Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed…
Israel seeking ‘significant change’ in how Canada tackles antisemitism
The highest levels of the Israeli government are mounting a campaign to change how Canada deals with acts of antisemitism — and its ambassador is suggesting Ottawa should limit certain freedoms in its approach.
During a virtual panel last Thursday, Iddo Moed suggested Canada has to constrain certain freedoms in order to stop the influence of nefarious actors.
He said elements related to Iran are active in Canada and are trying to prove that Jews are not safe here.
Carleton University political scientist Mira Sucharov says Israel is trying to generate support for its war against Iran.
The remarks come after Israeli President Isaac Herzog convened a call with Toronto-area Jewish community leaders after shootings at three local synagogues.
Consumers set to pay the price as soaring fuel costs hit shipping industry: experts
Rising fuel prices caused by the war in the Middle East are raising costs for Canadian shippers and rippling out to consumers.
New figures show the price of heavy fuel oil at the world’s top 20 refuelling hubs has nearly doubled since the U-S and Israel launched attacks on Iran in late February.
The conflict has pushed major shipping companies to halt voyages through the Strait of Hormuz as well as the Suez Canal.
Yan Cimon with Laval University says North America will be more insulated from price shocks than Europe or the Middle East, but the disruption still spells “bad news for consumers and shipping companies alike.”
United Arab Emirates briefly closes airspace as Israel strikes Lebanon and Tehran
Explosions sounded in Dubai early Tuesday after the United Arab Emirates reopened its airspace following a brief closure amid incoming attacks from Iran.
The UAE’s military was working early Tuesday to intercept incoming Iranian fire, while Israel launched new strikes on Tehran and against Iran-backed Hezbollah militants in Lebanon.
The Israeli military also faced new salvos of incoming missiles from Iran.
Tehran has regularly fired on Israel, American bases in the region and on Gulf Arab countries’ energy infrastructure, and has effectively stopped shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz.
Fears of a global energy crisis continue as the war rages on.
Cash-strapped N.B. braces for cuts as Premier Holt’s Liberals deliver budget
New Brunswickers are about to find out exactly how Premier Susan Holt’s Liberal government plans to tackle the province’s worsening finances.
Finance Minister René Legacy is expected to table the new provincial budget in Fredericton today after recently revealing the 2025-26 fiscal year was headed toward a record $1.3-billion deficit.
The government has warned that nearly every service and program is at risk of cuts this year, including in health care, and that reducing the size of the civil service, closing small schools and selling off provincial properties are all being considered.
The government is considering tolls on out-of-province vehicles and increases to service fees to boost revenues, but Legacy has said he’s not seriously considering tax hikes.
Why it could take years to trace the Indigenous artifacts returned by the Vatican
More than 60 Indigenous items repatriated from the Vatican are now back on Canadian soil, but experts say their journey home is just getting started.
The items — which include baby carriers, embroidered gloves, a bow and arrow, moccasins, a sealskin kayak and a model Métis sled and dog team — are being housed at the Canadian Museum of History in Gatineau, Que.
Cody Groat with Western University says tracing the items back to their communities or families of origin could take years.
But Groat says even once experts trace an archival item back to its original community, that won’t mean it will be in a position to take it — especially if it’s struggling with repairs to core infrastructure like housing and water systems.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 17, 2026.
The Canadian Press
