Ottawa, June 24 (IANS) Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has denied meddling in an investigation into the 2020 mass shooting, the worst the country's history.
Brenda Lucki, head of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), has been accused of pressuring local officers to help advance Trudeau's gun control plans, the BBC quoted the Halifax Examiner as saying, which was the first to report on the development.
According to the Halifax Examiner, the accusation stemmed from notes made by a local RCMP officer, released as part of a public investigation into the mass shooting on April 18-19, 2020, during which a gunman posing as a police officer killed 22 people in Nova Scotia.
The suspect died in a stand-off with police.
Addressing reporters on Thursday, Trudeau said that his government "did not put any undo influence or pressure" on police.
"It is extremely important to highlight that it is only the RCMP, it is only police that determine what and when to release information," the BBC quoted the Prime Minister as saying.
Denying the accusations, Commissioner Lucki said in a statement released on Tuesday that information sharing between the federal government and police is normal during a high-profile event such as a mass shooting.
The RCMP chief however acknowledged that she "should have been more sensitive" in her approach.
Canada's opposition Conservative Party has called for a debate in the House of Commons, and a parliamentary committee voted on Thursday to hold a hearing into the matter.
In the wake of the deadliest rampage in Canadian history, Prime Minister Trudeau in May 2020 announced an immediate ban on the sale, transportation, importation, or use of some 1,500 makes and models of "military-grade assault-style" weapons.
25 religious leaders have issued a joint statement pointing to "overwhelming, undeniable scientific evidence" of vaccine protection as a fourth wave targets mostly unvaccinated people.
Both Alberta and Saskatchewan say that vaccination is the best, most effective route out of the pandemic and continue to urge residents who have not done so to get the two-jab protection.
Officers responded to an early morning call from the Salvation Army, where a man who appeared to be drunk was banging on windows and had reportedly been seen carrying a sword, the report said, noting interviews from civilian witnesses and paramedics.
It shows a man in his 20s arguing for several minutes with a group of people, who he appears to know. When a homeless man walked by the group, the suspect swatted him in the head, chased him down the sidewalk, pushed him to the ground, and repeatedly kicked him.
The airline said Wednesday that it also will stop extending pay protection to unvaccinated workers who contract COVID-19 on Sept. 30, and will require unvaccinated workers to be tested weekly beginning Sept. 12, although Delta will cover the cost.
Sajjan said that's because the U.S. is leading the mission and providing security and so its forces, some 6,000 personnel, must be the last to leave the airport. That means Canada's special forces and aircrews must begin departure preparations in advance.
