In the news today, Feb. 4

Four stories in the news for Monday, Feb. 4

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CANADA AND LIMA GROUP ALLIES TO DISCUSS VENEZUELA CRISIS 

Canada and its Lima Group allies are meeting in Ottawa today to talk about the political, economic and humanitarian crisis in Venezuela. Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland will host the meeting that comes amid protests in Venezuela aimed at pressing the country’s socialist leader, Nicolas Maduro, to vacate the presidency. Canada has contributed $2.2 million to the humanitarian crisis that’s seen three million Venezuelans flee their country, with most of them heading to neighbouring Brazil and Colombia.

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SENTENCING HEARING TO BEGIN FOR SERIAL KILLER BRUCE MCARTHUR

A sentencing hearing for the serial killer who preyed on men in Toronto’s gay village is expected to begin today. Bruce McArthur, who pleaded guilty last week to eight counts of first-degree murder, is slated to hear from victims’ families and friends who will give statements to the court. The prosecution laid out previously unheard details of the case in a synopsis of facts last week that included the 67-year old McArthur admitting he sexually assaulted and forcibly confined many of his victims before murdering them.

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STUDY FINDS IVF LINKED TO SLIGHTLY HIGHER RISK OF MATERNAL COMPLICATIONS

A new study suggests women who get pregnant using in-vitro fertilization have a slightly higher risk of severe birth-related complications compared to women who conceive naturally. Those complications include post-partum bleeding that may require a blood transfusion, admission to an intensive care unit, and, in extremely rare cases, death. The study found that roughly 31 of every one-thousand women who received a fertility treatment experienced a severe complication, compared to about 22 per one-thousand who conceived naturally.

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NORWEGIAN POLITICIAN PROPOSES MOOSE TRUCE

The deputy mayor of a Norwegian town says she may travel to Saskatchewan to discuss a possible truce in the ongoing battle over the world’s tallest moose sculpture. Linda Otnes Henriksen says she’s been following efforts by people in Moose Jaw to raise funds to raise the height of the community’s beloved Mac the Moose. The rivalry started when it was revealed that her town of Stor-Elvdal had a silvery moose sculpture that was 30 centimetres taller than Mac.

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ALSO IN THE NEWS:

— Montreal port employers and longshoremen gearing up for a battle over the definition of “essential service” amidst contract talks.

— Special Senate committee hearing on the Arctic looking at changes to the region and impacts on its original inhabitants.

— An estimated 5,000 students march to Queens Park to protest changes made to OSAP under the Ford government.

— Sukhmander Singh, owner of the trucking company involved in the Humboldt Broncos bus crash, to appear in Calgary court.

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The Canadian Press