World Report - May 19: Monday's top stories in 10 minutes

Episode Date: May 19, 2025

South Asian Canadians raise concerns about their safety following the killing of a businessman in Brampton, Ontario. US President Donald Trump speaks with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Surprise win for pro-Europe candidate Nicusor Dan in Romanian Presidential election. Spain orders AirBnB to takedown more than 65-thousand listings for holiday rentals. Israel to allow limited aid into Gaza while it expands it ground offensive against Hamas. The FBI names suspect in Palm Springs, California fertility clinic explosion. 

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This is a CBC podcast. This is World Report. Good morning. I'm Marcia Young. South Asian people across Canada are raising concerns about their safety following the killing of a businessman in Brampton, Ontario. Harjit Dutta's family believes he was a victim of extortion and this weekend community members packed a town hall meeting to demand action. The CBC's Benit Braich reports. Inside a Mississauga gurdwara, dozens packed in, mourning, demanding justice.

Gurleen Darda says not enough was done to protect her father. Today, it is our family. Tomorrow, it could be yours. We're raising our voices to demand justice and real change. Police say 51-year-old Harjeet Darda was shot several times in a parking lot. His family believes his murder is tied to repeated threats and extortion calls. Peel Police have not confirmed if they've received reports of threats against Dada.

But his death is sending ripples of fear and frustration even far away. Here in B.C., a number of South Asian business owners also say they have been targets of extortion threats in recent years. Jasarora is among them. All they're saying is if I don't give them a million dollars, they will kill me and my kids. Last year RCMP said they obtained evidence linking Indian government agents to violent crimes in Canada, including extortion. The RCMP also launched a national alliance to combat extortion last year.

But Cash Heed, a former BC police chief and Solicitor General says there have been very little results from that alliance for the community most impacted. And certainly we have not hit the mark for the South Asian community feeling comfortable that law enforcement has this in hand. He still acknowledges progress made by some local task forces. Peel police believe the shooting was targeted but have not announced any arrests or named any suspects. Benita Braich, CBC News, Vancouver.

US President Donald Trump is reportedly speaking with Russian President Vladimir Putin right now. The two are to discuss ending the war in Ukraine. After he speaks to Putin, Trump says he will also speak to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the leaders of some NATO countries. Just last week, delegations from Russia and Ukraine held their first face-to-face talks.

In three years, Trump had offered to travel to Turkey for the talks, but Putin did not attend. Romanian voters have done a big about face in the presidential runoff vote. They have elected a pro-Europe candidate. Nica Short-Dan greeted his supporters in Bucharest late last night after he edged past the far-right frontrunner who wanted to align Romania with Russia, Dominic Follitis, has the details. Thousands took to the streets last night to celebrate Nicolchor Dan's shock win in Romania's

presidential election. Despite coming a distant second in the first round of voting two weeks ago, the centrist, pro-Western mayor of Bucharest declared victory shortly after midnight local time. We have to build a Romania together, he says. Regardless of the political options, we have to build a Romania together with the Romanians in Romania. Romania, Romania. Ah! Where that is! Initial results show Dan had secured a comfortable eight-point lead over his rival, the far-right, eurosceptic George Simeon. Simeon is an admirer of US President Donald Trump

and fashioned his nationalist campaign after MAGA. And despite declaring himself the overall winner earlier in the day he eventually conceded defeat. We lost this battle but we didn't and we'll never lose our war. Romanians are today waking up to more than a new president. This election was a choice between two very different futures for the country. A centrist and pro-European vision led by Nicosio Dan versus a wave of right-wing nationalism heralded by George Simeon. Dominic Vellaitis for CBC News, Riga, Latvia.

Benjamin Netanyahu is acknowledging he faced pressure from allies to allow some aid into Gaza. The Israeli Prime Minister announced he is breaking his months-long blockade and will now allow some basic amount of food across the border. He says he does not want a starvation crisis to jeopardize the military's current offensive in Gaza. Crystal Goman Singh reports. The entry of aid is extremely urgent. How to get that urgently needed aid in, in the face of a hunger crisis, says Olga Cherevko, is being discussed. She is with the UN Office of the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

We've run out of tents long ago. We've obviously distributed the last of our food stocks. It's dangerous for aid workers or anyone to move around Gaza. Israel ramped up its attacks Sunday hitting areas like Han Yunis in the south and Jevalia in the north. Israel's army spokesperson said the IDF will intensify military control in the Gaza Strip by segmenting it and relocating the population for their safety. The aim is to force Hamas to surrender and secure the release of all

of the hostages. Omri Moran was taken hostage on October 7th in the Hamas-led attacks on Israel. Moshe Emilio Lavie is his brother-in-law. And I think there is a wide agreement in Israeli society and also in the security apparatus that military action alone cannot bring back the hostages. It was the IDF that recommended aid flow be restored according to a statement from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office. It says the development of a hunger crisis in the Gaza Strip would endanger continued operations to defeat Hamas. The opposite was said March 2nd when Israeli officials announced the blockade.

Crystal Gamansing, CBC News, London. Spain is ordering Airbnb to take down more than 65,000 listings for holiday rentals. The country is tightening up the rules around holiday booking sites. Properties for short-term rental need to have a license. Spain's consumer minister says most of the listings blocked did not include one, or they violated other rules. People living in Spain say sites like Airbnb, Cramp Housing Stock make rent unaffordable and cause over tourism. The FBI says a 25-year-old man is

believed to be responsible for an explosion at a California fertility clinic. Officials allege he tried to live stream the incident in Palm Springs on Saturday morning. As Katie Simpson reports, the FBI are calling the attack an intentional act of terrorism. What I can say is this is probably the largest bombing scene that we've had in Southern California. At a news conference, Akil Davis, the FBI Assistant Director in Charge, named the suspect as 25-year-old Guy Edward Bartkus. Authorities believe his remains were recovered in the blast wreckage. Bartkus had not previously been on the FBI's radar,

but he left behind recordings and a manifesto, reportedly outlining his opposition to people being born without their own consent and being brought into the world against their will. The subject had nihilistic ideations, and this was a targeted attack against the IDF facility. Davis says the suspect tried to live stream the bombing and at this point it's unclear where the explosive materials came from. The blast blew a hole through the building and was so intense, witnesses including Michael Bowmeyer say they felt the ground shake. Knocked me off my bike.

It was that big of an explosion. The IVF facility was not open at the time and the area housing embryos was spared from the blast. A relief for owner Dr. Maher Abdallah. My biggest concern was obviously my staff and the embryos that we have in storage. Fortunately for us, our staff is unharmed and the IVF lab is intact, untouched, unharmed. So the embryos are safe.

Authorities say there is no ongoing threat to public safety. Katie Simpson, CBC News, Washington. 800 people from a First Nation in northwestern Ontario are out of their homes. A fast moving wildfire is threatening Wapsamong Independent Nation. Residents have been flown to hotels in Niagara Falls, and roughly 100 firefighters are working

to control the flames burning just over a kilometer away from the community. Some people who were forced to escape the wildfire near Lactobani, Manitoba, are now allowed to return home. More than 800 people evacuated the area starting last Tuesday. But yesterday Reeve, Lauren Schenkel, said as many as 150 of them could return. Hundreds of others are still waiting for the all-clear. Schenkel is urging them to be patient.

I think that it's a matter of hours, but you know what, we're taking it day by day here and we're working in conjunction certainly with Manitoba Wildfire Services as well as the emergency measures people that are on this. Schenkel says he hopes the situation will be resolved by Tuesday. And that is the latest national and international news from World Report. I'm Marcia Young.