NEWS IMAGE COLLAGE / for 04-2008

OTTAWA - The first step in Canada's exit strategy from Afghanistan will be for Canadians to shed the rose-coloured glasses about what can be accomplished over the next three years, says a senior Conservative minister.

Montreal firefighters with NHL playoff fever got a scolding from the City of Montreal for painting Habs logos and slogans on their station windows and walls.

The laughs are coming to an end in Dog River, Corner Gas star and creator Brent Butt announced on Thursday.

The breadth of a smile can be measured by new technology from Japanese electronics and health care company Omron Corp.

Dion says ensuring the basic security of its citizens is one of the most important functions of any government.

Advanced ground and space-based telescopes are discovering new planets around other stars almost daily, but an environmental scientist from England believes that even if some of those planets turn out to be Earth-like, the odds are very low they'll have

Ontario's human rights comission now wants to restrict it's critics on the internet.

A CUP of coffee touted as the world's most expensive is made from beans excreted by a cat.

Street slang slides off the tongue and into a new version of a hip dictionary that can translate Oscar-winner Juno

The Canadian women's hockey team dropped a clutch 4-2 decision to the Americans on Thursday, snapping a 29-game winning streak and granting their longtime rivals a berth in the world championship finals in Harbin, China.

Polar bears in the southern Beaufort Sea are starving as they struggle to adapt to a warming Arctic climate, according to the latest research by a Canadian polar bear expert.

TORONTO -- Randy Bachman, Colin James, David Wilcox and Alannah Myles are among the artists who will celebrate the life of guitar legend Jeff Healey next month.

The Conservative government's new immigration legislation has survived a key vote, despite an attempt by the New Democrats to block the controversial reforms.

HALIFAX -- The federal Fisheries Department has changed its practice of towing small vessels in ice following the recent death of four sealers whose boat capsized as it was being hauled behind a large icebreaker.

The finger pointing continues as details emerge about the months and weeks leading up to the deaths of three young children found murdered in their home in Merritt, B.C.

OTTAWA -- Canada's boreal forest is a ticking "carbon bomb" and its continued logging could trigger a massive release of greenhouse gases, says a new report.

Oscar nominee Sarah Polley says Bill C-10 -- which would allow the government to refuse tax credits to 'offensive' film or television productions -- will drive filmmakers out of Canada.

OTTAWA -- The House of Commons has voted to find a top member of the RCMP brass in contempt of Parliament for testimony she gave about pension troubles at the storied national police force.

"We had never contemplated running legs of the relay in other parts of the world," Furlong told CTV's Canada AM on Thursday from Beijing.

No 'net benefit' for Canada if MDA Corp. is sold to foreign owners, Prentice says of unprecedented stand against Alliant takeover

OTTAWA - Canada's boreal forest is a ticking "carbon bomb" and its continued logging could trigger a massive release of greenhouse gases, says a new report.

The federal Fisheries Department has changed its practice of towing small vessels in ice following the recent deaths of four sealers whose boat capsized as it was being hauled behind a large icebreaker.

SAN JOSE - The pre-series attention was focused on the many marquee performers. Iginla. Thornton. Kiprusoff. Campbell. Phaneuf. Marleau. But, as so often happens at playoff-time, it was one of the supporting players - a crusty character actor - who pi

Team Canada suffered its first loss on Wednesday, but still tops the leaderboard at the world men's curling championship in Grand Forks, N.D.

OTTAWA -- A Montreal company waged a successful lobbying campaign in 2006 to change the way Ottawa purchased $10-billion in military aircraft, and is now set to win a $600-million contract to train the pilots for the planes and helicopters, federal docume

OTTAWA - Despite weeks of frantic activity and negotiation, Canada's Defence Department can only guess how much it will cost to fulfil the Manley report conditions that extend Canada's Afghan mission until 2011.

Any jitters the Pittsburgh Penguins might have had heading into Wednesday's playoff opener were erased in 68 seconds by veteran Gary Roberts.

Canada's national women's hockey team continued its dominance at the world championships in Harbin, China, on Wednesday, defeating Finland 4-2 to clinch a berth in the finals

The Canadian women's soccer team qualified for the Beijing Olympics on Wednesday night by defeating Mexico 1-0 in the CONCACAF qualifying tournament semifinals in Juarez, Mexico.

An admitted killer from El Salvador linked to the notorious Mara Salvatrucha gang is living with his sister in Surrey, despite being ordered deported because of involvement in a criminal organization.

EUREKA, Nunavut - New research at remote camps on the sea ice of the Arctic Ocean suggests Canada has good evidence for its own claim to a vast chunk of the increasingly disputed seabed

Runners carried the Olympic torch through the streets of San Francisco Wednesday, but on a truncated path more than a kilometre away from thousands of pro-Tibet and pro-China demonstrators who had lined the expected relay route.

BERLIN -- Never mind the burly polar bear Knut, here's the cute new cub Flocke.

The U.S. experienced particularly bad hurricane years in 2004 and 2005. Some have tried to link those years to global warming, but the report said there is no link between global warming and either increased hurricane activity or severity, except for t

For all childhood cancers combined, 82 per cent of Canadian kids who are diagnosed are living at least five years, a jump of 11 per cent over the last 15 years, the society said Wednesday in releasing its 2008 national statistics on the disease.

EDMONTON - Bailey D. Buffalo was a gentle giant who started life as a bottle-fed calf and went on to become an ambassador for Alberta's bison industry, and a celebrity with movie deals, glossy magazine covers and encounters with royalty.

WELLINGTON, New Zealand - The price of beer is likely to rise in coming decades because climate change will hamper the production of a key grain needed for the brew - especially in Australia, a scientist warned Tuesday.

TORONTO - People afraid of heights or elevators need not attend as the CN Tower introduces the world's highest glass floor elevator.

HARBIN, China - Canada clinches a berth in the gold-medal game at the women's world hockey championships with a 4-2 win over Finland.

Village sur Glace de Roberval, Que., has earned the prestigious title of Kraft Hockeyville 2008

Team Canada burst ahead 5-1 and never looked back in beating Germany 9-4 in nine ends at the world men's curling championship in Grand Forks, N.D., on Tuesday night.

The latest telephone systems that rely on the Internet to make calls are easily breached by hackers and the bad guys are just beginning to attack, an Ottawa technology security firm says.

In raw numbers, that represents a 19 per cent increase in the number counted in 2005, and more than double the number counted in 2002.

"We cannot really tell the judges exactly what they should do but we have really encouraged them to resolve this case as fast as possible," said Espinosa.

Ontario Liberals are defending their plans for a trade mission to China despite international outrage over the communist country's human rights record.

NEW YORK -- Thanks to Bob Dylan, rock 'n' roll has finally broken through the Pulitzer wall.

Two top contenders for the U.S. presidency laid out their very different views on the Iraq war during testimony by two top officials.

The Tampa Bay Lightning won the NHL Entry Draft Lottery on Monday night and held on to the top spot in the Stamkos Sweepstakes.

A central Newfoundland family was forced to delay a funeral last week because Air Canada failed to deliver the remains of the deceased.

Last weekend, W-FIVE aired a documentary on the life of Carly Fleischmann, a 13-year-old girl from Toronto with autism. She offered a rare glimpse into the secret world of autism and has become a symbol of hope for parents and families coping with an auti

The federal Tories are expected to introduce a bill today to overhaul Canada's product-safety laws.

As protests continue to disrupt the Olympic torch's journey towards Beijing, Canada's Defence Minister Peter MacKay said the Conservative government has not yet decided on a potential boycott of the Beijing Olympics.

NEW WESTMINSTER, B.C. -- A B.C. judge appealed for patience from the families of the women Robert Pickton is accused of killing after deciding that the convicted serial killer won't face trial on an additional 20 counts of murder until an appeal of his o

GENEVA -- The father of a theoretical subatomic particle dubbed "the God particle'' says he's almost sure its existence will be confirmed in the next year.

Authorities in the Philippines are investigating the death of a Canadian tourist.

The Olympic torch has arrived in San Francisco but the president of the International Olympic Committee says ongoing protests may force his organization to cut short future stops.

Team Canada capitalized on a couple of mistakes to edge Scotland 6-5 at the world men's curling championship in Grand Forks, N.D., on Monday.

SAN ANTONIO - So patient for 20 years, Kansas had no problem working an extra five minutes to bring a long-awaited championship back to the heartland.

Tonight is the night we find out which team gets the opportunity to draft highly sought-after prospect Steven Stamkos.

RCMP say they are searching for the father of three Merritt, B.C. children found dead by their mother on Sunday.

PANJWAII DISTRICT, Afghanistan - The top political leaders of Kandahar province and the commander of Canadian forces in Afghanistan hailed hundreds of sweaty, sun-baked Afghan workers Monday for their courageous effort to build what's being billed as the

Three pro-Tibet protesters climbed the suspension cables of the Golden Gate Bridge on Monday to protest the coming arrival of the Beijing Olympics torch relay in San Francisco.

OTTAWA - A new national park is about to be created in Canada's north.

Calling it "a promise never to forget," Gov. Gen. Michaelle Jean has opened a national memorial centre commemorating Canada's fallen heroes and everyday people alike

With the NATO summit in Bucharest over and Canada confirmed in a combat role in Kandahar for at least three more years, there is growing speculation here among troops that General Rick Hillier will bow out sometime between now and the end of the summer.

San Antonio, TX (Sports Network) - The 2008 National Championship is on the line this evening in San Antonio, as the Kansas Jayhawks and Memphis Tigers square off at the Alamodome.

This is it, the eight playoff series are decided and the last 16 teams will battle it out for the 2007-08 Stanley Cup.

Sagging prices may keep some Newfoundland and Labrador sealers from heading to the ice when the largest part of Canada's seal hunt opens later this month.

An investigation into a series of explosions involving snowmobiles in Labrador has led to a voluntary recall of four Ski-Doo models.

Police say a quick reaction by a member of the Canadian Armed Forces helped save the lives of several young men injured in a highway accident.

The private information of dozens of British Columbians was unearthed from a dumpster in downtown Vancouver and turned over to CTV News over the weekend.

TORONTO -- Ontario provincial police are seeking relatives of an officer who died while on duty more than 80 years ago at the age of 26.

Moments into Sunday's Juno Awards broadcast, Calgarian Leslie Feist was already on her way to fulfilling expectations she would be the evening's favourite.

BURLINGTON, Vt. -- A Montreal woman charged with drowning her son in Lake Champlain almost two years ago may never stand trial.

RCMP say the slayings of three children in a small B.C. town are not a random act and the general community is not at risk.

With the world's attention turning towards the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, many Tibetans feel that now is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to squeeze concessions out of the Chinese government.

TORONTO -- Whether motivated by pragmatism or profit, Internet service providers and experts agree that consumers are likely to suffer most from "traffic-shaping'' policies implemented by some of Canada's telecom giants.

ST. JOHN'S, N.L. -- An exchange of e-mails shows that top officials in the office of Premier Danny Williams were told about problems with breast cancer testing in Newfoundland months before the public became aware of the matter.

The World Health Organization is sounding the alarm about the potential health effects of global warming in the coming years.

Strike three and it's out -- again. Raucous anti-China protesters have extinguished the Olympic flame for the third time in Paris this morning.

NDP Leader Jack Layton says his party could go to court to try to block the Conservative government from approving the sale of a key corporate part of the aerospace industry to U.S. interests.

RCMP officers in the town of Merritt, B.C., are investigating what appears to be the murders of three children in a home.

It took the full 82 games to work things out, but playoff matchups are finally set in both the Eastern and Western conferences.

It was a spectacular homecoming for Feist, whose hit single 1 2 3 4 sums up her Juno night so far as she sweeps this year's awards

Defenceman Mattias Norstrom's rare goal put his team ahead for good late in the second period as the Dallas Stars rallied to beat the San Jose Sharks 4-2 on Sunday in a physical regular-season finale that included 160 penalty minutes.

Ain't Muslim bashing great?

NEAR ZHARI AND PANJWAII, Afghanistan - The dismounted patrol, charged with guarding military engineers inspecting culverts for corrosion and bombs for Canada's Provincial Reconstruction Team, was already twitchy.

Then again, he doesn't seem to fit in coach Vigneault's defensive system

SOCHI, Russia - President George W. Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin failed to overcome sharp differences over Washington's European-based missile defence system at their weekend summit

MOGADISHU, Somalia - A French luxury yacht seized by pirates in the Gulf of Aden has arrived in the northern Somali town of Eyl with a reported 30 crew members aboard as hostages.

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan - The term "improvised explosive device" might be relatively new, but the concept is not: in Afghanistan, the ground has been exploding beneath the feet of innocent people for more than three decades.

The Canadian women's soccer team scored in each half to defeat Costa Rica 2-0 Sunday at the CONCACAF Olympic qualifying tournament in Juarez, Mexico.

OTTAWA - Somewhere along the way Stephen Harper realized that the war in Afghanistan wasn't about us, it was about them - them being the Afghans.

Ontario is facing a "serious problem" with overweight children and must do more to protect them by banning advertising directed at kids, NDP critic Rosario Marchese said.

ELLESMERE ISLAND, Nunavut - Seven tundra wolves yawned and stretched, slowly rising from their snowbank bed near CFB Alert at the top of Ellesmere Island.

There's no denying this city's affection for Trevor Linden, a city he embraced from the day he arrived at age 18, a gangly 18-year-old from Medicine Hat, Alta.

Roaring like thunder and moving like a freight train, a giant wall of rock rushed down Turtle Mountain and struck the southwest Alberta community of Frank with fury, wiping away dozens of lives in an instant.

Canada coasted to an 11-0 victory over host China at the world women's hockey championship Sunday, with Jennifer Botterill and Hayley Wickenheiser racking up four points apiece.

KANDAHAR PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Outside the door to their bunker, one of a group of swaggering young Canadian Forces engineers uses a Q-tip to carefully swab clean the edges of a pair of dice that he's just embedded in the newly poured cement.

VANCOUVER - Jarome Iginla got both a confidence-building win and a milestone Saturday night. He reached the 50-goal plateau for the second time in his career as the Calgary Flames prepared for the Stanley Cup playoffs by dominating the sagging Vancouver

LOS ANGELES - Charlton Heston, who won the 1959 best actor Oscar as the chariot-racing "Ben-Hur" and portrayed Moses, Michelangelo, El Cid and other heroic figures in movie epics of the '50s and '60s, has died. He was 84.

"There's dried blood in both of these needles," said Fraser.

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran said on Saturday it would press ahead with plans to expand its nuclear program, after diplomats in Vienna said Tehran was installing advanced centrifuges in its key uranium enrichment plant.

A long-awaited government plan to save Alberta's grizzly bears from possible extinction is swiftly drawing criticism, laying the groundwork for a heated battle over the future of the iconic animal.

A DISGRUNTLED wife is suing her husband for a million dollars over the loss of her virginity and a demand that the marriage be null and void

This exasperating, unfulfilling, hope-extinguishing team did what it has always done -- disappoint when it most promises. Expect the worst and you won't feel betrayed.

So here's the thing about all the public moaning and gnashing of teeth over the sad lack of leadership on the Vancouver Canucks and the inadequacy of Markus Naslund as captain: If he's so bad, who'd do better? Who gets the job once he's gone?

HALIFAX - The captain and first officer of the Farley Mowat have been charged with violating Canadian fisheries laws, stemming from a high-seas collision between the anti-sealing vessel and a coast guard icebreaker last weekend.

Ottawa's Catholic archbishop has appointed at least two new exorcists, one each for the English and French communities, replacing the region's last exorcist who retired five years ago.

Fidae 2008 flight demo of the A-380

MONTREAL -- A Canadian teen charged in Saudi Arabia for the death of a man has reportedly been sentenced to one year in prison and 200 lashes.

OTTAWA - The Ottawa Senators offered a tip of the cap to a former coach on Friday night.

It's been eight years since the red and gold eagle has soared on the back of a biker straddling a Harley-Davidson, but the Rock Machine is back on Canada's motorcycle club scene.

Canada Customs officials say they're seizing four illegal firearms weekly from U.S. motorists at southern Ontario border crossings despite calls by city leaders for a crackdown on gun smugglers.

A "reprehensible" man who drunkenly broke into a group home and attacked a terrified nine-year-old boy - in his own bed - was sent to prison yesterday.

A Superior Court judge condemned a "sexual predator" for robbing a young girl of her innocence and sentenced him yesterday to six years -- a year longer than the Crown was seeking.

A pet duck named Circles, shot and wounded by a neighbour with a pellet gun, has received an order of protection to keep it safe, the first duck in New York state's Suffolk County to benefit from such an order.

Two tables in the hallway of the Stampede Corral told the story. On one sat hockey jerseys signed by icons of the game (Martin Brodeur), photographs of memorable moments (Paul Henderson's 1972 goal, a bloodied Mark Messier, Vladislav Tretiak) and a repli

When Abigail London-Fife suspected her husband of infidelity, she pulled out a knife she had hidden under the bed and slashed his genitals and buttocks.