Your World Tonight - Bondi Beach memorials, Rob Reiner death, food inflation in Canada, and more

Episode Date: December 15, 2025

Candles of joy, also lit in mourning. Australia is mourning 15 people shot at Bondi Beach on Sunday at a Hanukkah celebration. The mass shooting has provoked public conversation about extremism, anti-semitism, and stricter gun control.And: His work spanned generations, and genres. The deaths of Rob Reiner and his wife Michele Singer Reiner are drawing shocked reactions from around the world. The 78-year-old film director and his wife Michele were discovered dead in their Los Angeles home late Sunday. Their son has been arrested – accused of killing them.Also: The latest inflation numbers show price growth was “on target”. But that’s not the reality many people see at the grocery store. What items are costing more? And what the experts say about whether those costs will be coming down any time soon.Plus: Alleged terror plot foiled in Los Angeles, three children die of flu complications in Ontario, flooding in B.C., and more.

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Donate at lovescarbro.cairbo. This is a CBC podcast. It's just the most beautiful family event with kids running around and, you know, it's a celebration. And to think that people were there with heavy weapons, picking off children and the elderly, it's just grief, utter grief. The joy of a Jewish holiday gathering

on the warm sands of a popular beach shattered by, what authorities call an act of pure evil, a mass shooting targeting a Hanukkah celebration in Sydney, the heartbreak in Australia, and security fears around the world. Welcome to your world tonight. I'm Susan Bonner. It is Monday, December 15th, just before 6 p.m. Eastern, also on the podcast. He was, as they say in Hollywood, a mensch, a trustworthy and friendly and stable and reliable person that it was fun to be with. A master of Hollywood stories gone in a shocking real-life tragedy. Legendary filmmaker Rob Reiner and his wife murdered in their home,

the couple's son under arrest. As tributes pour in from entertainers and political leaders, Donald Trump uses the moment to attack. And the amount of influenza circulating among school-age kids is really tremendous right now. As communities across Canada struggle with a strong, and sudden start to flu season, the illness is being blamed for the deaths of three children in Ontario.

They came to celebrate Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights. Now candles are being lit in mourning. At least 15 people were killed when two gunmen opened fire on a group of people on Bondi Beach in Australia, a mass shooting, provoking public conversation about extremism, anti-Semitism, and stricter gun control. Sasha Petersik has more. Near the site of yesterday's shooting, flowers for those killed, remembering a 10-year-old girl named Matilda, a rabbi from Britain, a Holocaust survivor from Ukraine.

Australia's Jewish community is in disbelief, says Daniela Lacobb, blaming her government. And it feels almost like we were unheard, almost invisible. That's echoed by Abril Khan. We're a heartbroken community. We feel absolutely shattered. This is a horrific act of anti-Semitism. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says Australia won't submit to violence or hatred. Officials say both suspects have links to the militant group, Islamic State.

It's an extreme perversion of Islam that has resulted in these catastrophic consequences. And my heart goes out to the grieving families tonight. The shooting started yesterday evening on one of Sydney's busiest beaches, Bondi, as the Jewish community gathered at one end to celebrate the beginning. beginning of Hanukkah. Canadian Riley Strunahan fled. I just remember running down the street and seeing kids cry. Families running. It's terrible.

I don't think I've still really processed it, to be honest. Australian media have identified the gunmen as 50-year-old Sajid Akram and his 24-year-old son, Navid. They owned multiple registered guns. Ajida Kram was tackled by a bystander, fruitseller Ahmed al-Ahmad. He's now nothing short of a hero, says Jamie Williams. He saved so many people. If it wasn't for him, who knows how long it could have kept on going. The older Akram was shot dead by police.

His son is in critical condition in hospital. Albanese suggests they were acting independently. There's no evidence of collusion. There's no evidence that these people, were part of a cell. His government says it will now tighten gun laws, making it harder for Australians to own firearms. Tonight, as a Honika Minora was projected on the Sydney Opera House

and long lines form to donate blood for the injured, many in Australia are still in shock. Sasha Petrusik, CBC News, Toronto. Tributes to the victims aren't limited to our. Australia, neither is the fear. Around the world and here in Canada, police are increasing their presence around synagogues and Jewish schools. And as Thomas Dagla tells us,

an intelligence report obtained by CBC News warns about new threats of an extremist attack in Canada. At a menorah lighting ceremony, north of Toronto, at dusk, police cars are parked near the crowd as officers keep watch. All of it, sure to be able. familiar scene across Canada over the eight nights of Hanukkah. Beefing up security, it's not exactly what anybody wants, but it's the reality of our lives right now.

That's Rabbi Yisrael Bernath in Montreal, another city where police say they're stepping up patrols to keep Jews safe. CBC News has learned Canada's security and intelligence community has found that the threat of an extremist attack targeting the Jewish community here is a realistic possibility. The Integrated Threat Assessment Center stops short of calling it an imminent, credible danger, but the risk will come as no surprise to advocates who've been warning of a dangerous rise in anti-Semitism since the October 7th Hamas rampage in Israel, then the war in Gaza. The question isn't about whether there's a threat to Jewish Canadians.

The question is about when one of them is going to be successful. Noah Shaq leads Canada's Center for Israel and Jewish Affairs. He points to the ISIS-inspired mass murder plot that police said they foiled last year by arresting a father and son near Toronto. What's more, from Vancouver to Montreal, there have been shots fired outside Jewish schools and fire bombs thrown at synagogues. All of the ingredients that were present that led to this attack in Sydney are present here in Canada as well. Toronto police say they've received 108 reports of anti-Semitic incidents this year. In Calgary as well, investigators say they've noticed an alarming trend. Staff Sergeant Rod McNeil.

It was absolutely our hate crimes unit deal with those types of complaints on a weekly basis. At a Hanukkah event in Ottawa, Prime Minister Mark Carney said it's not enough for Jewish Canadians to just feel safe. Canada is not Canada unless all members of the Jewish community can fully participate in all aspects of Canadian life. Back at the menorah lighting in Vaughn, north of Toronto. The only option that we have is to be stronger and to bring more light into this world. Rabbi Haim Hildesim, who knew one of the victims at Bondi Beach, says his community won't be cowed and Hanukkah celebrations will go ahead. The alternative, he says, would be unthinkable.

We don't go ahead and cave into terror, God forbid. Thomas Dagg, CBC News, Toronto. Federal authorities in Los Angeles say they have foiled a planned terrorist attack. allegedly involving left-wing extremists who were preparing to strike on New Year's Eve. Paul Hunter has that story. We disrupted this terror plot before buildings were demolished or innocent people were killed.

Bill Assaley, who leads the U.S. District Attorney's Office for Los Angeles with the news of the arrests of four people, all from the L.A. area, all hailing from a group that brands itself fearsomely. The defendants are all radical, anti-government, members of the Turtle Island Liberation Front, which, according to their own social media, is an anti-capitalist, anti-government that calls for their associates to rise up and fight back against capitalism. The alleged plan, foiled by a paid confidential police source, was apparently dubbed Operation

Midnight Sun and, if carried out, would have stunned the U.S. Multiple bombings on multiple targets, timed for one of the biggest nights of the year, two weeks from now. Here's Achille Davis with the FBI's Los Angeles Division. The subject arrested envisioned planting backpacks with improvised explosive devices to be detonated at multiple locations in Southern California targeting U.S. companies. These bombs were to blow up at the same time on midnight this New Year's Eve. Included among the group's broader targets, say authorities, U.S. immigration agents and their vehicles who'd have been attacked, it's alleged,

early next year with pipe bombs. The investigation was aided, they say, by U.S. President Donald Trump's recent directive to step up investigations into groups deemed left-wing and extremist. What they are starting to do is shown at the news conference, video of a campsite in the desert outside Los Angeles depicting, say, authorities, components for an apparent test bomb. All of it, at a time of heightened concerns on multiple fronts throughout the country.

Three weeks ago in Washington, D.C., two National Guard soldiers were shot, one killed in what was described as an ambush-style attack. And as the FBI's Davis reminded Americans at the briefing on the alleged L.A. bomb plot referencing Rhode Island and Australia. As we're all aware, we've had a busy weekend in this country and abroad with bad news incidents one after another. Authorities say there are more members to the group involved with the alleged plans for Los Angeles. that they believe they've arrested all of those directly associated with that specific plan. Still, said the sheriff of L.A. County, Robert Luna, I encourage everyone to stay alert. Trust your instincts and report suspicious activity. Police say they expect more charges in this case will follow.

Paul Hunter, CBC News, Washington. Coming right up, a legendary director murdered alongside his wife, mourned around the world, and criticized by Donald Trump. Also, as cases surge, health officials in Ontario, say three children have died from flu-related complications. Later, we'll have this story. I'm Peter Armstrong in Toronto. The latest inflation numbers show price growth last month

came in just about on target, but don't tell that to anyone struggling to keep up with relentlessly higher food prices. The volatility at the cash register is going to be the reality going forward. The items in your cart that keep costing more and why experts say those higher prices aren't going away anytime soon. I'll have that story coming up on your world tonight. His films made audiences laugh and cry.

His death is pure tragedy. Los Angeles police say American filmmaker Rob Reiner was murdered, together with his wife, Michelle, in their home on Sunday. Tonight, their son is in custody. mourners are processing his death alongside his legacy as one of Hollywood's greatest. Cameron McIntosh has more. On the Hollywood Walk of Fame, roses lay atop Rob Reiner's star. Los Angeles police confirm he and his wife, Michelle, were found dead in their home.

Our hearts go out to the family and friends of the Reiner's. Chief Jim McDonald says Reiner's 32-year-old son, Nick, is in custody. He was subsequently booked for murder. Reiner 78 was the son of comedy legend Carl Reiner. Aren't we on the same side? He got his start as an actor portraying Archie Bunker's son-in-law Meathead on the 70s sitcom All in the Family. And when you got a home of you're on, you're be king.

In the 80s, he moved behind the camera and excelled, directing hit-after-hit movie. Including the mockumentary This is Spinal Tap. I'm never going to get out of this town, now, my gory. The coming-of-age story, staffed. by me. And before I knew it, we were kissing. Romantic comedy, when Harry met Sally, and the military thriller, a few good men. You want answers.

I want the truth. You can't handle the truth. Reiner easily crossed genres, even earning the nickname Mayor of Hollywood. Rob was like a father to me. Actor, Jerry O'Connell was 11 years old when Reiner cast him in Stand By Me. He would just, like, feed us lines and new lines that weren't written. He had one of the kind of greatest, unparalleled runs as a Hollywood football. filmmaker. Barry Hertz is chief

film writer with The Globe and Mail. Rob Reiner, I felt, was very much about serving the story that he was handed and he could work across genre and across budget to deliver something that would really be an

all-around crowd-pleasing hit. Michelle Reiner was an accomplished photographer and producer. She met Rob during production of when Harry met Sally and helped inspire that movie's happy ending. The Reiner's were also politically active, supporting liberal and progressive causes. Rob Reiner co-founded the American Foundation for Equal Rights, which fought for same-sex

marriage rights in California, and was one of Hollywood's biggest critics of U.S. President Donald Trump. There has been this undercurrent of racism in America. This is from a 2016 red carpet interview with CBC News at the Toronto International Film Festival. When you see Donald Trump basically giving voice to this white supremacist notion. Police are not offering any details on what. led up to the killings in 2015. Nick Reiner and his father made a film called Being Charlie based loosely on Nick Reiner's struggles with addiction. Rob Reiner had spoken publicly about

having a volatile relationship with his son as Reiner is being remembered as one of America's greatest filmmakers. Susan? Cam, so many people responding to this news, including the President of the United States. Tell us what he said and how people are responding to him. Yes, the President getting a shot in with a bit of a rambling post on his truth social media site, calling Reiner a tortured and struggling but once very talented movie director and comedy star who suffered from Trump derangement syndrome. Now this is getting plenty of criticism from Trump's opponents. California's governor Gavin Newsom called Trump a sick man. And even some conservatives are condemning it. U.S. House member Marjorie Taylor Green, who's been at odds with

the president lately, called this a family tragedy. Politics should not be involved. Trump went on to say in the Oval Office later, he thought that Reiner was, quote, bad for the country. Thank you, Cam. My pleasure. The CBC's Cameron McIntosh in Winnipeg. President Donald Trump says an agreement aiming at ending Russia's war in Ukraine

is closer than ever. U.S. officials say Washington has agreed to give Ukraine unspecified security guarantees as part of a peace deal. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was in Berlin today speaking with European leaders. They have pledged a European-led multinational force supported by the U.S.

The United Kingdom is condemning the conviction of British citizen Jimmy Lai by a court in Hong Kong. Lai was accused of violating a national security law imposed on Hong Kong by Beijing. He has been a strong voice for democracy in Hong Kong. His son, Sebastian Lai, said the family had expected a guilty verdict, but still finds it devastating. He also says there was no evidence of his father's guilt and the legal system has been compromising. by politics. As you know, the trial has been a just of a destruction of the Hong Kong legal system. I mean, allegations of witness being tortured, no jury,

three government appointed judges, judges that, mind you, shout at my father on multiple occasions during the trial. Lai has spent five years in custody, much of it, in solitary confinement. His family says the 78-year-old's health has declined rapidly. He faces life in prison. This is Your World Tonight from CBC News. If you want to make sure you stay up to date and never miss one of our episodes,

follow us on Spotify, Apple, wherever you get your podcasts. Just find the follow button and lock us in. For weeks, there were warnings. This flu season would be difficult. Tonight, there's a reminder of how dangerous the illness can be for some. Health officials in eastern Ontario

say three children there have died from flu-related complications. Lauren Pelley has more. We know that pediatric deaths due to influenza occur every year in Canada, but it is unusual to see this number of deaths over such a short period of time. While few details are being released,

Ottawa's top doctor says all of the children were between the ages of five and nine years old. Dr. Trevor Arneson, also says Chio, the Children's Hospital in Ottawa, has seen a surge of flu patients since November. And this is atypical and reflects a rapid rise of serious flu illness in our region. That hospital says more than 300 tests came back positive for influenza in the first 10 days of December. A striking spike compared to the same period last year when there were just 11. And there's a similar trend across Ontario.

Province-wide data shows more than half of flu tests are now coming back positive among kids and teens. That's sky high. Dr. Jesse Pappenberg is a pediatrician and flu researcher based in Montreal. That means the amount of influenza circulating among school-age kids is really tremendous right now. He says it's a grim numbers game. So much flu among kids means there could be more dire outcomes. And he worries that holiday gatherings will spread influenza into age-grimbing. at an even higher risk.

What I'm seeing down the road is that we might have a really bad influenza season for our most vulnerable population, which is our elderly. Doctors say Canadians of all ages still have time to get vaccinated. This year's season is dominated by H3N2, a strain that's known for sending more people into hospital. While the latest flu shot isn't an ideal match for the strain's latest mutations, it offers protection against serious illness from several types of influenza A and influenza B. Nobody wants anyone to go through this. Mississauga, Ontario mother, Jill Pramoli, lost her two-year-old son Jude to influenza B in 2016.

His case was relatively rare. Jude was both healthy and vaccinated. Now a flu shot advocate and school board trustee, his mom calls on Canadians to protect each other, since you never know who's at risk. But I don't want other people to be in our shoes. And I think it's important that we keep in mind that everybody who gets the flu gets it from somebody else. The latest federal numbers show flu outbreaks and hospital admissions are rising across the country. Medical experts say Canada's season might peak in the next few weeks.

Lauren Pelley, CBC News, Toronto. British Columbia has already soaked. Fraser Valley is getting hit with more rain and more flood warnings. Just as some residents are starting to clean up, Rivers are rising, and there's an increased risk of landslides. Caroline Baguut has the latest. This is quite high for what we're used to. David McBride lives across from the rising Chiluac River.

He's been monitoring water levels, hoping his home stays safe. It's going to overflow in some places, and it might overflow here, but I don't think being worried about it helps because we chose to live here. Environment Canada issued rainfall warnings for parts of the Fraser Valley, including Chilliwack and Abbotsford, up to 80 millimeters of rain, could fall on Monday, and warm temperatures are melting snow at higher elevations. Kelly Green is B.C.'s Minister of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness. As of this afternoon, there's approximately 100 properties under evacuation order and

1,200 properties under evacuation alert. This remains a dynamic and evolving situation and the risks are real. There is some good news. The overflow from the Nooksack River, which caused the flooding in the Fraser Valley, has stopped coming across the U.S. border into British Columbia. But there's growing frustration about the lack of flood mitigation plans from the federal government, which was promised after historic floods in 2021. More than 1,000 homes were flooded. Really, my heart goes out to all of those in the province of British Columbia that are affected by this most challenging time.

Eleanor Olshevsky is the Federal Minister of Emergency Management. She says $1 billion in financial assistance has been paid to B.C., and 4 billion more is coming for claims made after. the 2021 flood. She says the process takes time because the government doesn't want to duplicate what private insurance companies already cover. What we're looking to do is cover people

who are not insurable or for whom affordability is an issue. Premier David Eby says the federal government needs to work with the U.S. to make sure they do more to stop the Nooksack River from flooding properties north of the border. Well, it's an incredibly challenging issue, I think because the retrofits that are required

on their side really don't benefit. Americans. They benefit British Columbians and Canadians. And so we really have to find a way to get past that and encourage them or support them in doing the work on their side of the border that can make our life better on this side. In the meantime, concerns are rising in North Vancouver, which is now under a flood warning. The province says the additional rain could cause landslides, washouts, and debris on the roads, cautioning residents to be alert. Caroline Barcoot, CBC News, Vancouver. New economic data shows Canada's inflation rate was unchanged compared to a month ago, holding steady at 2.2%.

It's a snapshot into the cost of living, but not the whole story. A deeper dive reveals prices are still going up in the categories Canadians rely on most. Peter Armstrong reports. It's not your imagination. Everything really is getting more expensive, leading the charge, food and rent. Compared to a year ago, frozen beef prices are up 17.7%. Ahead of lettuce costs 25% more. Coffee up nearly 28%.

And experts confirm what we've all been feeling this isn't a one-off. The volatility at the cash register is going to be the reality going forward. That's Mike Van Massel, with the Department of Food and Agriculture and Resource Economics at the University of Guelph. He says a whole series of issues from supply chains to volatile weather and tariffs have driven up food prices. The problem, he says,

is that food inflation is a difficult category. Food is different than many other things because it is produced in a biological process. So we have much less control. You know, we can respond to demand for computers and demand for cars differently. It's easier for us to respond. Food inflation soared into the

double digits during COVID. It's come down since then, and month to month, the increases often don't seem too much. But if you compare how much costs have changed over a year or two or three, they quickly become a problem. Even when the headline rate of inflation is at or near the Bank of Canada's target of 2%, it doesn't tell the whole story. The 2% CPI measures the rate of growth of prices. It doesn't measure the level change in prices that has happened. Bank of Canada's senior deputy governor Carolyn Rogers highlighted that in last week's decision to leave interest rates unchanged. As a result of CPI being higher than our target in the past, and Canadians are still feeling that. The other thing they're feeling is that where prices are still under a bit of pressure is food and shelter, things that you really can't avoid.

Rents aren't increasing quite as fast as they were, but they're still rising, and that leaves many Canadians struggling to keep up. And J.P. Gervais, chief economist at Farm Credit Canada, says that struggle offers insight into a bigger problem. But the bottom line is that consumers are seeing higher prices, and that's going to reflect on their ability to purchase other goods as well, because they have to deal with significant food inflation right now. In other words, households have less money to fuel consumers spending and drive any economic recovery in the weeks and months ahead. Peter Armstrong, CBC News, Toronto. Finally, tonight it's a question you may have asked yourself while stuck in traffic, watching people on the sidewalk move faster than the vehicles on the road. Would it be quicker to get out and make the trip by foot?

Well, a Toronto man is putting that question to the test, running alongside public transit routes. Recently, he went up against the city's brand new LRT line, and it wasn't even close. When the LRT was able to go and the, the stops were a little bit further apart. It was able to make some headway on me. But as we got closer to Finch West,

it seemed like the stops were getting closer and closer together. It just really, like, bogged everything down. Mack Bauer is a runner and a public transit user. His man-versus machine experiment started last summer, racing Toronto streetcars and posting the results on social media. Bauer obeys the rules of the road, stops at red lights, and still has a perfect record. His latest challenge was Toronto's three.

three and a half billion dollar Finch West LRT. It opened last week. And a few days later, Bauer ran the entire 10-kilometer route, starting at the same time as the train and arriving 18 minutes faster. It is so obviously painfully slow. And frankly, that community deserves higher order transit.

They deserve quick vehicles. It was originally promised to take 34 minutes end to end. Andrew Pulsifer is the executive director of the advocacy group, T-C riders. He follows Bauer's footwork closely and says it helps draw attention to where Toronto's public transit lags behind. People who ride the new LRT have also been complaining about slow travel times. The mayor says the city's working on giving the train's better traffic signal priority, which will make trips much faster just in case Bauer wants a rematch. Thank you for joining us on your world tonight for Monday, December 15th.

I'm Susan Bonner. Talk to you again.