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Dramatic rise in fake political content on social media as Canada prepares to vote

Report finds over a quarter of Canadians exposed to ‘more sophisticated and more politically polarizing’ fake contentMore than a quarter of Canadians have been exposed to fake political content on social media that is “more sophisticated and more politically polarizing” as the country prepares to vote in a federal election, researchers have found, warning that platforms must increase protections amid a “dramatic acceleration” of online disinformation in the final weeks of the campaign.In a new report released on Friday, Canada’s Media Ecosystem Observatory found a growing number of Facebook ads impersonating legitimate news sources were instead promoting fraudulent investment schemes, often involving cryptocurrency. Continue reading...

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US forges ahead with plans for steep port fees on China-built vessels

New rules part of effort to revive US shipbuilding, but penalties scaled back after warnings about impact on consumersThe Trump administration is forging ahead with plans to charge steep fees on Chinese-built ships for stopping at US ports in an effort to revive its shipbuilding industry, but scaled back the penalties after warnings about the impact on consumers.The Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) significantly watered down original plans from February, under which vessels built in China would be charged $3.5m (£2.6m) each time they docked at a US port. The US and China are locked in a trade war. Continue reading...

‘They are trying to make it unbearable’: Jerusalem Christians face Easter under Israeli crackdown

Palestinians trying to access Christianity's holiest sites in the Old City of Jerusalem face restrictions and hostilityAs the bells rang out across the courtyard of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the priests began to sing a deep, low prayer. Heads bowed over candles, and escorted by people bearing aloft large gold crosses, they made their way to a platform at the heart of the ancient square.The ceremony on Holy Thursday, in which the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem washes the feet of 12 monastic priests to commemorate the Last Supper, is one of many Easter rituals that have taken place in the Old City of Jerusalem for hundreds of years. For Christians, there is no holier place to commemorate Easter than here, the site where they believe Jesus Christ was crucified, buried and resurrected. Continue reading...

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‘We’re going to stand up to Trump,’ says Mark Carney in second Canadian election debate

PM focuses on threat from across the border as most polls show his Liberals leading Pierre Poilievre’s Conservative party in tight raceCanada’s prime minister, Mark Carney, faced sustained attacks from his Conservative rival at an election debate on Thursday but the Liberal leader sought to focus attention on what he calls Canada’s top threat: Donald Trump, the US president.Most opinion polls show Pierre Poilievre’s Conservative party trailing Carney’s Liberals ahead of the 28 April vote for Canada’s federal government. Continue reading...

Maryland senator meets Kilmar Ábrego García in El Salvador amid battle over US return

Chris Van Hollen posts photo on X but does not provide update on status of man wrongly deported from USThe Maryland senator Chris Van Hollen met in El Salvador with Kilmar Ábrego García, a man who was sent there by the Trump administration in March despite an immigration court order preventing his deportation.Van Hollen posted a photo of the meeting on X, saying he also called Ábrego García’s wife “to pass along his message of love”. Continue reading...