Ukraine tells Canada Russia must be held to account: In The News for May 3rd

She said Ukraine was compiling “horrific documented evidence” of war crimes including sexual crimes by Russian soldiers.

“The horror is that children are victims of these sexual crimes which are done (before) the eyes of their parents,” she said. “Sexual crimes is part of the Russian weapon (against) Ukraine.”

She said Russia has also kidnapped Ukrainian children and taken them to Russian-occupied territories and now Russia itself. But Ukraine is working with partners to find the children and bring them back.

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Also this …

MONTREAL _A national funeral will be held later this morning for Montreal Canadiens legend Guy Lafleur.

The final farewell to Lafleur begins at 11 a.m. with a ceremony at Mary Queen of the World Cathedral in downtown Montreal.

Lafleur, 70, died April 22 following a battle with lung cancer.

Thousands of people have paid tribute to Lafleur over the past two days as he was lying in state at the Bell Centre, the home arena of the Canadiens.

Nicknamed “the Flower” and “Le Démon Blond,” Lafleur was an NHL Hall of Famer and five-time Stanley Cup champion, having played for the Canadiens, New York Rangers and Quebec Nordiques.

The Canadiens hockey club said in a statement the Lafleur family accepted a national funeral as a way to share its grief with the community out of respect for the public who have supported Lafleur over the years.

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What we are watching in the U.S. …

WASHINGTON _A draft opinion suggests the U.S. Supreme Court could be poised to overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade case that legalized abortion nationwide, according to a Politico report released Monday.

A decision to overrule Roe would lead to abortion bans in roughly half the states and could have huge ramifications for this year’s elections. But it’s unclear if the draft represents the court’s final word on the matter, opinions often change in ways big and small in the drafting process.

Whatever the outcome, the Politico report represents an extremely rare breach of the court’s secretive deliberation process, and on a case of surpassing importance. “Roe was egregiously wrong from the start,” the draft opinion states. It was signed by Justice Samuel Alito, a member of the court’s 6-3 conservative majority who was appointed by former President George W. Bush.

The document was labelled a “1st Draft” of the “Opinion of the Court” in a case challenging Mississippi’s ban on abortion after 15 weeks, a case known as Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. The court is expected to rule on the case before its term ends in late June or early July.

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What we are watching in the rest of the world …

ZAPORIZHZHIA, Ukraine _ A senior U.S. official is warning that Russia plans to annex large portions of eastern Ukraine later this month.

Michael Carpenter is the U.S. ambassador to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. He said Monday that the U.S. believes the Kremlin also plans to recognize the southern city of Kherson as an independent republic.

Neither move, he said, would be recognized by the United States or its allies. Carpenter cited information that Russia is planning sham referendums in the so-called Donetsk and Luhansk people’s republics.

Also this …

CANBERRA, Australia _An Australian man was sentenced to 12 years and seven months in prison Tuesday for the 1988 murder of an American who fell off a Sydney cliff that was known as a gay meeting place.

The death of mathematician Scott Johnson was initially called a suicide, but his family pressed for further investigation. A coroner in 2017 found a number of assaults, some fatal, where the victims had been targeted because they were thought to be gay.

Scott White, 51, pleaded guilty in January and could have been sentenced to up to life in prison. Justice Helen Wilson said she did not find beyond reasonable doubt that the murder was a gay hate crime, an aggravating factor that would have led to a longer sentence. She also said she applied more lenient sentencing patterns in place in New South Wales state in the late 1980s.

He must serve at least eight years and three months in prison before he can be considered for parole.

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In entertainment …

NEW YORK _ Kim Kardashian shut down the Met Gala red carpet Monday in one of Marilyn Monroe’s most iconic dresses.

It’s a gold-beaded body hugger Monroe wore when she seductively sang happy birthday to U-S President John F. Kennedy some 60 years ago.

Kardashian had to lose 16 pounds to fit into the dress, designed by Jean Louis and purchased in 2016 by the Ripley’s Believe or Not! museum in Orlando, Florida, for a whopping $4.81 million.

She later changed into a replica.

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Did you see this?

Canadian “Jeopardy!” super-champ Mattea Roach has earned the fifth-longest streak in the TV quiz show’s history.

Roach is tied for the spot with Julia Collins, whose 2014 run lasted 20 games. To move up to Number 4 on the list, she would need to match James Holzhauer’s 32-game streak.

Roach has also brought in the sixth-biggest haul of any contestant in regular season play, earning US$476,985 so far.

The 23-year-old tutor has the longest streak of any Canadian to appear on the show.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 3rd, 2022

The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press

Ukraine tells Canada Russia must be held to account: In The News for May 3rd

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