Canada Day 2025: Everything you need to know about how Ottawa is celebrating
Get ready for extreme patriotism and spontaneous O Canada singing.
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This year's Canada Day comes at a unique time as it's the first celebration since U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to annex Canada and turn it into the '51st state.'
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As Canada celebrates the 158th anniversary of Confederation, festivities will be taking place all over the national capital. Here's where the hottest spots will be.
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If you want to celebrate Canada Day in style, LeBreton Flats will be the place to be. This outdoor venue regularly turns into a sea of red and white on July 1. Access is free, although the 'gourmet concessions' are not.
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Several area artists will be performing throughout the day and you are more than encouraged to join the dance floor.
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There will also be several family-friendly activities, including interactive games and activities that will be all about celebrating Canada's cultural richness and diversity, such as Medicine Wheel bracelet making.
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Right before fireworks, the evening show (8 p.m. to 10 p.m., broadcast on CBC and Radio-Canada) will celebrate Canada 'loud and proud.'
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This iconic symbol of Canadian identity will be filled with several family friendly activities on Canada Day, including five giant inflatable artworks representing beavers in front of Parliament.
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The traditional Changing of the Guard ceremony will take place at 10 a.m., and the Royal Canadian Air Force Pipes and Drums will conduct back-to-back performances. Live broadcasts of the performances at LeBreton Flats will be available here.
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The celebrated aerobatics team will be flying over Parliament Hill in mid-afternoon. The planes are expected to start appearing around 4 p.m. and the show should last for about half an hour.
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Another thing making this year's Canada Day more special is that this is the 150th anniversary of the country's highest court. From 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on July 1, the Supreme Court building will be open for public tours exploring the court's early history, Canada's judicial system and how it deals with important legal issues.
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There will also be a family-friendly celebration on the lawns in front of the court. Music will also be playing throughout the events, and there will also be broadcasts of the performances at LeBreton Flats.
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Globe and Mail
27 minutes ago
- Globe and Mail
Carney to begin talks on NATO spending target as summit starts today in The Hague
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U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and NATO secretary-general Mark Rutte have both said they expect alliance members to commit to a new target to spend the equivalent of five per cent of GDP on defence, up from the current two per cent target set in 2014. None of NATO's 32 members spent that much on defence in 2024, according to the alliance's own data. All of them are pledging to meet the two per cent figure this year, including Canada for the first time since the target was created. A Canadian government official who briefed reporters on background before the trip said the spending target and its timeline are still up for discussion. Some allies have indicated they would prefer a seven-year timeline, while others want a decade to reach the five per cent target. Canada's defence spending hasn't reached five per cent of GDP since the 1950s. NATO estimates that Canada spent $41 billion in 2024 on defence, or 1.37 per cent of GDP. 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NATO countries agree to increase defence spending to 5 per cent Jan Techau, a senior fellow with the transatlantic defence and security program at the Center for European Policy Analysis, said the overall level of ambition in Europe on defence has 'massively' increased over the last several years in response to Russian aggression. 'The closer to Russia you are, the more ambitious you are,' he said. Speaking to reporters at a military cemetery in Antwerp Monday, Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever said that while he isn't comfortable with the five per cent target, it's important that the country remain in NATO. He also said the proposed 3.5 and 1.5 per cent breakdown 'helps a bit.' Lauren Speranza, a fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis, said the NATO summit is coming at a 'very precarious moment,' marked by uncertainty about the U.S. commitment to Europe, the grinding conflict between Russia and Ukraine and ongoing tensions over transatlantic trade. 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Globe and Mail
27 minutes ago
- Globe and Mail
U.S. strikes on Iran add to global travel disruptions
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An unspecified number of other Emirates flights were rerouted but continuing to operate flights as scheduled, using flight paths well distanced from conflict areas. Some flights may be delayed. Etihad Airways, the other of the two flag carriers of the United Arab Emirates, suspended all flights between Abu Dhabi and Tel Aviv through 15 July, and also announced several regional flight cancellations for Monday and Tuesday, including those connecting Abu Dhabi to and from Kuwait, Doha, Dammam and Muscat. Gulf Air, the carrier of the Kingdom of Bahrain, extended the cancellation of scheduled flights to Jordan and until June 27. 'As the safety of its passengers and crew members remains a top priority, Gulf Air will continue to monitor developments in the region closely, and work with its partners to help accommodate and reroute passengers affected by these flight cancellations,' it said. U.S. air strikes on Iran did not break international law, NATO's Rutte says Singapore Airlines SINGF, for example, canceled some flights to and from Dubai starting Sunday and through Wednesday, citing 'a security assessment of the geopolitical situation in the Middle East.' And British Airways has similarly suspended flights to and from Doha through Wednesday. 'Safety is always our highest priority,' British Airways said in a statement confirming its cancellations to The Associated Press, adding that it 'will keep the situation under review.' Air India on Monday announced it was ceasing 'all operations to the region as well as to and from the East Coast of North America and Europe' immediately until further notice. The airline, which is still reeling from a plane crash that killed at least 270 people earlier this month, added that India-bound flights from North America were being diverted or rerouted away from closed airspaces. Air tracking data from FlightAware showed 243 cancellations worldwide as of Tuesday. Dubai International Airport topped the list with 26 cancellations in and out of the airport as of 2 a.m. ET. And Air India had had the highest amount of cancellations among carriers, totaling 25 at about 2 a.m. ET. In other developments, Philippine Airlines canceled several flights to the Middle East, including those to Doha, Dubai and Riyadh for Tuesday and one to Doha Wednesday. Japan Airlines JAPSY said a flight from Tokyo's Haneda airport to Doha had to return Monday, and subsequently scheduled flights have all been canceled through June 27. 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Vancouver Sun
31 minutes ago
- Vancouver Sun
Israel says Iran launched more missiles after ceasefire started. Iranian military denies that
A tentative truce faltered Tuesday when Israel accused Iran of launching missiles into its airspace after the ceasefire was supposed to take effect and vowed to retaliate. Iran's military denied firing on Israel, state media reported — but explosions boomed and sirens sounded across northern Israel midmorning, and an Israeli military official said two Iranian missiles were intercepted. The conflict, now in its 12th day, began with Israel targeting Iranian nuclear and military sites, saying it could not allow Tehran to develop atomic weapons — and that it feared the Islamic Republic was close. Iran has long maintained that its program is peaceful. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Many worried the war might widen after the U.S. joined the attacks by dropping bunker-buster bombs over the weekend and Israel expanded the kinds of targets it was hitting. But after Tehran launched a limited retaliatory strike on a U.S. military base in Qatar on Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump announced a ceasefire. Both sides accepted the agreement, but it is now unclear if it will hold. 'Tehran will tremble,' Israeli Finance Minister Betzalel Smotrich warned on X, raising the specter that the war might continue. An Israeli military official who spoke on the condition of anonymity in line with military regulations said Iran launched two missiles at Israel hours into the tenuous ceasefire. Both were intercepted, the official said. Iranian state television reported that the military denied firing missiles after the start of the ceasefire — while accusing Israel of conducting strikes. It offered no evidence to support the claim of Israeli fire, with the last reports of such attacks coming before dawn. Part of the difficulty in sorting out the competing claims was that Trump's social media post announcing the ceasefire said Iran would begin holding its fire hours earlier than Israel. He later, however, announced that the ceasefire was in effect, even though the window he initially gave for Israel had not yet closed. After accusing Iran of violating the ceasefire, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz instructed Israel's military to resume 'the intense operations to attack Tehran and to destroy targets of the regime and terror infrastructure.' Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel had agreed to a bilateral ceasefire with Iran in coordination with Trump, while pledging to respond to any subsequent violation. He said that Israel had achieved all of its war goals, including removing the threat of Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs. An announcement on Iranian state TV later said the ceasefire was in effect. So did Trump, who posted: 'THE CEASEFIRE IS NOW IN EFFECT. PLEASE DO NOT VIOLATE IT!' Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said that his country would not fire at Israel if it was not fired upon, but that a 'final decision on the cessation of our military operations will be made later.' To secure the ceasefire, Trump had communicated directly with Netanyahu, according to a senior White House official who insisted on anonymity to discuss the Monday talks. Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff communicated with the Iranians through direct and indirect channels. The White House has maintained that the U.S. bombing helped get the Israelis to agree to the ceasefire and that the Qatari government helped to broker the deal. It's unclear what role Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's leader, played in the talks. He said earlier on social media that he would not surrender. The shaky ceasefire came after hostilities spread further across the region. Israel's military said Iran launched 20 missiles toward Israel before the ceasefire began on Tuesday morning. Police said they damaged at least three densely packed residential buildings in the city of Beersheba. First responders said they retrieved four bodies from one building and were searching for more. Earlier, the Fire and Rescue service said five bodies were found before revising the number downward. At least 20 people were injured. Outside, the shells of burned out cars littered the streets. Broken glass and rubble covered the area. Police said some people were injured while inside their apartments' reinforced safe rooms, which are meant to withstand rockets but not direct hits from ballistic missiles. Iran launched a limited missile attack Monday on a U.S. military base in Qatar, retaliating for earlier American bombing of its nuclear sites. The U.S. was warned by Iran in advance, and there were no casualties. Drones attacked military bases in Iraq overnight, including some housing U.S. troops, the Iraqi army and a US military official said Tuesday. A senior U.S. military official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment publicly, said U.S. forces had shot down drones attacking Ain al-Assad in the desert in western Iraq and at a base next to the Baghdad airport, while another one crashed. No casualties were reported and no group claimed responsibility for the attacks in Iraq. Some Iran-backed Iraqi militias had previously threatened to target U.S. bases if the U.S. attacked Iran. In Israel, at least 28 people have been killed and more than 1,000 wounded in the war. Israeli strikes on Iran have killed at least 974 people and wounded 3,458 others, according to the Washington-based group Human Rights Activists. The group, which has provided detailed casualty figures from Iranian unrest, said of those killed, it identified 387 civilians and 268 security force personnel. The U.S. has evacuated some 250 American citizens and their immediate family members from Israel by government, military and charter flights that began over the weekend, a State Department official said. There are roughly 700,000 American citizens, most of them dual U.S.-Israeli citizens, believed to be in Israel. — Gambrell reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Lidman reported from Tel Aviv, Israel. Associated Press writers Josef Federman in Jerusalem, Qassim Abdul-Zahra in Baghdad, Abby Sewell in Beirut and Amir Vahdat in Iran contributed to this report.
