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In the news today, July 11

Jul 11, 2018 | 2:45 AM

Five stories in the news for Wednesday, July 11

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CANADA TO LEAD NEW IRAQ TRAINING MISSION

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Canada will assume command of a new NATO training mission in Iraq. This will include the deployment of up to 250 Canadian Armed Forces personnel for one year starting in the fall of 2018. They will be deployed to Baghdad and the surrounding vicinity. The deployment will also include up to four Griffon helicopters to support NATO activities. Trudeau made the announcement this morning at the NATO summit in Brussels.

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TRUDEAU, TRUMP ATTEND NATO MEETINGS TODAY

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will come face-to-face with U.S. President Donald Trump for the first time since the end to the G7 meetings in Quebec last month that ended with Trump accusing Trudeau of being “very dishonest and weak.” The leaders are in Brussels for a NATO summit that promises to be anything but boring thanks to Trump’s presence. As he left the United States Tuesday, Trump slammed the European Union and other ally nations for not meeting their two per cent spending targets on defence.

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BANK OF CANADA EXPECTED TO RAISE RATE

The Bank of Canada is widely expected to raise its trend-setting interest rate today for the first time in six months. Thanks to stronger economic data, experts are predicting governor Stephen Poloz to hike the rate from its current level of 1.25 per cent. Poloz has followed a cautious, data-dependent approach in recent months and he hasn’t touched the rate since raising it in January, a move that came after two earlier increases in the second half of 2017.

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MIGRANT SHIP NOW A FLOATING TOXIC STEW

The MV Sun Sea carried nearly 500 Tamil migrants to Canada eight years ago, but now the rusting cargo ship sits on the B.C. coast — an unwanted vessel of toxins including asbestos, PCBs and mould, documents reveal. The federal government, which has been stuck with the rickety ship for years, is looking for an “environmentally sound” and cost-effective way of getting rid of it.

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TIM HORTONS TESTS FOOD DELIVERY IN THREE CITIES

Some Canadians craving a doughnut or double-double but strapped for time can now have Tim Hortons food brought to them as the national chain started testing delivery this week. It’s one of several concepts the coffee-and-doughnut chain is trying to remain relevant to consumers. The chain launched food delivery with Skip The Dishes, a food delivery app, through 148 restaurants in Vancouver, Ottawa and Edmonton.

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ALSO IN THE NEWS TODAY:

— N.W.T. Finance Minister Robert McLeod is to release the territory’s approach to carbon pricing.

— Change of Command ceremony at CFB Halifax as Capt. Paul Forget relinquishes command to Capt. David Mazur.

— Niagara Region Police will hold a news conference regarding human remains found in 2013.

— Sentencing arguments in Calgary for Alberta’s Lake Louise ski resort on two counts of cutting down endangered trees.

— Singer Joel Plaskett will help launch a new musical instrument lending library program in Dartmouth, N.S.

— World Cup of soccer semifinal, Croatia vs. England, starting at 2 p.m. ET.

The Canadian Press