA - The population of Dog River swelled by about 2,500 on Sunday as fans from across Canada gathered to say goodbye to the popular TV series, Corner Gas.

A Canadian warship has helped thwart a pirate attack on an Italian freighter in the Gulf of Aden

The U.S. Army has ordered another thousand Excalibur, 155mm, GPS guided artillery shells, at a cost of about $85,000 each. Canadian troops have begun using the Excalibur shell in Afghanistan earlier this year

Ending Canada's combat role in Afghanistan by 2011 is consistent with the will of Parliament and not a signal that the country is going to "cut and run" from the mission

Two BC Ferries sailings between Swartz Bay and Tsawwassen were cancelled Sunday due to mechanical problems

The first time Ryan Fentie smoked salvia, he was overwhelmed by the sudden, intense feelings that swept over him.

How the world's nicest country turned mean.

MONTREAL - The Montreal Canadiens don't officially open training camp until Friday, when the veterans report to the Bell Centre for their physicals

Saltspring Island resident Sally Cole got home from a sailing trip in August looking forward to a hot shower. But when she turned on her taps, all she got was slime.

Environment Canada has issued a warning for "serious record-breaking rainfall" over portions of southern Ontario this weekend.

small change in hurricane Ike's course just before it crashed into the Texas coast may have spared the state and the United States from significantly worse economic damage.

MOSCOW -- A plane carrying 88 people crashed in central Russia early Sunday killing all aboard, an emergency official said.

Gilligan's Island fans looking for a piece of television nostalgia should look to get stranded on Vancouver Island, where they'll soon be able to take a three-hour tour on one of the boats featured in the iconic series.

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan - A larger team of Canadian Forces mentors are arriving in Afghanistan with plans to step up the training of Afghan soldiers in a variety of combat specialties

Ike hit eastern Texas as a Category 2 hurricane Saturday with winds of 175 km/h and heavy rain before it weakened to a tropical storm later in the day.

Sea otters are beginning to return to parts of the coast of Vancouver Island where they have not been seen for decades.

Despite a cooling economy, the B.C. Liberal government will head into a provincial election next year flush with cash and possibly wooing voters with more tax cuts.

U. S.-based animal rights group wants a small-town Newfoundland heritage group to build a memorial to the "millions of baby seals who are bludgeoned, shot and often skinned alive in seal hunts."

Political officials' meeting at Nagurskaya underscores Moscow's determination

TBILISI, Georgia -- Hundreds of Russian forces packed up and withdrew from positions Saturday in western Georgia, and a Georgian official said Russia met a deadline for a partial pullout a month after the war between the two former Soviet republics

The price of gasoline continued to rise in some parts of Canada on Saturday, following a sharp increase of about 13 cents the day before.

OTTAWA - The Department of National Defence says a Canadian soldier has died during a training program in Mali in a non-combat related incident.

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan - Military officials say an investigation into the death of a Canadian soldier shot during a confusing gun battle in Zhari district last month was found to be the result of insurgent fire.

KEY corps commanders of Pakistan's 600,000-strong army issued orders last night to retaliate against "invading" US forces that enter the country to attack militant targets.

EDMONTON - Defence lawyers are signalling that they may ask a judge for permission to grill potential jurors before the start of the murder trial for two men charged with assisting the gunman who killed four Mounties at an Alberta farm in 2005.

When the Canucks return for the 2008-2009 NHL season, fans will be paying more than ever for the chance to see them.

Henry Burris threw touchdown passes to five different receivers Friday as the Calgary Stampeders swept the season series with the Montreal Alouettes with a 41-30 win at McMahon Stadium.

Milt Stegall became the all-time CFL leader in receiving yardage on Friday night, scoring two touchdowns in Winnipeg's 39-9 rout in Toronto

Security officials weren't laughing when CBC comedian Geri Hall approached Conservative Leader Stephen Harper at a press conference in Halifax Friday and began declaring her love.

As many as 20 people are feared dead and dozens of others injured after a Los Angeles commuter train collided head-on with a freight train Friday afternoon, according to officials

Storm surge driven by Hurricane Ike breached levees in coastal Louisiana Friday and flooded hundreds of homes in areas along the Gulf of Mexico still recovering from Gustav.

OTTAWA -- Stephen Harper may be closing in on his coveted majority despite being plagued by a series of miscues and bad news during the first week of the federal election campaign.

RCMP officials relied too heavily on information provided by manufacturers when they were developing their own stun gun policies and training programs, an independent review concludes.

A Quebec businessman whose name is one of the many that have erroneously landed on the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's flight passenger watch list has decided to change his name to avoid lengthy security hassles at the airport.

Kristin Scott Thomas bristles ever so slightly, then smiles patiently.

Ever wondered why one restaurant charges a decent markup on a particular wine and another has priced the same wine through the roof?

Garden shears, heated barbecue poker used to mutilate college student who was suspected of stealing marijuana

Harper gives thumbs up to the sale of Canada.

Film critic Roger Ebert on Thursday confirmed that a fellow critic yelled at him and whacked him on the knee with a program during a movie screening at the Toronto Film Festival last weekend, but said the incident was "blown out of proportion"

OTTAWA - Canada's ultimatum to NATO for extending military involvement in Afghanistan - 1,000 extra troops for Kandahar - remains unfulfilled, says John Manley, whose independent panel first demanded that extra reinforcement.

WASHINGTON - Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, taking a hard line on national security, said Thursday that U.S. could be forced into war against Russia to help defend future NATO allies from possible aggression by Moscow.

Facebook group is trying to pair up Canadians willing to swap votes in the federal election to keep the Conservatives from winning seats in tight ridings

Military families in Edmonton are wary about Conservative Leader Stephen Harper's announcement that he's committed to ending the Afghanistan mission by 2011.

All you need is an entourage, killer heels and a lot of chutzpah to crash a TIFF party

oologists have captured the first photos of the okapi in the wild, saying today they offered evidence that the animal once mistaken for a unicorn has managed to survive war and poaching in a park in a lawless swath of Congo.

Police say they have arrested Kanye West at Los Angeles International Airport on suspicion of vandalism after an altercation with a photographer.

Sportswear retailer Lululemon Athletica Inc. posted Thursday a second-quarter profit of US$11.1 million, up from a year-ago $5.1 million, as net revenue rose 48 per cent to $85.5 million.

The coast guard is considering buying 10 mid-shore patrol vessels instead of the dozen originally planned to reduce costs.

Americans marked the seventh anniversary on Thursday of the Sept. 11 attacks with moments of silence, music, readings of the names of the dead and the unveiling of a new memorial.

The Canadian men's soccer team hadn't won in half a century of World Cup qualfiers on Mexican soil, and Wednesday's result failed to change that.

About four out of 10 freshwater fish species in North America are in peril, according to a major study by U.S., Canadian and Mexican scientists

VANCOUVER - More than anything, Daniel and Henrik Sedin went to dinner Wednesday night needing to be needed. But Mike Gillis isn't the warm and cuddly type.

VANCOUVER - There's been all kinds of talk on where the pressure will fall this season with respect to the Vancouver Canucks

XIANGFEN, China - Several hundred people missing after an industrial landslide engulfed a Chinese town are likely dead, with 128 already confirmed killed

It's a scenario played out in locker-rooms and clubhouses across the continent.

Vancouver and Whistler will host heats for inaugural gay competition

Wine sales to private customers are illegal under a 1928 liquor law

A senior US Coast Guard commander has warned of the risk of conflict in the Arctic, unless disputes over international borders are resolved.

Powerful earthquakes rocked parts of Japan and Indonesia Thursday, prompting tsunami alerts in both countries

VICTORIA - Salmon fishermen are no longer throwing fish guts on shore for black bears around Port Renfrew, B.C. after one climbed onto a dock, jumped into a man's boat and mauled him

The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League won't ban fighting outright for the 2008-09 season that commences Thursday but will aim to crack down on brawling, the league president announced Wednesday.

Vuntut Gwich'in Liberal MLA Darius Elias says he blames hunters from the Northwest Territories for a large-scale caribou hunt that took place last week on the Yukon side of the Dempster Highway

Retreating sea ice in the Arctic has made it possible to navigate around the entire northern ice pack, a first since satellite observations of the region began three decades ago, according to NASA.

Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Danny Williams said Wednesday that even another minority Conservative government would be ruinous for Canadians.

The beams have not yet been run continuously. So far, they have been stopped, or "dumped", after just a few circuits. By Wednesday evening, engineers hope to inject clockwise and anti-clockwise protons again, but this time they will "close the orbit",

A performer with the famed Alvin Ailey dance troupe on Tuesday said he was twice forced to perform steps for Israeli airport security officers to prove his identity before he was permitted to enter the country.

Seventeen-year-old Paul Mingo has years of medical school ahead of him and can't afford to drag out his undergraduate biology degree. To avoid a potentially expensive extra semester due to class scheduling conflicts, Mingo has signed up for the Univers

Seventeen-year-old Paul Mingo has years of medical school ahead of him and can't afford to drag out his undergraduate biology degree. To avoid a potentially expensive extra semester due to class scheduling conflicts, Mingo has signed up for the Univers