Ottawa’s diplomatic scene has witnessed its share of squabbles and small rivalries, but it’s hard to recall the last time an actual fistfight broke out at an embassy, as reportedly happened at the Israeli mission on O’Connor Street. What’s more, the alleged shoving match was between two Israeli representatives. The altercation was splashed across the front pages of two mass-circulation … Read More
Norman Levine, one of Canada’s top fiction writers and perhaps the greatest to come out of Ottawa, died on Tuesday in northern England, lonely and destitute like so many of the wonderful characters he created. For years, he had been suffering from heart troubles that caused him to black out and faint. On Monday, he suffered another collapse, and a … Read More
CAMP ZIOUANI, Golan Heights – From inside a creaky, rusty United Nations observation tower, a majestic view of the Holy Land unfolds. To the north, the snow-capped peaks of Mount Hermon. To the east, the plains of Syria. To the west, the hills of the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights glimmer in the sunset. It’s early March and it is so quiet … Read More
Ottawa’s Shaunna Burke reached the summit of Mount Everest late last night, becoming the second Canadian woman in history to reach the top of the mountain. “It took quite awhile,” said Ms. Burke’s former climbing partner, Ben Webster. “Shaunna was in the first couple of climbers to reach the summit.” Ms. Burke’s climbing group was the first to succeed the … Read More
TEL AVIV_ In Ottawa, she captivated Canadians with her optimistic outlook and her pursuit of peace. Upon returning home to Israel, though, Michelle Divon was slapped in the face with some harsh Middle East reality. “I could change more overseas than I can here,” she said recently at a Tel Aviv cafe. “I was able to do something for my … Read More
Sean Egan is dead. Ben Webster is lying in his bed in Kanata with a severely broken leg. Shaunna Burke and Peggy Foster are battling illness, exhaustion and a stubborn mountain that won’t let them climb it. And then there is Larry Legault. While Mount Everest has exacted a heavy toll from each of his adventurous colleagues from Ottawa, Mr. … Read More
WINNIPEG – Sitting in the Crystal Ballroom of the Fort Garry Hotel, I could hardly believe the words I was hearing. Here I was at the conclusion of the Canadian Association of Journalists’ national conference, a weekend in which we could take pride in our often-maligned profession. There were lectures and panels devoted to highlighting journalistic ethics and integrity, workshops … Read More
OTTAWA _ As Sean Egan’s children prepare to head to Nepal tomorrow morning to reclaim their father’s body, a fellow Ottawa mountaineer has decided to end his own quest of reaching the top of Mount Everest. Larry Legault, an orthopedic surgeon from Ottawa, called home early yesterday and announced his intention to leave the perilous mountain and return to his … Read More
With a wide grin and a warm chuckle, Sean Egan welcomed me into his modest office at the University of Ottawa. His mumbling Irish-accented voice instantly put me at ease. From that first meeting in early February to our last phone conversation a week ago from the Everest Base Camp, I developed a more intimate relationship with an interview subject … Read More
OTTAWA – The desire to seek vengeance was the initial, primal reaction to the public execution, three years ago in Pakistan, of his son, Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl. But instead of violence, Judea Pearl sought peace. “In caveman times, you kill the enemy and you kill the threat,” Mr. Pearl said from his home in Los Angeles. “In … Read More
It’s a common Hebrew expression: “holech al gadol,” which translates directly to “going for big.” In casual usage, the words describe an ambitious person but they also apply in a larger sense to 21st century Israel. Look just about anywhere in this country — from the heart of the Negev desert in the south to the R&D heartland of Haifa … Read More
HAIFA, Israel – Professor Uri Sivan wants to show Israelis that small can be beautiful. He is one of the world’s leading researchers in nanotechnology — the science of developing materials and creating machines by manipulating molecules. From his office atop Mount Carmel at the Haifa Technion, he hopes to change the way we live. In February, the Technion, known … Read More
METULLA, Israel_ Lying on his bed, Oren Zamir can take in the comforting mementoes of his sporting life: team pictures, a Toronto Maple Leafs flag and mounted hockey sticks. Out the window of his bedroom, though, are soldiers, a fence separating two countries and a yellow Hezbollah flag. This is where a hockey star sleeps, a place where contrast and … Read More
Bob Metcalfe died Wednesday doing his life’s work: volunteering and serving those less capable. He collapsed at a meeting of Sage, the Kiwanis-backed service club for seniors and an organization the former Rotarian joined five years ago. The Second World War veteran’s legacy will also live on with each of us. He’s the tall soldier with a beret depicted on … Read More
JERUSALEM – Adolfo Roitman, one of the world’s leading Bible scholars, thought he knew everything about the Dead Sea Scrolls. After all, he’s the curator of the Shrine of the Book, which houses the priceless artifacts at the Israel Museum. But a group of Christians and Jews from Ottawa taught him something new: The scrolls are an instrument of interfaith … Read More