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Israel's attack on Qana a 'war crime'Ignatieff: Remarks made on Quebec television Graeme Hamilton National Post Wednesday, October 11, 2006 MONTREAL - Michael Ignatieff, the front-runner in the race for the federal Liberal leadership, has accused Israel of committing "a war crime" during its conflict with Hezbollah last summer. In an interview on a widely watched Quebec talk show, Mr. Ignatieff apologized for comments in August when he told a newspaper he was "not losing sleep" over an Israeli bombing that killed dozens of civilians in the Lebanese village of Qana. "It was a mistake. I showed a lack...

Party needs help: Liberals Internal report urges pre-election overhaul John Ivison National Post, with files from CanWest News Service Friday, August 25, 2006 VANCOUVER - The Liberal party is in no condition to win a general election unless it launches a radical overhaul of its struggling fundraising activities and outdated organizational structure, according to a hard-hitting new internal report. "Our current system is not sustainable. We steadfastly believe the choice in front of us is relatively simple -- change, or become unable to compete to win," concludes the report, entitled A Party Built to Win, which was produced by...

Chaos mars Liberal caucus retreat Cnews.canoe.ca Thursday, August 24, 2006 By JOAN BRYDEN VANCOUVER (CP) - The fabled big red machine desperately needs a tune-up. That's the conclusion some Liberals have drawn following a three-day caucus retreat that was chaotic at times, obscured by self-induced controversy at other times. Interim leader Bill Graham insisted Thursday that the gathering was a great success. He told reporters Liberal MPs left the retreat "with a determination to go out of this caucus meeting united, prepared for the fall session of Parliament and prepared to give a principled opposition to Mr. (Prime Minister...

OTTAWA (AFP) - A Canadian lawmaker resigned his job as the opposition's assistant foreign affairs critic over comments last week touting dialogue with Hezbollah that sparked a furor in Ottawa. Liberal MP Borys Wrzesnewskyj proposed during a visit to war-torn Lebanon that Canada should try to negotiate with the militant group to secure a lasting ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel.

Liberals adrift Warren Kinsella National Post Thursday, August 24, 2006 That's what he said: "evil reptilian kitten eater." It was around noon on Sept. 12, 2003, and Don Guy -- the smart manager of the Ontario Liberal Party campaign -- cupped the phone and looked at me. "They just called us evil reptilian kitten eaters," he said, grinning. I still did not fully comprehend what Guy was saying, but I would soon enough. In an e-mailed press release, the Conservative campaign had called Liberal leader Dalton McGuinty -- then three weeks away from leading his party to a big...

BENT JBAIL, Lebanon - It would aid the cause of peace if Canada dropped Hezbollah from a list of banned terrorist organizations, according to two Canadian MPs now on a fact-finding mission to Lebanon. When asked if he was in favour of Hezbollah being taken off the terror list, Etobicoke Liberal Borys Wrzesnewskyj said: ''Yes, I would be.'' He likened the situation in the Middle East to Northern Ireland, where ''if there wasn't the possibility for London to negotiate with the IRA, you'd still have bombings.... ''Hezbollah has a political wing. They have members of parliament. They have two cabinet...

Liberal under fire from own party over Hezbollah remarksMP denies urging group be taken off terrorist listOTTAWA - An Ontario Liberal MP came under political fire yesterday, including from his own party, for comments indicating Canada should remove Hezbollah from the country's list of terrorist organizations -- remarks he denies making. Borys Wrzesnewskyj, the Liberals' associate Foreign Affairs critic, was quoted in reports from Lebanon saying he favoured lifting the terrorist label from Hezbollah, which has been on Canada's terror list since 2002. But Mr. Wrzesnewskyj, who was in Lebanon with two other MPs on a fact-finding mission over the...

Embattled Liberal critic resigns over Hezbollah statements Meagan Fitzpatrick CanWest News Service Wednesday, August 23, 2006 Liberal MP Borys Wrzesnewskyj has resigned as associate foreign affairs critic for his party after controversial comments he made about the conflict in the Middle East. Wrzesnewskyj offered his resignation Tuesday night, he told CanWest News Service, and it was accepted by Liberal Leader Bill Graham. CREDIT: Photo from Liberal Party Borys Wrzesnewskyj Wrzesnewskyj, who will meet with reporters this afternoon, came under fire earlier this week for suggesting he favoured removing Hezbollah from Canada’s list of terrorist organizations. In some media reports,...

MONTREAL -- Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Saniora criticized Canada on Monday for its support of Israel during the recent conflict in the Middle East. After meeting with three Canadian opposition MPs touring Lebanon, Saniora told Radio-Canada that he was particularly upset at Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s declaration that Israel’s bombardment was a “measured response” to the kidnapping of Israeli soldiers by Hezbollah. “They could see what a crime the Israelis have made against Lebanon and against humanity,” Saniora said. “This is what you call a measured response?” Saniora said the rest of the world found the action disproportionate and he...