News

ASFA elections take place February 15-16-17.

Interview by Joel Balsam

Video by Katie Brioux

President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt has resigned. The announcement was made Friday by Vice-President Omar Suleiman. The news comes after 18 days of mass demonstrations in the country.

The armed forces council will be handling issues of state. It says it will fire Mubarak's Cabinet, suspend both houses of Parliament and rule with the head of the supreme constitutional court. According to a military source, Defense Minister Mohamed Hussein Tantawi will be the head of the ruling military council.

Opposition figure Mohamed ElBaradei says he is hopeful Mubarak's resignation will start a new Egypt with democracy and social justice. 

Tensions are as high as ever in Egypt. In a televised address yesterday evening, Mubarak defiantly refused to step down as president. He did make some concessions, saying he would transfer his power to his vice president Omar Suleiman.

But Egyptians were not happy, expecting the speech to be his last. Groups of the protesters broke away from Tahrir Square after his speech. Some headed to the presidential palace and others for the state television station, both heavily guarded by the Egyptian military.

Read by Joel Balsam

Produced by Melissa Mulligan 

Articles by Erica Fisher and Jessica MacDonald

A manufacturer is recalling drugs from pharmacy shelves.
Health Canada said the medications are all over-the-counter in-store brands made in 2007-2008.
So far, no one has been hurt by the drugs
Inspectors at the Pharmetics plant in Laval suspected there was possible contamination between product lines and mixups with expiry dates. 
The recall includes acetaminophen tablets, and sinus and back pain relief medications.
The stores affected include Pharmaprix, Jean Coutu, Proxim and Loblaws. 
If you have any of these medications at home, bring them to your point of purchase. 

In Provincial news, the dispute over Sikh kirpans is making a comeback in the Quebec legislature.

The Parti Quebecois announced on Tuesday it would introduce a motion barring Sikhs carrying ceremonial daggers from entering the National Assembly building.

Last month, four Sikhs were denied entry into the building because some refused to surrender their kirpans.

The Charest liberals said little then, but PQ member Louise Beaudoin commended the security guards for making the right choice.

A court ruling will soon determine whether a Montreal taxi driver has the right to decorate his cab.

The taxi driver claims that his decorations should be permitted under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The cab’s décor includes religious objects, the Canadian flag and photos.

Taxi regulations prohibit any objects in the cab that aren’t related to the job.

The taxi driver feels targeted after he made complaints about the cab bureau failing to deal with unlicensed taxi drivers.

The taxi driver has previously received seven tickets for violating the city’s bylaw.