First Reading is a Canadian politics newsletter curated by the National Post’s own Tristin Hopper. To get an early version sent directly to your inbox, sign up here. Read More

Dawn had not yet broken in Jerusalem on October 7, 2023, when Baruch Apisdorf received a text message from his best friend. David Newman, 25, had borrowed Apisdorf's car to go to a music festival in southern Israel. Read More

A transgender woman convicted of first-degree murder in the killing of a 13-year-old Edmonton girl who was lured to a golf course, sexually assaulted, strangled, stabbed, then bludgeoned to death with a hammer, has lost her bid to stay in a women's prison. Read More

People like Kory Teneycke and Anthony Koch do not relocate from Ontario and Quebec to direct politics on the West Coast for fun. They do so because they understand the importance of what is happening in British Columbia. Read More

Suppose — just suppose — that in 2026 Canada’s federal-provincial relations continue to deteriorate under the mismanagement of the Carney government, that a clear majority of the citizens of Quebec or Alberta actually threaten to vote Yes on a clear secession question, and that the reactionary anti-development positions of several provincial and First Nations governments (like those of B.C.) continue to cripple the ability of the Canadian economy to support the health, education and social services required to adequately sustain the well-being of 40 million people. Read More

Solicitor General Michael Kerzner is right: Toronto’s response to chronic intimidation and harassment by masked mobs has been grossly inadequate for two years. Frequent vitriol and social disorder are causing real damage to Toronto’s livability and reputation. But the fault does not lay with our police, who are doing everything they can. Police don’t make the rules, political leaders do. Read More

Every gay man has felt that shame. It settles early, long before we have language for who we are or the courage to name it. It’s learned in locker rooms and hallways, in jokes not meant for us, but always about us. It’s reinforced by silence, by the constant calculation of what can be said, and what must never be revealed. Shame is enforced subtly — through exclusion, fear, and the knowledge that visibility comes at a cost. Read More

One oil spill would destroy a way of life, is what Marilyn Slett said she told Mark Carney when he visited Prince Rupert, B.C. to discuss conservation and economic opportunities in the region. Read More

OTTAWA — As Prime Minister Mark Carney lands Wednesday in Beijing to kick off a potentially important diplomatic trip to China and the Mideast, analysts say the mission removes any doubt that Canadian foreign policy has taken a clear pivot towards trade and investment since the departure of Justin Trudeau. Read More

The dark fleet of tankers shipping illicit oil around the world is rushing to seek the perceived protection of the Russian flag after the U.S. started seizing vessels involved in the Venezuelan trade. Read More

The United States must bomb Iran’s Islamic regime immediately and stop the slaughter of the country’s pro-democracy activists. While this would be an extraordinary measure, failure to intervene would constitute a historical injustice and a missed opportunity for the peaceful transformation of the Middle East. Read More

President Donald Trump expressed indifference toward the North American trade agreement with Canada and Mexico, portending a lengthy renegotiation of the U.S.’s largest free-trade pact. Read More

The United States on Tuesday designated the Muslim Brotherhood branches in Egypt, Lebanon and Jordan as terrorist organizations, fulfilling a long demand of Arab allies and U.S. conservatives. Read More

A chef and restaurant owner in Maple Ridge, B.C. catered an event for federal Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre and about 40 local Conservatives last Friday evening. Veronica Reale later publicized the occasion on social media. Read More

OTTAWA — A provincial policing association raised concerns about the "readiness" of a federally developed case management system to track the handing over of government-banned firearms, according to a letter sent to federal Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree.  Read More

On Sunday, aspiring federal NDP leader Avi Lewis promised that “under my leadership, the next time the NDP holds the balance of power in parliament, we’ll have one demand: proportional representation.” Which is a bit weird, right? Lewis seems to be conceding that the balance of power (which is basically something a party lucks into, rather than plans for) is the best the NDP can hope for. And that, if he had it, he would for some reason proactively limit himself to a single demand; and that he would insist on that demand being proportional representation (PR) as opposed to something that might help people (more dental coverage, day care, school lunches, what have you). Read More

Each year, the concept of wellness expands beyond green smoothies and yoga retreats. In 2026, look for a proliferation of specialized clinics catering to previously overlooked life stages and for cold therapy to become more humane. Read More

Former President Bill Clinton defied a House Republican committee’s subpoena Tuesday in an escalating battle over Congress’s handling of an investigation of disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Read More

Copenhagen — Danish and Greenlandic officials will hold high-stake talks about Greenland's future on Wednesday at the White House with U.S. Vice-President JD Vance, who has accused Denmark of neglecting its autonomous territory. Read More

As Iran convulses in the face of ongoing protests that have claimed more than 500 lives, the country’s neighbours watch with concern and anxiety. The foremost question facing Pakistan, the United States, Israel and Turkey is: what will replace Iran's decades-old theocratic regime, if and when it falls? Read More

As southern fried sleuth Benoit Blanc, Daniel Craig is apparently still enjoying the hell out of a franchise that allows him to build more space away from a certain, comparatively dour secret agent. Read More

Over the weekend, news broke that the British government was attempting to rally international support to take on Elon Musk's social media platform X over its AI tool's ability to create explicit deepfake images, raising fears about the sexual exploitation of women and children. According to the Telegraph, Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who has threatened to ban the site, held talks with "like-minded" countries, which potentially include Australia and Canada. Read More

Former Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau will reportedly return to the international stage next week when he speaks at a summit in Switzerland. Read More

It's a problem most of us would surely want to have. You've just won the lottery. But you have a decision to make. You can take $1 million right away, or $1,000 every week for as long as you live. Which would you choose? Read More