2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Unrest by region, Kharkiv Oblast, Further protests
One of the speakers at the protest said that the best way to fight corruption was to create a "local regional government", as they said this would eliminate the need to "bribe the ministers in Kyiv". A concurrent protest in the same square saw 250 pro-Euromaidan demonstrators voice their support for lustration and against oligarchy. The pro-Euromaidan demonstrators also collected money for the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and for refugees fleeing the War in Donbas. A Kharkiv court decision banned a planned 23 August joint rally of the Communist Party of Ukraine and the organization "South-East".


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Unrest by region, Kharkiv Oblast, Further protests
"South-East" itself was banned on 20 August, because it was deemed to be "a threat to the sovereignty of Ukraine and the security of its people" by a Kharkiv court. About 500 people marched on 23 August in commemoration of the Day of the National Flag and the European Day of Remembrance for Victims of Stalinism and Nazism; one of their demands was the dissolution of the city administration. A peaceful gathering of Ukrainian unity activists was held outside the Russian consulate in Kharkiv on 28 August. Around 400 people attended the demonstration. Participants said they were concerned about Russia's intervention in the War in Donbas. The demonstration was later dispersed by the police after stun grenades were thrown at the consulate.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Unrest by region, Kharkiv Oblast, Further protests
One of the largest gatherings of supporters of Ukrainian unity in many months took place in Kharkiv on 28 September. At about 14:30, a diverse crowd of 2,000 people met in front of the Opera House. The demonstration was led by the Azov paramilitary battalion. The crowd then marched to Freedom Square, where there was a statue of Vladimir Lenin. The statue been a rallying point for pro-Russian protesters earlier in the year. By this time, the crowd had reached 5,000 people.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Unrest by region, Kharkiv Oblast, Further protests
The statue of Lenin was pulled down by the demonstrators at 22:40, shortly after oblast governor Ihor Baluta signed an order to dismantle the statue. In late October, Governor Baluta admitted that he thought that the majority of the city's residents had not wanted the statue removed, but said "there was hardly any protest afterward either, which is quite telling".


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Unrest by region, Kharkiv Oblast, Further protests
From early November until mid-December, Kharkiv was struck by seven non-lethal bomb blasts. Targets of these attacks included a rock pub known for raising money for Ukrainian forces, a hospital for Ukrainian forces, a military recruiting centre, and a National Guard base. According to SBU investigator Vasyliy Vovk, Russian covert forces were behind the attacks, and had intended to destabilize the otherwise calm city of Kharkiv.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Unrest by region, Odessa Oblast
Beginning on 1 March, demonstrations began in Odessa Oblast. Police reported that 5,000 participated in a pro-Russian demonstration in the city of Odessa on that day.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Unrest by region, Odessa Oblast
Rolling demonstrations continued, and on 3 March 2014, 200–500 demonstrators with Russian flags attempted to seize the Odessa Regional State Administration building. They demanded that a referendum on the establishment of an "Odessa Autonomous Republic" be held.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Unrest by region, Odessa Oblast
An 'Odessa People's Republic' was allegedly proclaimed by an internet group in Odessa Oblast on 16 April. Members of the Odessa anti-Maidan protest group later swore that they made no such declaration, and the leaders of the group said they had only heard about it through the media. The OSCE monitoring mission in Ukraine later confirmed that the situation in Odessa remained calm.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Unrest by region, Odessa Oblast
Local anti-Maidan and pro-Euromaidan leaders in Odessa Oblast voiced scepticism about the Geneva Statement on Ukraine on 20 April. The anti-Maidan leaders insisted that they aimed not at secession, but at the establishment of a wider federated state called 'Novorossiya' within Ukraine.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Unrest by region, Odessa Oblast
A hand grenade was thrown from a passing car at a joint police-Maidan self-defence checkpoint outside Odessa on 25 April, injuring seven people, and causing heightened tensions in the region.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Unrest by region, Odessa Oblast, City centre clashes and further events
A week later, on 2 May, a rally by about 1,500 pro-government demonstrators, including football ultras, was attacked by visibly smaller group of alleged pro-Russian militants with batons and helmets. Both sides clashed in the streets of central Odessa, building barricades, throwing petrol bombs, and firing automatic weapons at each other.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Unrest by region, Odessa Oblast, City centre clashes and further events
The anti-Maidan protesters were later overwhelmed by the much larger group of Ukrainian unity protesters, forcing them to retreat to and occupy the Trade Unions House. Whilst defending the building, militants on the roof tossed rocks and petrol bombs at the protesters below, who responded in kind with petrol bombs of their own. The building then caught fire. In total, 43 people died during the clashes. Thirty-one died whilst trapped in the burning Trade Unions House. Police said at least three people were shot dead.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Unrest by region, Odessa Oblast, City centre clashes and further events
In the aftermath of the clashes, on 4 May, the main Internal Affairs Ministry office in Odessa was attacked by pro-Russian protesters. They demanded the release of their "comrades" who had participated in the clashes. The police complied, resulting in the freeing of 67 of those arrested. By 5 May, the situation in Odessa had calmed, though the atmosphere remained extremely tense.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Unrest by region, Odessa Oblast, City centre clashes and further events
About sixty people gathered on Kulikovo Field to commemorate the 2 May fire on 13 July. The demonstration was peaceful. Another demonstration on the field on the same day drew about 120 people. They chanted "Donbas, we are with you", in reference to the ongoing War in Donbas. Odessa city mayor Hennadiy Trukhanov told OSCE monitors on 23 July that the "underlying tensions" of the 2 May clashes remained in the city, and that he feared for the city's security.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Unrest by region, Odessa Oblast, City centre clashes and further events
Odessa was struck by six bomb blasts in December 2014, one of which killed one person (the injuries sustained by the victim indicated that he had dealt with explosives). Internal Affairs Ministry advisor Zorian Shkiryak said on 25 December that Odessa and Kharkiv had become "cities which are being used to escalate tensions" in Ukraine. Shkiryak said that he suspected that these cities were singled out because of their "geographic position".


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Unrest by region, Odessa Oblast, City centre clashes and further events
The Security Service of Ukraine claims that in April 2015 it prevented the proclamation of a so-called "Bessarabian People’s Republic". According to the security service the separatist network behind it also wanted to set up a "Odesa People's Republic", "Porto-Franko" and other breakaway entities.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Largest protests by date and attendance
The charts below show the locations, dates, and attendance rate of pro-Russian protests in Ukraine, and also of pro-Ukrainian counter-protests.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, International response
Various international entities warned all sides to reduce tensions in Eastern and Southern Ukraine.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, International response, Sanctions
During the course of the unrest, the United States, followed by the European Union, Canada, Norway, Switzerland, and Japan, began to sanction Russian individuals and companies that they said were related to the crisis. Announcing the first sanctions, the United States described some individuals targeted by sanctions, among them former Ukrainian president Yanukovych, as "threatening the peace, security, stability, sovereignty, or territorial integrity of Ukraine, and for undermining Ukraine's democratic institutions and processes". The Russian government responded in kind with sanctions against some American and Canadian individuals. With the unrest continuing to escalate, the European Union and Canada imposed further sanctions in mid-May.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, International response, Geneva Statement on Ukraine
On 10 April, Ukraine, the United States, Russia and the European Union agreed to hold a 17 April quadrilateral meeting in Geneva to try to negotiate an end to the crisis in Ukraine. The meeting produced a document, called the Geneva Statement on Ukraine, which stated that all sides agreed that steps should be taken to "de-escalate" the crisis. All four parties agreed that all "illegal military formations in Ukraine" must be dissolved, and that everyone occupying buildings must be disarmed and leave but that there would be an amnesty for all anti-government protesters under the agreement.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, International response, Geneva Statement on Ukraine
These steps will be overseen by monitors from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). The sides also agreed that the Constitution of Ukraine is also to be revised in a process that is "inclusive, transparent and accountable". The agreement put on hold additional economic sanctions against Russia by the United States and the European Union.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, International response, National unity talks
As part of an OSCE initiative to solving the crisis in Ukraine, national unity talks were held in Kyiv, starting from 14 May. Separatists from Donetsk and Luhansk were not represented, as the Ukrainian government said that "those armed people who are trying to wage a war on their own country, those who are with arms in their hands trying to dictate their will, or rather the will of another country, we will use legal procedures against them and they will face justice". The OSCE said that Russian president Vladimir Putin supported its initiative. Concurrently, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that the separatists should be included in the talks. Separatists from Kharkiv were indeed invited to attend, but they refused to participate.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, International response, Fifteen-point peace plan
Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko announced a fifteen-point plan for peace on 20 June. The plan called for a week-long ceasefire, starting on 20 June, for the separatists to vacate the buildings they've occupied, for decentralization of power from the central government in Kyiv, and for the protection of Russian-language rights. The full text of the fifteen points are as follows:


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, International response, Fifteen-point peace plan
Russian president Vladimir Putin offered some support for the plan, but called for Poroshenko to bring the separatists into negotiations. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Poroshenko's peace plan "look like an ultimatum." Poroshenko previously refused to enter into negotiations with armed separatists. OSCE monitors with the Special Monitoring Mission in Ukraine met with a representative of the Donetsk People's Republic on 21 June to discuss the peace plan.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, International response, Fifteen-point peace plan
The representative said that the Republic would reject the ceasefire, and said that the primary demands of the government of the Donetsk People's Republic were "withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from Donbas", and recognition of the Republic. However, after initial peace talks between the separatists, Ukrainian and Russian officials, and the OSCE in Donetsk on 23 June, Alexander Borodai, prime minister of the Donetsk People's Republic, said that his forces would hold to the ceasefire. Soon after this statement, separatists in Sloviansk shot down a Ukrainian Armed Forces Mi-8 helicopter, killing all those on board. The next day, the Office of the President of Ukraine issued a statement that said that the ceasefire had been violated by the insurgents at least thirty-five times. President Poroshenko also said that he was considering ending the ceasefire, and Borodai said that "there has been no ceasefire".


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, International response, Fifteen-point peace plan
Despite this, Poroshenko extended the ceasefire by three days from its planned ending on 27 June. In response to this action, protesters in Kyiv took the streets in large numbers to demand that the ceasefire be cancelled. The ceasefire had little actual impact on clashes between government and separatist forces, with at least five government soldiers killed during the ceasefire. By July, the peace plan had fallen by the wayside and Poroshenko ended ceasefire after both sides accused each other of repeated violations. After a rocket attack that killed nineteen Ukrainian troops, Poroshenko vowed to take revenge on the separatists: "Militants will pay hundreds of their lives for each life of our servicemen. Not a single terrorist will avoid responsibility."


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Participants, Russian security personnel and activists
Former adviser to the President of Russia Vladimir Putin and a senior fellow at the Cato Institute in Washington, DC, Andrey Illarionov estimates that at least 2,000 Russian intelligence officials are operating in eastern Ukraine.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Participants, Russian security personnel and activists
Ukrainian intelligence claims that it has a dossier on more than forty Russian military intelligence, or GRU, operatives arrested so far on Ukrainian soil and the weapons and ammunition seized after being transported across the border from Russia. The file is said to describe the role of an alleged GRU colonel, Igor Ivanovich Strielkov, who has been involved in agitation in the east, including his attempts to suborn Ukrainian soldiers with offers of cash. The Ukrainian Security Service have put out a wanted poster for Strielkov, accusing him of a series of charges, included premeditated murder and organizing mass riots. Russia insists that the allegations are false, and that a Mr. Streilkov does not even exist or "at least not as a Russian operative sent to Ukraine with orders to stir up trouble".


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Participants, Russian security personnel and activists
CNN presented a video from a large separatist rally held in a central Donetsk city square around lunchtime on 26 May. Lorries in the square carried armed Chechen paramilitaries. Two told a CNN team they were from the Chechen capital, Grozny, and one indicated that he was formerly a policeman in Chechnya and was in Donetsk to serve the Russian Federation. Russian and Ukraininan media published numerous reports on bodies of separatists being transported secretly back to Russia, usually through Uspenka border pass.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Participants, Russian security personnel and activists
A few names of the killed volunteers were established—Sergey Zhdanovich (Сергей Жданович), Yuri Abrosimov (Юрий Абросимов), Aleksey Yurin (Алексей Юрин), Alexandr Efremov (Александр Ефремов), Evgeny Korolenko (Евгений Короленко). The bodies were transported to Russian military base in Rostov-on-Don. Some of the families were able to get the bodies secretly returned to them. Most of the killed had past military experience. According to the journalists Russian military commissariats (voyenkomat) in Rostov were actively recruiting volunteers for Donbas among former soldiers, especially with specific skills (ATGM, SAM, AGS-17) and those previously serving in Chechnya and Afghanistan.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Participants, Russian security personnel and activists
On 18 June Daniel Baer (OSCE) noted that "there continue to be fighters and arms coming across the border from Russia to Ukraine in recent days and weeks, and we don't see any efforts to turn it off by Russia".


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Participants, Russian citizens
According to the leader of Ukraine's Jewish communities, Russia is "infected with the ideas of revanchism and that is very closely linked to fascism" with Russian neo-Nazi organizations such as the Russian National Unity movement, led by ultra-nationalist Aleksandr Barkashov, supporting separatists in March and May.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Participants, Russian citizens, Alexander Dugin
On 29 March, Russian political scientist Aleksandr Dugin appeared in a leaked Skype video conference with Kateryna Gubareva, the wife of Donetsk-based separatist Pavel Gubarev. In the call, he reassured her of Moscow's support and further actions that should be taken by the movement. He also stated all presidential nominees should be considered 'traitors' with only Yanukovych considered legitimate. He also said that separatists should "act in a radical way" and Moscow will later support civil war in Ukraine, saying "The Kremlin is determined to fight for the independence of South-east Ukraine." Following the video's release, a member of Dugin's Eurasian Youth Union (Oleg Bakhtiyarov) was arrested on 31 March for planning terrorist acts in Ukraine.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Participants, OSCE monitors
Monitors from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) were sent to Ukraine after a request by the Ukrainian government, and an agreement between all member states of the OSCE, including Russia. The Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) deployed on 6 April, and has remained in Ukraine to "contribute to reducing tensions and fostering peace, stability and security". The SMM lost contact with four monitors in Donetsk Oblast on 26 May, and another four in Luhansk Oblast on 29 May. Both groups were held in captivity by separatists for a month, until being freed on 27 June and 28 June respectively.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Participants, Defectors, Ukraine defectors to Russia
Throughout the conflict, there were reports of both police and military either deserting their posts or defecting to the separatists. Oleksandr Turchynov stated that numerous Ukrainian military and security personnel joined the separatists, alongside Ukrainian military equipment. A report by the Internal Affairs Ministry said that over 17,000 policemen had defected to insurgents in eastern Ukraine by 23 May.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Participants, Defectors, Russian defectors to Ukraine
On 19 July, Ilya Bogdanov, a former Russian FSB lieutenant in Vladivostok, defected to Ukraine claiming that he couldn't longer stand the lies used by Russia to stimulate the situation in Eastern Ukraine and Dagestan, where he served earlier. On 24 July, Russian army serviceman Andrej Balabanov asked for political asylum in Ukraine stating "I finally took a decision not to take part in this war and sided with Ukraine. This is my protest against Russia's political leaders". Balabanov claimed his unit had sent "military intelligence, GRU, experts and Chechens" into Ukraine to help the separatists. He went on to claim his unit had been "continuously brainwashed into believing they would be sent to Ukraine to save their Russian-speaking brothers".


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Arrests
On 3 April, one man was arrested and eight more were put under house arrest on suspicion of involvement in the riots in Donetsk on 13 March, which led to the murder of Dmitry Cherniavsky.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Arrests
On 5 April, the SBU arrested a group of 15 people in Luhansk, along with 300 machine guns, one anti-tank grenade launcher, five pistols, petrol bombs and a large amount of smooth-bore guns and other weapons. "The group planned to carry out an armed seizure of power in Luhansk region on April 10 through intimidation of civilians using weapons and explosives," the SBU press office told Interfax-Ukraine.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Arrests
In Kharkiv, anti-Maidan activist Ignat Kramskoy (nicknamed "Topaz") was placed under house arrest on 29 March for his alleged involvement in the 1 March raid on the Kharkiv Regional State Administration building. On 7 April, Topaz fled house arrest, cutting off his monitoring bracelet. Topaz has since given interviews with the Russian channel LifeNews, and spoken about the current 'guerrilla struggle' and need to use firearms to capture buildings. Topaz was arrested once again while setting up an interview with Russia's Life News channel. Kramskoy was sentenced to 8 years in prison in January 2018, but released in September of the same year due to having served time in arrest.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Arrests
On 12 April another saboteur was arrested by the SBU in Kharkiv, known as "K", who was tasked with organizing riots and capturing administrative buildings. Later, 70 were arrested between the border of Poltava and Kharkiv. The men were travelling on a bus and found in possession of explosives, petrol bombs, bats, shields, helmets, knives, and other weapons.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Arrests
On 25 April, the SBU announced it had arrested two Ukrainian military members recruited by Russian intelligence.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Arrests
On 29 April the SBU arrested Spartak Holovachov and Yuri Apukhtin, leader of the Great Rus' organization in Kharkiv. Authorities claimed they were organized from abroad to plan riots in the city on 9 May, and upon searching their headquarters found guns, grenades, ammunition, cash, and separatist leaflets.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Arrests
As of 19 April, the SBU had arrested 117 citizens of Russia.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Arrests, Bounty
In April 2014 international billionaire and governor of Dnipropetrovsk Igor Kolomoisky issued a $10,000 bounty for the apprehension of Russian agents. He also offered rewards for handing in weapons belonging to insurgents: $1,000 for each machine gun turned in to the authorities, $1,500 for every heavy machine gun and $2,000 for a grenade launcher. On 19 April he issued his first $10,000 payout for the capture of a Russian saboteur. Media reported that least one billboard existed with the following text: "$10,000 for a Moskal" (derogatory name for Russians). According to The Daily Beast no such billboards existed and the photo media referred to "was faked for the Internet."


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Gallery
Protesters burn literature from far right groups in Kharkiv, 1 March 2014.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Gallery
Demonstration in support of Ukrainian unity in Donetsk, 17 April 2014


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Gallery
Protest rally in Odessa against Russian President Vladimir "Putin's occupation actions in Ukraine", 2 March 2014.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Gallery
Victory Day in Donetsk, people with St. George's Ribbon, used by pro-Russian civilians as a patriotic symbol, 9 May 2014.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Gallery
Church of Holy Epiphany in Karlivka, Donestk Oblast, on 23 May 2014, shells on road from fighting between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian separatists.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Gallery
Regions inhabited by significant Russian populations in Ukraine in 2001.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Gallery
Percentage of people with Russian as their native language according to 2001 census (in regions).


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Gallery
Results of the 2012 parliamentary election. Yanukovych's Party of Regions in blue.


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Gallery
An anti-government poster at a rally on Freedom Square, in Kharkiv


2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, Gallery
Russian President Vladimir Putin during his first visit to Crimea after it was annexed, 9 May 2014


2014 protests in Brazil
The 2014 protests in Brazil were public demonstrations in several Brazilian cities in response to the 2014 FIFA World Cup and other social issues.


2014 protests in Brazil, Background
The protests were primarily concerned with the spending of billions of reais of public money on stadiums for the World Cup.


2014 protests in Brazil, Background
Prior to 2014, social movements opposed to Brazil hosting the Cup garnered support during the FIFA Confederations Cup in 2013. The Facebook group Movimento Anti- Copa de Decoração de Ruas (Anti-Cup Movement for the Decoration of the Streets) gained more than 15,000 Likes in a little over a month.


2014 protests in Brazil, Timeline, Events prior to the World Cup
On January 25, 2014, protesters clashed with the military police in central São Paulo. According to the organization's official Facebook account, 108 people were arrested by military police and a further 20 arrests were made by civil police, totaling 128 arrests before midnight.


2014 protests in Brazil, Timeline, Events prior to the World Cup
On May 27, 2 protesters blocked the streets in central Brasília, near the Monumental Axis, caused traffic congestion. Among the protesters were 300 aboriginals who went to the capital to protest changes in laws concerning the demarcation of indigenous land. The protest ended in a confrontation with the military police, where a cavalryman was struck by an arrow.


2014 protests in Brazil, Timeline, Events prior to the World Cup
On May 31, 2014 protesters marched from the Ministries Esplanade to the football stadium before ending the demonstration peacefully. The following day, military police in São Paulo began using specialized suits of armor referred to as 'Robocop', which were intended to maintain control over protests during the World Cup.


2014 protests in Brazil, Timeline, Events prior to the World Cup
On June 3, a group of about 50 protesters in Goiânia gathered in front of the hotel where the Brazilian team was staying prior to an exhibition match against Panamá. The protesters were connected with trade unions and left wing political groups, with pickets demanding fair pay for professors and health professionals.


2014 protests in Brazil, Timeline, Events during the World Cup
The demonstrations of 2014 were generally smaller than those that occurred during the FIFA Confederations Cup in the previous year, but protesters and police clashed in almost every city hosting the games of the World Cup. In the first week of the Cup, there were more than 20 protests and 180 arrests across the various cities, many resulting in police action.


2014 protests in Brazil, Timeline, Events during the World Cup
On June 12, at least six were injured in São Paulo when military police threw gas grenades and fired rubber bullets at protesters. Two CNN journalists were among those injured. Governor Geraldo Alckmin of the Brazilian Social Democracy Party justified the aggression of the military police saying that their goal was to prevent the protesters from blocking a major traffic artery leading to the football stadium.


2014 protests in Brazil, Timeline, Events during the World Cup
In Porto Alegre on June 24, around 200 protesters gathered in the city center and travelled toward the airport. The group was monitored by police, and disbursed with one protester being arrested for deflating the tires of a car.


2014 protests in Brazil, Timeline, Events during the World Cup
In São Paulo, June 23, an unidentified man in a black shirt fired a gun three times into the air as police were arresting a protester. Protesters say that the man was trying to scare away those critical of the arrest. Police said they would investigate whether the shooter was actually a member of the police. Three people were arrested during the act, among which Rafael Lusvarghi.


2014 protests in Brazil, Timeline, Events during the World Cup
On July 13, the final day of the Cup, police in Rio de Janeiro injured at least ten journalists with clubs, and shrapnel from tear gas grenades. Police kettled the 300 protesters, preventing them from marching to their destination, Maracanã Stadium. Military Police told BBC Brazil that they would forward reports of police abuse to Internal Affairs.


2014 protests in Brazil, Events
Reasons of the protest continuation are pointed also by Romário, ex-player and member of the Parliament, that dubbed the World Cup 2014 as the "biggest theft in history", and that the real costs would be over R$100 billion (US$46 billion). Romário now is one of the few parliament members that wants a deeper investigation on the misuse of public funds.


2014 protests in Brazil, Events
Before the opening game of the World Cup on 12 June, police clashed with protesters in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and several other host cities. Tear gas was used on crowds in São Paulo.


2014 protests in Brazil, Events
While covering the protest on June 12, CNN Reporter Shasta Darlington and CNN producer Barbara Arvanitidis were injured. Barbara Arvanitidis was directly hit on the wrist by a tear gas bomb whilst they were reporting the indiscriminate use of riot weapons.


2014 raid on Idlib city
The 2014 raid on Idlib city refers to a military operation in the Idlib Governorate, during the Syrian Civil War, conducted by mainly Salafi jihadists backed by Islamist rebels against the Syrian Government.


2014 raid on Idlib city, Rebel attack
Rebels from the al-Nusra Front launched an attack on Idlib city and al-Mastouma overnight in order to cut off the city from the south. During this attack, suicide cars were detonated at four Army checkpoints surrounding the city, killing "dozens" of soldiers, while rebels captured Tell al-Mastouma. The Army later recaptured the hill. According to the SOHR, 10 soldiers and nine rebels were killed on the hill. The rebels also managed to infiltrate the city and seized the governor mansion and the police headquarters with help from members of the local police and people’s committees.


2014 raid on Idlib city, Rebel attack
They took advantage of a power cut before dawn according to the Idlib police chief. These buildings were recaptured by pro-government forces later that day after the rebels pulled out of the city. According to an opposition activist in the city, the rebels continue to hold the surrounding checkpoints that they took in morning.


2014 raid on Idlib city, Rebel attack
According to the SOHR, at least 20 pro-government fighters, 15 rebels and four civilians were killed during the operation, while Al-Masdar placed the death toll at 21 government fighters (17 NDF and 4 Army) and 70 rebel fighters. Casualties among insurgents include a Jund al-Aqsa sleeper cell, which was discovered after the military intercepted rebel radio communications, and local rebel commanders. Al-Nusra Front claimed that it also had cut off the city, captured 12 soldiers and seized two tanks during the operation.


2014 reasons of the Supreme Court of Canada
The table below lists the decisions (known as reasons) delivered from the bench by the Supreme Court of Canada during 2014. The table illustrates what reasons were filed by each justice in each case, and which justices joined each reason. This list, however, does not include reasons on motions.


2014 retreat from Western Bahr el Ghazal
The 2014 retreat from Western Bahr el Ghazal, also called the long march north, was an unorganized withdrawal by hundreds of Nuer Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) deserters who sought to flee from Bahr el Ghazal to Sudan during the South Sudanese Civil War. After longstanding tensions between SPLA soldiers belonging to the Dinka and Nuer ethnic groups escalated on 25 April 2014, leading to a massacre of Nuer soldiers at Mapel in Western Bahr el Ghazal, a large number of Nuer SPLA soldiers deserted to escape ethnic prosecution and loyalist SPLA forces. Though some deserters joined SPLM-IO rebels or surrendered to the government, a large number of them marched northward, joined by other SPLA defectors from Northern Bahr el Ghazal. After covering over 400 kilometres (250 mi), this trek eventually arrived in Sudan on 4 August 2014, where they were disarmed.


2014 retreat from Western Bahr el Ghazal, Background
Following the outbreak of the South Sudanese Civil War between the followers of President Salva Kiir Mayardit and Vice President Riek Machar's SPLM-IO rebels in late 2013, Bahr el Ghazal had remained mostly peaceful. The area had served as stronghold of the pro-Kiir Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) during the Second Sudanese Civil War, while its population mostly consisted of Dinka people who generally supported the government. Machar's forces consequently had little political influence in Bahr el Ghazal. A local Fertit militia which had waged an insurgency against the government since 2012 allied with the SPLM-IO, but its actual military strength was negligible.


2014 retreat from Western Bahr el Ghazal, Background
The security situation in the region began to deteriorate, however, when Kiir replaced SPLA Chief of the General Staff James Hoth Mai, an ethnic Nuer, with Paul Malong Awan, a Dinka, in April 2014. This move caused unrest among Nuer soldiers of the SPLA, who believed that members of their ethnic group were sidelined in the military. Furthermore, Malong had previously served as governor of Northern Bahr el Ghazal where his authoritarian rule had provided stability.


2014 retreat from Western Bahr el Ghazal, Background
By contrast, his successor as governor, Kuel Aguer Kuel, was "widely seen as ill suited to governing the state in a time of political and military crisis", and instability subsequently grew in Northern Bahr el Ghazal. Furthermore, ethnic tensions in the region heightened when it became known that Nuer rebels had committed  a major massacre against Dinka civilians and soldiers in Bentiu. Some of the victims had families in Bahr el Ghazal, contributing the animosity of locals against ethnic Nuer.


2014 retreat from Western Bahr el Ghazal, History, Mapel massacre
The ethnic tensions gave way to violence on 25 April, when a group of Dinkas attacked an unarmed Nuer trainee of the SPLA on the market of Mapel, a town which hosted a SPLA training centre and served as the headquarters for the SPLA's 5th Division. The incident was reportedly the result of an altercation between the soldier and his superior which escalated when the families of Dinka soldiers who had been killed in Bentiu and Bor intervened. The initial clashes between Nuer trainees and Dinka civilians quickly spread to Mapel's training centre, where Dinka soldiers attacked their Nuer comrades.


2014 retreat from Western Bahr el Ghazal, History, Mapel massacre
How many Nuer recruits were killed during the clashes at the training centre is disputed. Government representatives claimed that only three or four were killed, and that the Nuer soldiers had actually planned an uprising or caused the escalation of violence by deserting. Nuer survivors of the fighting and the SPLM-IO, however, later reported that Dinka troops led by the 5th Division's commander Bak Akoon Bak had shot "about 200 Nuer soldiers in cold blood", causing the rest ot flee into the bush for their lives.


2014 retreat from Western Bahr el Ghazal, History, Mapel massacre
Independent sources lent more credibility to the version told by Nuer deserters, though disagreed on how many had died, ranging from about 40 to 150. Between 100 and 500 Nuer SPLA soldiers managed to leave the town. Some joined local SPLM-IO insurgents while the others simply tried to hide from the Dinka.


2014 retreat from Western Bahr el Ghazal, History, Mapel massacre
Many civilians and their families fled from Mapel during and after the clashes, relocating to Wau town and Baggari District. These displaced people, alongside refugees from other regions of South Sudan, often arrived in poor health and reduced local food availability, causing concerns about the spread of malnutrition in Wau County.


2014 retreat from Western Bahr el Ghazal, History, Mutiny at Wau
News of what had happened at Mapel soon reached Wau town, capital of Western Bahr el Ghazal and site of another SPLA base. Nuer soldiers stationed there had not been paid for months and had already been suspected of rebel sympathies. The rumours about a massacre in Mapel further heightened the existing tensions. Several groups of Nuer soldiers mutinied on late 26 April, whereupon heavy clashes broke out between government loyalists and the mutineers. Some of the Nuer troopers and about 500 Nuer civilians tried to take refuge at the local UNMISS base, but were attacked by government loyalists while doing so. Other mutineers reportedly attacked Wau Airport, but were driven off. A disputed number of fighters were killed in these clashes.


2014 retreat from Western Bahr el Ghazal, History, Mutiny at Wau
By evening, "at least 61" Nuer soldiers were retreating from the town toward the west, with loyalist forces in pursuit. The deserters were led by four brigadier generals, namely Brig. Gen. Gatwech Gach Makuach, Brig. Gen. James Ochan Puot, Brig Gen. Kuang Cirang, and one unidentified officer, who had joined the mutiny out of fear for their lives and to protest against the massacre at Mapel. Western Bahr el Ghazal governor Rizig Zachariah ordered his pursuing forces not to kill the deserters, but to surround them and force them to surrender. Despite this, locals reported heavy fighting between deserters and the SPLA at Busseri near Wau on 27 April, causing about 4,000 locals to flee the area.


2014 retreat from Western Bahr el Ghazal, History, Mutiny at Wau
Following the end of combat at Wau, about 700 Nuer civilians sought protection at Wau's UNMISS base; most of them were family members of the deserted soldiers, while others were students. Some of those who had found shelter at the base claimed that UNMISS had turned away some refugees, though UNMISS representatives denied this.


2014 retreat from Western Bahr el Ghazal, History, March north and further desertions
A small number of the deserters from Mapel and Wau, most notably Gatwech Gach Makuach and James Ochan Puot, joined the local rebel forces, but most had been motivated in their desertion by fear of ethnic persecution rather than an actual desire to rebel. A substantial number of the deserters were not even armed. The government consequently managed to convince elements of the Nuer forces to surrender: Seven deserters from Wau, including Brig Gen. Kuang Cirang, rejoined the SPLA on 28 April, while 255 soldiers from Mapel reportedly returned to their base by 11 July.


2014 retreat from Western Bahr el Ghazal, History, March north and further desertions
Hundreds of other Nuer soldiers from Mapel and Wau, however, opted to march north to escape the SPLA. As the deserters entered areas, clashes and insecurity ensued as they raided villages for supplies and food while the government tried to stop them. Instability often remained high even after the fighters had left an area. By late June, fighting took place at Baggari between the deserters and SPLA forces which had received reinforcements from Lakes State. About 1,500 civilians had been displaced around Wau by 7 July, while the Nuer soldiers moved through Farajallah in the west. Attempts by the SPLA to stop the trek failed.


2014 retreat from Western Bahr el Ghazal, History, March north and further desertions
The deserters crossed the border from Western to Northern Bahr el Ghazal sometime in early July, and raided a medical clinic in Awada District on 11 July. Meanwhile, the SPLA mobilized its forces in the area to stop the deserters, causing clashes between the two sides at Moiny on 14 July. The deserters broke through, and raided Mayom Akueng on the next day as they travelled further north. Heavy fighting again took place from 15 to 18 July, as the SPLA attempted to block the trek at Gotbulo.


2014 retreat from Western Bahr el Ghazal, History, March north and further desertions
Despite this, the deserters continued their march, and were joined by other deserters as they went on. Elements of the 3rd Division in Wunyik and Majok Yiiththiou, led by brigadier generals Peter Gatbel and Kuol Tap respectively, deserted in late April, and joined the forces from Wau and Mapel. As result of disagreements with other leaders of the deserters, Gatbel and his followers surrendered to the government soon after.


2014 retreat from Western Bahr el Ghazal, History, March north and further desertions
Over 500 Nuer deserters eventually crossed the border to East Darfur, Sudan, at Hadida on 4 August. They had travelled over 400 kilometres (250 mi). After arriving in Sudan, the deserters were disarmed by the Sudanese Armed Forces. It is unclear why the Nuer soldiers had travelled all the way to Sudan; the Small Arms Survey theorized that they either wanted to seek protection from the SPLA and ethnic persecution, or planned to join the SPLM-IO rebels of Dau Aturjong who had defected from the government in late May. His base was believed to be close to the Sudanese border.


2014 retreat from Western Bahr el Ghazal, Aftermath
The massacre at Mapel, the desertions of Nuer soldiers, and the destruction that had resulted from the fighting between SPLA and Nuer forces destabilized Bahr el Ghazal. By September 2014, thousands remained displaced in the area around Wau due to the insecurity that the Long March had caused there. Furthermore, the SPLM-IO which had previously been mostly powerless in the region received a major boost due to these events, and its activity consequently increased in Bahr el Ghazal. The local government also lost trust due to its handling of the crises.


2014 retreat from Western Bahr el Ghazal, Aftermath
All of this contributed to the "more general trend in South Sudan towards fragmentation as each region looks to its own interests". Growing ethnic tensions eventually led to the outbreak of major insurgencies in Bahr el Ghazal, such as Maj. Gen. Thomas Bazylio Tandro's campaign in 2015, the 2016–18 Wau clashes and the South Sudan Patriotic Army's rebellion since 2017.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa
The 2014 shootings at Parliament Hill were a series of shootings that occurred on October 22, 2014, at Parliament Hill in Ottawa. At the Canadian National War Memorial, Corporal Nathan Cirillo, a Canadian soldier and reservist on ceremonial sentry duty was fatally shot by Michael Zehaf-Bibeau. Zehaf-Bibeau then entered the nearby Centre Block parliament building, where members of the Parliament of Canada were attending caucuses. After wrestling with a constable at the entrance, Zehaf-Bibeau ran inside and had a shootout with parliament security personnel. He was shot 31 times by six officers and died on scene. Following the shootings, the downtown core of Ottawa was placed on lockdown and majority of schools in Ottawa were on lockdown while police searched for any potential additional threats.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa
The attacker, Michael Zehaf-Bibeau, was a 32-year-old Canadian habitual offender and drug addict from Montreal. He had been observed by acquaintances exhibiting erratic behaviour. At the time of the shooting, Zehaf-Bibeau planned to leave Canada for the Middle East and was living in a homeless shelter in Ottawa while waiting for the processing of his Canadian passport application. According to RCMP Commissioner Bob Paulson the "passport issue was central to what was driving" Zehaf-Bibeau.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa
Zehaf-Bibeau made a video prior to the attack in which he expressed his desire to "kill some soldiers" and his motives as being related "to Canada's foreign policy and in respect of his religious beliefs." To acquaintances and co-workers, he had previously expressed support for jihadists and others in the Middle East resisting the West's intervention, but was not known to the police to be a terrorism risk. In his mother's opinion, the attack was the "last desperate act" of someone with a mental disorder who felt trapped. Some Canadian Muslim organizations condemned the attack.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa
Classified by the RCMP as a terrorist act under the Criminal Code, it was the most serious security breach at Parliament Hill since the 1966 parliament bombing. It took place two days after a man used his car to run over two soldiers in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec, killing one. The two incidents, which attracted international attention, raised concerns about the effectiveness of police actions to prevent terrorist attacks, the prevention of radicalization and the security measures in place at federal and provincial legislatures.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa
The Canadian government had already prepared a bill to expand the courtroom anonymity and surveillance powers of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), Canada's intelligence agency, which was due to be introduced the day of the shootings, and was postponed by the event. The government introduced new anti-terrorism measures with the Anti-terrorism Act, 2015. Security at Parliament Hill is to be stepped up. On June 3, 2015 it was reported that "RCMP officers have started openly carrying submachine guns on Parliament Hill as part of a visible increase to security."


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Background
On October 20, in the 2014 Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu ramming attack, Martin Couture-Rouleau attacked two Canadian Armed Forces soldiers. Rouleau was a 25-year-old Québécois who became a Muslim convert in 2013 and was a supporter of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). Rouleau used his car to run over the two soldiers before being fatally shot by police after an ensuing car chase. Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent, age 53, subsequently died from injuries.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Background
The terror threat level in Canada was on October 21 raised to medium in light of the ramming attack and due to "an increase in online 'general chatter' from radical groups including Islamic State and al-Qaeda." In his address to the nation following the shootings on October 22, Prime Minister Stephen Harper referred to the October 20 incident as an ISIL-inspired terrorist attack. Although both the October 20 and 22 attacks led to the death of Canadian soldiers, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) ruled out any direct connection between the attacks of October 20 and 22.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Shootings, National War Memorial
Shortly before 10:00 a.m. EDT, on October 22, 2014, witnesses saw Zehaf-Bibeau arrive at the National War Memorial carrying a rifle, which was later identified as a .30–30 Winchester Model 94 lever-action hunting rifle. He was dressed in blue jeans and a black jacket, with a keffiyeh scarf over the lower part of his face. He approached Corporal Nathan Cirillo of The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders of Canada (Princess Louise's), a reserve infantry unit, who was one of three sentries from the Ceremonial Guard posted at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Shootings, National War Memorial
At close range, Zehaf-Bibeau shot Cirillo twice in the back, fatally wounding him. Cirillo, like all others who have stood sentry at the memorial, carried an unloaded firearm, and had been provided by the CAF with no particular training for such a situation. It was only minutes before the end of the sentries' shift, which ended at 10:00 a.m. Cpl. Kyle Button and Cpl. Branden Stevenson, two other soldiers on sentry duty, attempted to stop Zehaf-Bibeau, but they were shot at by him and forced to flee to the other side of the Memorial.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Shootings, National War Memorial
Zehaf-Bibeau then pulled down his scarf, held his rifle one-handedly over his head and yelled, "For Iraq." Cpl. Anthony Wiseman, who was nearby, then attempted to stop Zehaf-Bibeau, but Zehaf-Bibeau attempted to run him over. The three soldiers then attended to Cirillo. Along with bystanders, they applied first aid to Cirillo, attempting to resuscitate him, before Paramedic Chief Anthony DiMonte was first on scene, assumed patient care until additional paramedics arrived to provide medical care before Cirillo was taken to hospital.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Shootings, National War Memorial
Meanwhile, Zehaf-Bibeau returned to his vehicle, a small grey Toyota car, which was parked on the south side of Wellington Street behind the memorial, and drove west along Wellington a short distance to Parliament Hill, where he abandoned his vehicle. Past scattering bystanders, he ran through a gate in the fence surrounding the Parliament Hill precinct and carjacked a parliamentary vehicle assigned to ministers of the Crown, which he drove to the Centre Block parliament building. RCMP officers on patrol in the precinct witnessed the carjacking and pursued the vehicle to the base of the Peace Tower.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Shootings, National War Memorial
A photograph of Zehaf-Bibeau was taken by a tourist at the war memorial during the shootings. It shows him holding the rifle and wearing a scarf over part of his face, with part of the War Memorial behind him. Ottawa police seized the camera and then took their own photograph of the image using a cellphone. French-Canadian journalist William Reymond received a copy of the photograph via the Internet, anonymously, apparently a copy of a tweet originating from the Ottawa Police of the cellphone picture.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Shootings, National War Memorial
Reymond then took a picture of the image as it was displayed on his computer monitor and posted it to Twitter a few hours later after confirming the image. The image was re-tweeted by an ISIL sympathizer, leading to erroneous media reports that the image originated from an ISIL Twitter account.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Shootings, Parliament buildings
Zehaf-Bibeau entered the Centre Block through the main entrance under the Peace Tower, where Samearn Son was one of two constables on duty. Son saw the rifle in Zehaf-Bibeau's hand, immediately grabbed it, and pulled it towards the floor while yelling, "Gun! Gun! Gun!" In the ensuing struggle, Son was shot in the foot and had to let go of the attacker. While other RCMP officers converged on Zehaf-Bibeau, Son limped out of the building and calmly told a CBC reporter outside, "I will survive." Just inside the Centre Block, Zehaf-Bibeau exchanged gunfire with security personnel and was wounded.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Shootings, Parliament buildings
Zehaf-Bibeau then ran along the Hall of Honour corridor toward the Library of Parliament. Pursued by RCMP officers, he passed, on his left, the door to a committee room in which Stephen Harper and the Conservative Members of Parliament (MPs) were meeting. Directly opposite was the door to another caucus room, where leader of the opposition, Thomas Mulcair, and New Democratic Party MPs were gathered. (The Liberals, as the third party, were holding their caucus meeting in a chamber downstairs.) During the shooting, one bullet penetrated the outer doors to the NDP caucus room. Inside their room, NDP MPs dove for cover. Across the hall, Harper was briefly hidden in a closet while Conservative MPs made a barricade at the doors, grabbing flagpoles to use as rudimentary spears.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Shootings, Parliament buildings
Finally, Zehaf-Bibeau reached an alcove by the entrance to the Library of Parliament, and hid out of sight of RCMP officers, who ordered him to drop his gun and surrender. The location of the alcove is near the office of the Sergeant-at-Arms of the House of Commons, Kevin Vickers. Vickers, a distinguished policeman, commander and administrator with the RCMP before he joined the staff of the House of Commons in 2005, obtained a 9mm handgun from a lock-box and entered the hall.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Shootings, Parliament buildings
Vickers's security team, which had been chasing Zehaf-Bibeau, yelled to Vickers that the suspect was hiding in the alcove. Vickers immediately ran behind the other side of a nearby column, then dove past the column and fired upward at Zehaf-Bibeau.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Shootings, Parliament buildings
Witnesses and reports show RCMP Constable Curtis Barrett, leading the tactical formation, fired the shot that killed Zehaf-Bibeau after Bibeau fired in his direction. CBC television cameras on the scene recorded over 30 shots fired in the final gunfight. Footage showed a group of RCMP officers converging near the alcove; two loud gunshots are heard, then a large number of gunshots in rapid succession, then silence.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Shootings, Parliament buildings
Vickers was recorded by CBC video footage walking away from the shooting site, going to the Conservative caucus room. Vickers explained to the Conservative caucus what had happened and reportedly said either "I put him down" or "I have engaged the suspect. He is deceased." According to Vickers's niece: "This is the first time in his career that he's shot anyone." Following the shooting, Harper's RCMP security detail arrived and evacuated him, while the Parliament buildings were put into lockdown.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Perpetrator
Michael Zehaf-Bibeau (October 16, 1982 – October 22, 2014) was identified by officials as the perpetrator of the shootings.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Perpetrator, Personal background
According to court documents, he was born Joseph Paul Michael Bibeau, but, in 1995, his parents legally changed his name to Joseph Paul Michael Abdallah Bulgasem Zehaf-Bibeau to better reflect the other half of his heritage. Initial reports put out by Reuters and US-based networks in the first few hours after the shooting said the shooter was born 'Michael Joseph Hall' and changed his name after converting to Islam, but these proved unreliable and were contradicted the next day by Reuters, and the major Canadian news sources in in-depth reporting.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Perpetrator, Personal background
Zehaf-Bibeau grew up in Eastern Canada, including Ottawa and Montreal. His mother is Susan Bibeau, a French-Canadian Quebecer from Montreal and deputy chairperson of a division of Canada's Immigration and Refugee Board.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Perpetrator, Personal background
His father is a businessman, Bulgasem Zehaf, a Libyan immigrant to Quebec who opened the Tripoli café in Montreal. Zehaf is reported to have fought in the 2011 Libyan Civil War; the Washington Times reported that Zehaf had returned to his hometown of Zawiyah in Libya to join the uprising against the Muammar Gaddafi regime.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Perpetrator, Personal background
The couple split up before Zehaf-Bibeau's birth, but reconciled a short while after and were married. Zehaf and Bibeau divorced in 1999.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Perpetrator, Personal background
Zehaf-Bibeau continued to live in the Montreal area until 2007, when he spent time in Libya before moving to Western Canada to become a miner and labourer.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Perpetrator, Personal background
Zehaf-Bibeau became a habitual offender with an extensive criminal record for several offences, including larceny, drug possession, and parole violations. He had received several criminal convictions, at least one of which resulted in a custodial sentence of 60 days' incarceration. In November 2001, just after his 19th birthday, he was convicted of possessing a false credit card and impaired driving. In 2004, he pleaded guilty to drug possession for marijuana and PCP. He failed to appear at the trial date in 2006, but appeared three years later to plead guilty to marijuana possession and was given a discharge.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Perpetrator, Personal background
In 2011, he was charged with robbery and "uttering threats" in Vancouver, but only convicted of the lesser charge of uttering threats. He claimed that he committed the 2011 robbery so that he would be incarcerated, in order to kick his drug habit. He received a psychiatric evaluation, but was determined to be fit to stand for trial.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Perpetrator, Conversion to Islam and travels
Baptized a Roman Catholic, he converted to Islam in 2004 and had attended Sunni Muslim mosques in the British Columbia cities of Burnaby and Vancouver. A mosque in Vancouver, British Columbia, expelled him. ' His behaviour was not normal,' said David Ali, vice-president of Masjid Al-Salaam mosque in nearby Burnaby. He said: 'We try to be open to everyone. But people on drugs don't behave normally.' Also, an acquaintance recalled that he had "erratic" behaviour, he had said "the devil is after him", and was requested to stop attending the mosque after upsetting religious elders. The acquaintance believed he was mentally ill.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Perpetrator, Conversion to Islam and travels
Zehaf-Bibeau wanted to leave Canada. An associate of Zehaf-Bibeau reported he had discussed wanting to go to Libya to study Arabic and Islam. At their October 23 press conference, the RCMP said his mother told them that he wanted to go to Syria to join the anti-government rebels in the Syrian civil war, but she denied this, stating that she told the RCMP that he was intending to travel to Saudi Arabia. "He thought he would be happier in an Islamic country where they would share his beliefs." In a telephone interview with the press, Zehaf-Bibeau's mother said she grieves for the victims of the attack, not her son. In an email to the press, she also said "I am mad at my son," and said "he seemed lost and did not fit in."


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Perpetrator, Conversion to Islam and travels
Zehaf-Bibeau arrived in Ottawa on or before October 2, ostensibly to pursue securing a passport. Zehaf-Bibeau had applied for a Canadian passport and a background check was in progress. RCMP Commissioner Bob Paulson said this issue was central in driving the attacks. Zehaf-Bibeau, who may also have had Libyan citizenship, applied for a Libyan passport renewal on October 2 and was refused the same day. Zehaf-Bibeau had received a Libyan passport in 2000 and then travelled to Libya in 2007. That document had expired, and Zehaf-Bibeau told officials that he wanted a new passport so he could visit family and friends in Libya.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Perpetrator, Before the shootings
Zehaf-Bibeau had been staying at the Ottawa Mission, a homeless shelter in Ottawa near Parliament Hill. According to other residents of the mission, Zehaf-Bibeau and two other men had been trying to get a vehicle. Others said of Zehaf-Bibeau and the other two men, "You knew they were up to something shifty, pacing around a lot and everything." The vehicle used by Zehaf-Bibeau was purchased one day before the shootings. One resident of the mission noted that Zehaf-Bibeau's mood had changed three days before the attacks, and he attributed it to Zehaf-Bibeau going back on drugs. Zehaf-Bibeau reportedly told the other residents that he was "anti-Canadian" and to pray because "the world is ending". Another resident reported that Zehaf-Bibeau had shown a lot of interest in the Parliament buildings, including asking how easy was it to get into the Parliament buildings.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Perpetrator, Before the shootings
A day before the attack, multiple witnesses saw Zehaf-Bibeau engaged in a "heated discussion" with another man while waiting to register his purchase of the vehicle used in the shootings. According to a witness, Zehaf-Bibeau said "If soldiers bombed your family, wouldn't you want to kill them?". Staff in the registry office asked him to lower his voice or leave. The purchase was disallowed by the office because of his out-of-province identification. The purchase was never registered and Zehaf-Bibeau pasted a piece of junk mail on the car to mimic a temporary license permit.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Perpetrator, Before the shootings
How Zehaf-Bibeau obtained his gun has not been determined. At the time of the shootings, Zehaf-Bibeau was legally prohibited from possessing or acquiring firearms. Additionally, his previous criminal charges and convictions, history of drug abuse, and lack of a fixed address all would have prevented him from receiving a Canadian Firearms Licence. A knife that Zehaf-Bibeau had with him on October 22 was determined to have originated from a relative's home.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Perpetrator, After the shootings
On November 15, it was reported that Zehaf-Bibeau's body had remained at the Ottawa coroner's office for examination. According to the procedure to be followed by the coroner, the examination must report the entry and exit wound of each gunshot wound, and a toxicology report.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Perpetrator, After the shootings
The issue of accepting his body for an eventual funeral was problematic for the Ottawa Muslim Association mosque: "while denouncing what he did as a crime, a terrorist attack against a soldier who was serving the country, we say that if he's believing in God, if he's a Muslim, then he should be buried," said imam Samy Metwally. "We will give him a funeral service." However, on November 18, the coroner in an interview announced that the body was released "over a week ago". The coroner did not release the details of the autopsy, when the body was released or whom the body was released to, citing legal restrictions. On February 26, 2015, the Ottawa Citizen reported that Zehaf-Bibeau was buried in Zawiya, Libya, by arrangements made by his family.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Casualties
Corporal Nathan Frank Cirillo (December 23, 1989 – October 22, 2014), a 24-year-old Canadian soldier, was killed. He was a Class-A reservist of The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders of Canada from Hamilton, Ontario. He was, as a chosen member of the Ceremonial Guard, on sentry duty at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the National War Memorial when he was shot. Although several civilians immediately provided assistance for the wounded reservist, Cirillo died in hospital later that morning. Cirillo had a standard issue Colt Canada C7 rifle which, in accordance with standard practice, was unloaded.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Casualties
Samearn Son, a House of Commons constable, was injured. When Zehaf-Bibeau arrived at the Centre Block, he was confronted by Son. Son, who was unarmed, was shot in the foot while trying to wrestle away Zehaf-Bibeau's gun. Son's actions caused a critical delay, allowing other security personnel to mobilize to stop Zehaf-Bideau. Son was treated and released by Ottawa Civic Hospital.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Casualties
Two other unidentified people who were injured in unspecified locations were treated and released at Ottawa Civic Hospital. Corporal Cirillo's remains are buried in the very middle of the military section of Woodland Cemetery in Burlington, Ontario.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Aftermath, Ottawa
Ottawa's downtown core was put under lockdown while a search began for a potential second shooter. Buildings under lockdown included the Parliament buildings, the University of Ottawa and the United States embassy. Initially, police reported a third shooting had taken place near the Rideau Centre mall at the same time. A few hours later, police corrected this mistaken report, stating that only two shootings took place.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Aftermath, Ottawa
At a press conference at 14:00, Ottawa police confirmed Cirillo's death without using his name, pending notification of his family. The RCMP confirmed Zehaf-Bibeau's death, without his name or any other details, citing the ongoing investigation. The National Defence headquarters, the parliament buildings and other government facilities remained in lockdown while a search of the area took place. Areas around Parliament Hill including a mall and a university remained closed for hours with buildings in lockdown, with police searching buildings room by room for shooters.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Aftermath, Ottawa
Police lifted the lockdown on all public schools in and around Ottawa's downtown core at around 5:45 p.m.  Parliament Hill remained under lockdown until well past 21:00 and, even after MPs and staffers were allowed to leave the Centre Block, streets directly adjacent to Parliament Hill and the National War Memorial remained closed to the public the next day. Parliament Hill reopened to the public on October 24, and Parliament Buildings tours resumed on October 27.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Aftermath, Nationally and internationally
Canadian Armed Forces members in Ottawa, Quebec and Atlantic Canada were told to stay out of uniform when not on active duty, while members in other parts of Canada were not asked to avoid wearing uniforms. Further, Canadian military bases around the country heightened their security. The incident caused cancellation of a ceremony scheduled for later the same day in Toronto, in which Nobel Peace Prize recipient Malala Yousafzai was to receive her certificate of honorary Canadian citizenship from Stephen Harper.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Aftermath, Nationally and internationally
Although security was heightened at the Legislative Assembly of Ontario in Toronto, all of the party leaders agreed that the day's session of Question Period should continue. In Edmonton, public tours were cancelled for the day at the Legislative Assembly of Alberta and security increased. The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia was placed under restricted access and most constituency offices on Vancouver Island were closed as a precaution. Nova Scotia's legislature, sitting that day, restricted access in the public gallery to the press and staff of the government and political parties. The National Assembly of Quebec flew its flag at half mast the evening of October 22 as a tribute to Cirillo.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Aftermath, Nationally and internationally
In the United States, security was increased in Washington, D.C.: at the Canadian embassy, United States federal government offices nearby, and the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery. The Australian Federal Police increased security at Australia's Parliament House, as well as at the Canadian High Commission in Canberra. Security at the New Zealand Parliament Buildings was also tightened.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Investigation and government response
Initially, the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) said they were investigating the shooting at the war memorial, while the RCMP was investigating the shooting at Centre Block. However, on October 23, the OPS announced that the shooting had been declared a matter of national security and, as such, the entire investigation would be turned over to the RCMP. It was also announced that the RCMP had in turn asked the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) to conduct a standard independent investigation into the response of police and security forces.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Investigation and government response
Recalled were reports issued by the Auditor General of Canada on the security of the House of Commons and the Senate. While many operational aspects were praised, it was noted that possible jurisdictional confusion could result between the RCMP, Ottawa Police, the House of Commons Security Services, and the Senate Protective Service and that no agency had jurisdiction over the roofs of the parliament buildings. The day after the shooting, Prime Minister Harper pledged to expedite plans to boost security forces' surveillance, detention, and arrest powers; other members of the government indicated consideration was being made toward ways to magnify anti-terrorism laws.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Investigation and government response
The RCMP on October 23 released security video showing Zehaf-Bibeau's movements across the Parliament Hill precinct. They also announced that Zehaf-Bibeau was not one of 93 suspected extremists on a RCMP high-risk traveller list, though email written by Zehaf-Bibeau had been found on a computer belonging to an unnamed individual charged with terrorism offences. At this meeting, RCMP Commissioner Paulson said Zehaf-Bibeau's mother had told the RCMP that he wanted to go to Syria, but she denied this, stating that, in a recorded interview, she had told the RCMP that he had wanted to go to Saudi Arabia.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Investigation and government response
It was announced by the RCMP on October 26 that they had "persuasive evidence" showing Zehaf-Bibeau's attack had been "driven by ideological and political motives." According to the RCMP, Zehaf-Bibeau had recorded a video of himself prior to the attack in which, Commissioner Paulson alleged that "[Zehaf-Bibeau] was quite deliberate, he was quite lucid and he was quite purposeful in articulating the basis for his actions. They were in respect, broadly, to Canada's foreign policy and in respect of his religious beliefs." The RCMP did not release the video, which they said they were studying for "its intelligence and evidence value", but Paulson said they hoped to release it eventually.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Investigation and government response
Paulson appeared before a parliamentary committee on October 27 to brief MPs. "While we are facing this threat at home, we must focus our efforts on preventing individuals traveling abroad to commit acts of terrorism. Preventing the individuals from traveling is critical. If these individuals return with training and/or battle experience, they pose an even greater threat to Canada and our allies."


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Investigation and government response
That day, the government, after delay caused by the shootings, introduced a bill to broaden the powers of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS). Among other powers, it would allow the agency to operate internationally and introduce a program to revoke Canadian citizenship of dual nationals who are convicted of terrorism. The Canadian Civil Liberties Association urged the government to not over-react: "before we take steps to expand existing police and intelligence power, we need answers about why the power that we have were not used, or were insufficient, to prevent or avoid recent tragedies." On October 29, Minister of Justice Peter MacKay said the government would work to prevent the promotion of terrorism online.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Investigation and government response
The media reported on November 13 that security video taken at the Centre Block parliament building showed that Zehaf-Bibeau had taken a tour of the  building three weeks before the attack. The security video was not released to the public. A large knife was found next to Zehaf-Bibeau's body after he was killed, and it was reported that the RCMP's working theory of his actions was that he intended to behead someone.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Investigation and government response
On November 23, the government announced that they would unify the various security forces of the House of Commons and the Senate under one command. The existence of the two separate forces had been identified as a point of failure in the October 22 incident. Other areas suggested to be addressed was the need for better surveillance equipment including a central surveillance officer, and a lack of networking between the forces, including the RCMP.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Investigation and government response
On December 1, RCMP Commissioner Paulson said the RCMP would not release the video of Zehaf-Bibeau's alleged motives. Members of Parliament had called for its release, stating that he should not comment on it without releasing it for public discussion. Paulson said releasing a partial transcript was possible. The same day, CBC News reported that Centre Block security video showed that Zehaf-Bibeau had been shot once in an exchange of gunfire with Commons security before running along the Hall of Honour towards the Library of Parliament. On December 3, the Toronto Star, National Post and Winnipeg Free Press major newspapers called for the videos to be released.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Investigation and government response
On December 17, Prime Minister Harper suggested that the attacker may not have been acting alone, but did not elaborate. In an interview on national television, Harper would not confirm he was hidden in a closet during the shootings, but said his first concern was to extricate himself from the location. "All you hear is a whole lot of shooting coming towards you, and you don't know if that's a firefight or whether it's just a bunch of guys with automatic weapons wiping everybody out in their path." After the incident, Harper's first call was to his mother to reassure her.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Investigation and government response
The Ontario Provincial Police started two further investigations into the incident. After October 22, the OPP started a review of the RCMP actions on Parliament Hill. On October 29, the House of Commons Speaker asked the OPP to review the conduct of House of Commons constables. On November 24, the RCMP asked the OPP to review Zehaf-Bibeau's actions from the Memorial to Parliament Hill. The RCMP will then act on revising its security after the reviews are complete. Until that time, the RCMP has increased its numbers around Parliament by rotating new officers for two-month terms to Parliament Hill security. The OPP report was released on the internet with redactions.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Investigation and government response
On February 24, 2015, the Canadian House of Commons public safety committee passed a motion to invite RCMP Commissioner Paulson to "publicly display and discuss the video" that Zehaf-Bibeau recorded at a future meeting of the committee. Commissioner Paulson showed the video (minus 18 seconds which the RCMP said might be pertinent to investigations into accomplices) at the public safety committee meeting of March 6. Zehaf-Bibeau is quoted as saying: "This is in retaliation for Afghanistan and because Harper [Prime Minister Stephen Harper] wants to send his troops to Iraq.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Investigation and government response
Canada's officially become one of our enemies by fighting and bombing us and creating a lot of terror in our countries and killing us and killing our innocents. So, just aiming to hit some soldiers just to show that you're not even safe in your own land, and you gotta be careful. We'll not cease until you guys decide to be a peaceful country and stay to your own and stop going to other countries and stop occupying and killing the righteous of us who are trying to bring back religious law in our countries. Thank you."


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Investigation and government response
The video was recorded in the car, in Ottawa, on the day of the shootings and was found in the car abandoned in front of Parliament. Paulson said he believes that someone else was involved, and if they were found to have aided Zehaf-Bibeau, that they would be charged with terrorism offences. Paulson also said a post-mortem test for drugs and alcohol on Zehaf-Bibeau was negative and that he had a long knife tied to his wrist when he was killed by Parliament Hill security.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Investigation and government response
Paulson further briefed Parliament that the RCMP has over 130 full-time investigators and staff on the case. Paulson reiterated the RCMP's position that Zehaf-Bibeau was a terrorist under Section 83.01 of the Criminal Code, and that he would have been charged with terrorism offences had he survived. OPP investigators also possess the security video taken inside the Parliament building when Zehaf-Bibeau was killed. The RCMP did not determine the source of the gun Zehaf-Bibeau used. They found witnesses to him loading it into his car.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Investigation and government response
On May 29, 2015, the RCMP released the full transcript of Zehaf-Bibeau's video. The missing 18 seconds included Zehaf-Bibeau asking God to praise his actions and curse those he is targeting.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Investigation and government response
In June 2015, the CBC reported some information from the OPP report. The CBC reported that Zehaf-Bibeau was hit 31 times by police including a shot to the back of the head by RCMP Constable Curtis Barrett after which the RCMP stopped firing. He was then hand-cuffed although he was already dead. Vickers himself shot 15 times. After entering the Centre Block, there was an exchange of gunfire between Zehaf-Bibeau and House of Commons Security Corporal Malo. Zehaf-Bibeau then ran down the Hall of Honour.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Investigation and government response
House of Commons Security Constable Louis Letourneau shot at Zehaf-Bibeau 15 times, hitting him once, an event recorded on Centre Block security video. Four RCMP officers advanced on Zehaf-Bibeau, who took one more shot, narrowly missing RCMP Constable Barrett, then started a barrage at Zehaf-Bibeau. The OPP report concluded that the officers' actions were all justified. The OPP report also contained the information that it was determined that Zehaf-Bibeau shot Corporal Cirillo three times in the back at the War Memorial, not twice as was previously reported.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Investigation and government response
In October 2015, CTV News reported that it had obtained an "unredacted" copy of the OPP report. In it, it was reported that four RCMP officers were involved in the shootout: Const. Curtis Barrett, Const. Martin Fraser, Sgt. Rick Rozon and Corp. Dany Daigle. According to CTV News, the constables were told after Kevin Vickers was applauded for his actions that "the Kevin Vickers train has left the station but you guys will get internal recognition." Recognition was to include a commissioner's commendation and recommendation for a Governor General's Award. According to CTV, the officers did not receive commendations and were on stress leave. Barrett would eventually be recognized after his involvement in the shooting was confirmed and previously lost.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Investigation and government response
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police established "Project Savvy" to pro-actively look for threats to Canadian security in open source media, including social networks.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions
On October 23, MPs in the House of Commons gave a standing ovation to Vickers for his heroism. As Mulcair of the New Democratic Party put it: "Just as we have all borne witness to these horrific acts, we have watched in awe your acts of courage, now an abiding emblem of Canadian strength, values and valour." The first order of business was a moment of silence for Cirillo. Prior to the day's session, Harper laid a wreath at the War Memorial; MPs from all parties attended a moment of silence and sang "O Canada" at the Memorial before walking together to Parliament. The flags at Parliament Hill and other federal government buildings were also flown at half-mast.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions
A National Hockey League (NHL) game to have taken place on October 22 in Ottawa, between the Ottawa Senators and Toronto Maple Leafs, was postponed and rescheduled for November 9. Over the following days, several NHL teams held moments of silence and "O Canada" was sung prior to games in the United States in which no Canadian team was participating. On October 25, pre-game ceremonies were jointly held in Ottawa, Montreal, and Toronto to honour the deceased and first responders.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions
On the same day of the attack, before a NHL game between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Philadelphia Flyers, the Canadian National Anthem was sung in honour of the attack. The largest Canadian flag was used for a pre-game ceremony between the Ottawa Redblacks and the Montreal Alouettes of the CFL.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions
A fund to benefit the families of Cirillo and Vincent was started on October 22 with a goal of CDN$10,000. It surpassed its goal by noon the following day, when representatives of Canadian banks called to arrange a donation of $80,000. By October 29, the fund, known as the Stand On Guard Fund, had raised $550,000. The fund raised $705,000 of a newly-set $750,000 goal by the time the fund-raising deadline was reached.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions
A mosque in Cold Lake, Alberta, was defaced overnight with graffiti. This was immediately cleaned up in a joint effort with local residents. An Ottawa mosque was the scene of two incidents: A member praised Zehaf-Bibeau as a martyr after prayers, leading to the police stopping him for national security reasons the next day. A vandal then destroyed several windows, causing over $10,000 in damages.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions
As soon as the war memorial was reopened to the public, a makeshift memorial to Cirillo grew in front of it; residents laid out flowers, cards, and wreaths. On October 24, 2014, Cirillo's body was transported home to Hamilton in an official motorcade along Ontario Highway 401, the portion of which between Trenton and Toronto is known as the Highway of Heroes. The times of the motorcade were publicized and people stood at overpasses to observe and as it passed.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions
Cirillo's family released a statement and gave thanks to the Canadian Forces for the support offered and to those who came to the soldier's aid. Thousands attended visitation at the funeral home where Cirillo lay in repose. He was accorded the honour of a full regimental funeral service and funeral procession on October 28 in Hamilton, attended by family, soldiers, and dignitaries.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions
On October 27, a concert by the National Arts Centre Orchestra (NAC Orchestra) (from Ottawa) and Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (from London) concert was dedicated to Patrice Vincent and Nathan Cirillo and was attended by Prince Charles. The NAC Orchestra dedicated its entire UK tour of five performances to Vincent and Cirillo.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions
On November 11, the annual Remembrance Day service at the war memorial was held as planned. It was attended by Anne, Princess Royal, along with the Governor General, the Prime Minister, and other dignitaries. It was attended by a larger than normal crowd of 50,000. This was attributed to "a rising tide of concern for Canada's Forces" since the attacks. There was an increased police presence at the event because of the two killings and military armored vehicles patrolled the area, while military personnel were deployed on nearby rooftops. Persons have continued to leave "bouquets, poppies, photos, poems, written tributes, stuffed animals, a can or two of beer, even a battered hockey stick" at the war memorial, although the government has removed the items several times.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, Canadian
Immediate reactions came from MPs John McKay: "There was a pop, pop, pop sound so the guards ushered us to the back of the building" and David McGuinty: describing there is a "palpable sense of fear" in Ottawa and "it's extremely unusual for such an atmosphere to exist in the city". Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson said it was a "sad and tragic day for the city and country." Other Canadian politicians and social media also reacted.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, Canadian
Elizabeth II, the Queen of Canada, issued a statement from her and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, expressing shock and sadness. Her federal representative, Governor General David Johnston, extended his sympathies to the family of the deceased Canadian soldier and gratitude for the "professionalism and courage of our security personnel and emergency responders."


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, Canadian
In a televised address that evening, Harper called the shootings a "brutal and violent attack" and made specific reference to the ISIL-inspired attack on Canadian soldiers two days earlier. Harper insisted that "Canada will not be intimidated" by acts of violence and remained committed to Canada's efforts "to work with our allies around the world and fight against the terrorist organizations who brutalize those in other countries with the hope of bringing their savagery to our shores. They will have no safe haven." Harper classified both of the week's attacks as terrorism in his address to the House of Commons on October 23, saying "we're all aware and deeply troubled that both of this week's terrorist attacks were carried out by Canadian citizens, by young men born and raised in this peaceful country."


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, Canadian
Tom Mulcair, the Leader of the Official Opposition, called the shooting a "cowardly act designed to strike at the heart of our democracy" that was "designed to drive [Canadians] to hate." Mulcair categorized Zehaf-Bibeau as a criminal, not a terrorist: "I don't think we have enough evidence to use that word."


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, Canadian
Justin Trudeau, the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, said "Canadians know acts such as these committed in the name of Islam are an aberration of [the Muslim] faith. Mutual respect and admiration will help to prevent the influence of distorted ideological propaganda posing as religion." He agreed with the RCMP that this was a terrorist attack.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, Canadian
Green Party leader Elizabeth May said in the House of Commons: "I would put money on these being the acts of isolated, disturbed and deeply troubled men who were drawn to something crazy. I do not believe that it was a vast network, or that the country is more at risk today than it was last week. However, that is my opinion. I can be wrong...I am undoubtedly going to be wrong again, but what I would like to suggest is that we wait for answers from the police before we make assumptions, and that we speak calmly, truthfully and openly to all Canadians."


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, Canadian
Premier of Ontario Kathleen Wynne said, "Our belief is that people who are using violence to undermine democracy want us to be silenced and we refuse to be silenced."


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, Canadian
A public statement by the Muslim Association of Canada condemned the violence in Ottawa and Quebec: "MAC would like to offer its condolences to the victims of violence over the past week. We are horrified by these acts of violence, especially in the Parliament of our nation's capital. We stand with all Canadians in condemning these attacks and seeking justice for those responsible." The National Council of Canadian Muslims also said it: "stands united with Canadians in categorically condemning today's shooting attacks."


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, Canadian
Considerable media attention was paid to the ideology and pathology of Zehaf-Bibeau. Along with Martin Couture-Rouleau and Justin Bourque, he has been labelled a "lone-wolf terrorist". Couture-Rouleau and Zehaf-Bibeau were "both self-radicalized and adrift in their lives and connected in their sympathy to radical Islamic ideology." Other opinions diverged from simply calling Zehaf-Bibeau a terrorist. Andrea Polko, girlfriend of Nathan Cirillo said in a statement on Facebook that the dysfunctional state of the Canadian mental health care system was to blame for the shooting.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, Canadian
Vancouver Sun columnist Ian Mulgrew commented on how the incident, as well as a failed bombing attempt in Victoria by persons motivated similarly to Zehaf-Bibeau, showed 'gaping holes' in the social security net. "These incidents are examples not of Muslim extremism but of the lack of community support for the dysfunctional of any faith who, with a lack of proper attention or the wrong catalyst, become dangerous. I know which approach would make me feel safer, what I would call real security measures: a social safety net that caught those in obvious need before they went postal, people like Zehaf-Bibeau."


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, Canadian
Further divergence of opinion appeared in the criticism of the government's labelling the shooting as a terrorist attack. James Baxter, editor-in-chief of ipolitics.ca, an Ottawa political 'zine, said "the government is exploiting two isolated murders to push through sweeping new surveillance powers" and pointed out "the would-be 'terrorists' involved were armed only with a car and a vintage hunting rifle".


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, Canadian
Journalist Linda McQuaig said "lots of hype about Canada and our institutions being under attack — even as it got harder to explain the difference between the 'terrorist' murders of two soldiers and the 'non-terrorist' murders of three RCMP officers in Moncton. The main difference appeared to be that the shooter in Moncton was not a follower of Islam".


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, Canadian
Academic Emer O'Toole said there was a double standard in the response by the Harper government relative to the 2014 Moncton shooting saying, "Harper's minimal statement after Justin Bourque shot and killed three Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers in Moncton, New Brunswick, in June, made no mention of terror. Yet Bourque's actions bore the hallmarks of a conservative and conspiratorial anti-state worldview reminiscent of Norwegian killer Anders Breivik. There was no appeal to Canadian solidarity in the face of an attack on "our country, our values, on our society"; there was no affirmation to "remain vigilant against those at home and abroad who would harm us."


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, Canadian
A national poll by the Angus Reid organization released on November 25, 2014 revealed that Canadians in general were also split as well on whether the attack and shooting was an act of terrorism or mental illness. 38% felt that it was the result of mental illness, while 36% felt it was terrorism, with 25% undecided. Asked about what the federal government should do as a result, 54% felt that more initiatives should be done to prevent radicalization, while 34% favoured harsher punishments. On how to deal with homegrown terrorists, 54% felt that indefinite incarceration only motivated persons to commit crimes, while 46% felt it prevented violent crime.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, American
President Barack Obama was briefed about the attacks. The White House released a statement that read: "President Obama condemned these outrageous attacks, and reaffirmed the close friendship and alliance between our people." In the following week, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry made a visit to Ottawa, which included laying a wreath at the National War Memorial in honour of the soldier killed.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, American
Journalist Glenn Greenwald said that the Canadian government was exploiting the shootings by wasting "no time in seizing on the incident to promote its fear-mongering agenda over terrorism, which includes pending legislation to vest its intelligence agency, CSIS, with more spying and secrecy powers in the name of fighting ISIS." He also said that the shootings weren't an act of terrorism, writing that, "... to the extent the term [terrorism] has any common understanding, it includes the deliberate (or wholly reckless) targeting of civilians with violence for political ends.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, American
But in this case in Canada, it wasn't civilians who were targeted. If one believes the government's accounts of the incident, the driver waited two hours until he saw a soldier in uniform. In other words, he seems to have deliberately avoided attacking civilians, and targeted a soldier instead – a member of a military that is currently fighting a war."


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, American
Greenwald's opinion was in turn criticized by academic Daniel W. Drezner who said that his argument was both banal and incomplete, and that the reason why there was shock in Canada at the attack was that democracies at least claimed to adhere to jus in bello when they prosecuted violent conflicts, whereas some of their opponents did not.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, American
An article in The Daily Beast suggested that the attacks by Couture-Rouleau and Zehaf-Bibeau were connected with the 2014 New York City hatchet attack. Like them, the New York attacker was labelled as a "lone wolf," although Siegel writes that those who are moved from anger to spontaneous deadly action most often fit the profiles of borderline psychotics more than hardcore believers. He cites a 2010 study by terrorism analyst Brian Jenkins of the RAND Corporation, which states that it would be more appropriate to describe "lone wolves" as "stray dogs" which, ""while still dangerous, skulk about, sniffing at violence, vocally aggressive but skittish without backup."


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, British
Prime Minister David Cameron said he was "appalled by [the] attack in Ottawa" and offered his full support to his Canadian and Commonwealth counterpart, Stephen Harper, and the Canadian people as they dealt with the incident.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, British
An editorial in The Guardian on October 26 said "it is hard to judge the exact significance of this week's events" and "[Canada's] diversity is reflected in an acute sensitivity to the risks of conflating the threat of terror with Islam itself, which represents the country's second largest faith community." The editorial ended with:


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, British
And only a fortnight ago, its parliament voted to join the coalition in support of the US bombing of Isis targets: the country's security agencies were clear that they believed the decision would heighten the risk of a terrorist attack. Lawmakers were drafting legislation to combat radical violence before this latest attack. Politicians should now pause before succumbing to the temptation to rush through laws that further restrict civil liberties in the name of national security. It would be a betrayal of all that Canada represents if it allowed exceptional, and horrific, events to remould that society.


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, British
An editorial in The Economist from November 8, 2014, in discussing the impact on US-Canada border security, said:


2014 shootings at Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Reactions, Statements on the shootings, British
The attack in Ottawa last month by a lone gunman, who killed a Canadian soldier and stormed parliament, seems likely to make matters worse. Although there is still uncertainty about the motives of the gunman, Michael Zehaf-Bibeau—possibly a deranged outcast, possibly a religious extremist—the United States is reviewing security along the 5,525-mile (8,890km) line which separates the two countries (including the Alaskan land border).


2014 student protest in Kosovo
The 2014 student protest began when Kosovo media accused Ibrahim Gashi, the Rector of the University of Pristina and his staff, of falsifying research and publishing scientific papers based on that false research to bolster their academic credentials. Student protesters became outraged after parliament failed to pass a vote demanding that Gashi resign, with coalition government political parties opposing the move. A spokeswoman for the Kosovo police said physical violence began when students began throwing red paint and rocks at the responding officers, who then attempted to subdue the students with tear gas. Reports state that 30 police officers were injured, one with a head injury and several with broken arms or legs. More than 30 students and opposing politicians were arrested.


2014 student protest in Kosovo, Earlier student protests
Student protests at the University of Pristina started in March 1981, when students demonstrated for better food and dormitory space. These protests soon spread throughout Kosovo, and by April 1981 they had expanded to include the demands of Kosovo Albanians for more autonomy within the Yugoslav federation. The Yugoslavian government saw these protests as a serious threat, and declared that they would "suppress them by all available means". On 2 April 1981, a state of emergency was declared in Pristina, and the government sent 30,000 troops into the province to quell the protests.