Montreal Gazette

JERUSALEM — The Israeli military said Friday its troops in Gaza found the bodies of three Israeli hostages taken by Hamas during its Oct. 7 attack, including German-Israeli Shani Louk. Read More

The cruise ship had a restaurant dedicated to “molecular gastronomy,” so of course I was eager to try it. I was familiar with the term. It had been introduced just a few years earlier in 1988 by French chemist Hervé This and Hungarian physicist Nicholas Kurti to describe a discipline that “seeks to generate new knowledge on the basis of the chemistry and physics behind culinary processes.” Read More

HAVANA — The 1959 Castro-led revolution installed an atheist, Communist government that sought to replace the Catholic Church as the guiding force in the lives of Cubans. Read More

HUITZILAC, Mexico — Tailed by trucks of heavily armed soldiers, four caskets floated on a sea of hundreds of mourners. Neighbors peered nervously from their homes as the crowd pushed past shuttered businesses, empty streets and political campaign posters plastering the small Mexican town of Huitzilac. Read More

KYIV, Ukraine — Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday that Moscow's offensive in Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region aims to create a buffer zone but has no plans to capture the city, as Ukraine will allow prisoners to join the army's depleted ranks and approved a fivefold increase in fines for draft dodgers. Read More

WASHINGTON — Trucks carrying badly needed aid for the Gaza Strip rolled across a newly built U.S. pier and into the besieged enclave for the first time Friday as Israeli restrictions on border crossings and heavy fighting hindered the delivery of food and other supplies. Read More

BEIRUT — The Lebanese militant group Hezbollah this week struck a military post in northern Israel using a drone that fired two missiles. The attack wounded three soldiers, one of them seriously, according to the Israeli military. Read More

FORT MCMURRAY, Alta. — Every day since a wildfire began menacing the city of Fort McMurray, Alta., grimy, exhausted firefighters have been spilling out of helicopters at the end of another one of the toughest shifts around. Read More

OTTAWA — Eight in 10 Canadians back a woman's right to an abortion and two in three don't want the notwithstanding clause used to restrict access to abortions, a new poll suggests. Read More

If you love goaltending, you’re loving the PWHL playoffs. Through the first seven games of post-season play, the teams have combined for an average of 2.35 goals a game and that’s with four games going to overtime. Four of the seven games have been shutouts. Read More

The Quebec government says it intends to soon create a "flying squad" of health-care professionals that will be deployed in the province's regions as a means of reducing the system's reliance on private agencies to address staffing shortages. Read More

Friday is the perfect day to test-drive a Bixi, which is offering free rides for the day. Better that than being in a car, with the multitude of construction operations that will slow things down throughout the long weekend. Read More

Drivers are urged to avoid the Metropolitan Expressway this weekend, which will be completely closed westbound between the Laurentian Interchange and Cavendish Blvd. Read More

Montreal police on Thursday announced they had made two arrests in connection with an attempt last February to arrest a car-theft suspect in the borough of St-Laurent that saw an officer hit by a car. Read More

Since the resignation of France Bélisle as mayor of Gatineau and the introduction of legislation by the provincial government that will fine people who harass municipal and provincial officials, there has been much discussion about some of the challenges unique to municipal politics. Like many others, I believe there has been a serious decline in public discourse that needs to be addressed or there will be a mass exodus of capable leaders. And those who could be great leaders might never even consider running for office. Read More

Moody’s credit ratings agency has downgraded Concordia University and warned McGill its financial outlook has weakened in light of recent Coalition Avenir Québec government decisions affecting these institutions. The news should come as no surprise since many warned such negative effects could come from these reckless policy changes. Read More

Wet weather prevented the explosion of incendiary devices planted at a battery factory construction site east of Montreal earlier this month, according to an anonymous online post claiming responsibility for the attempted sabotage. Read More

OTTAWA — Canada is providing $40 million to help Palestinians in the Gaza Strip amid concern over what it calls a catastrophic humanitarian situation, worsened by an Israeli ground offensive in Rafah. Read More

Quebec newsroom leaders are calling out a new bill to protect politicians from abuse, saying the legislation is excessive and potentially stifling to democratic debate. Read More

OTTAWA — "Freedom Convoy" organizer Pat King boasted about his role in gridlocking downtown Ottawa and directed protesters to honk their horns in contravention of a court order in a series of videos published on social media during the events. Read More