Muhammad Zia-Ur Rahman, who is accused of abducting his son and leading police on a global chase over two years, has hired a new lawyer.

Muhammad Zia-Ur Rahman, 62, was denied bail last month

Bill Graveland · The Canadian Press · Posted: Feb 18, 2026 2:39 PM EST | Last Updated: 1 hour ago

Listen to this article

Estimated 1 minute

The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results.

A Calgary man accused of abducting his son and leading police on a global chase over two years has hired a new lawyer.

Muhammad Zia-Ur Rahman, who is 62, was denied bail last month, with the judge saying he represented a flight risk.

In court Wednesday, Rahman confirmed he dismissed one of his lawyers who represented him during the bail hearing and retained new counsel.

Rahman is scheduled to be back in court Feb. 26 while his new lawyer awaits more disclosure from the Crown.

The Calgary physician was captured in December at an airport in Mauritius, an island in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar, and brought back to Calgary on Jan. 17.

Police say the boy, now seven, was reunited with his mother just before Christmas.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Bill Graveland is a Calgary-based reporter for The Canadian Press.

The executive who replaced both the ousted board and CEO of Alberta Health Services last year has returned to both roles following a leave of absence.

Andre Tremblay returned to the top post at Alberta’s largest hospitals agency in late January, more than a month after his temporary leave, an AHS spokesperson said in an email this week to CBC News.

Earlier in January, Hospital Minister Matt Jones appointed Tremblay the chair and sole director of AHS. Previously, Tremblay had been serving as AHS’s administrator, a temporary role designed to replace the entire board of directors.

Tremblay moved from a senior role in the Alberta government to the helm of AHS in January 2025, after the termination of Athana Mentzelopoulos, who has sued AHS and the province for wrongful dismissal.

If the Canadian men’s hockey team plays in Sunday’s Olympic gold-medal game, Grant Koropatnicki expects 200 customers at The EndZone Bar and Grill. 

And, thanks to a request from Hamilton city council last week, they’ll be able to order drinks for the game’s 8 a.m. start. 

“When Team Canada plays, it’s a different vibe,” the co-owner of the Hamilton sports bar said Wednesday. “It brings everyone together.” 

Usually, bars and restaurants begin serving at 9 a.m., but on Feb. 15, the city announced the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario approved a temporary extension to 6 a.m. It will last until Feb. 22 when the Olympics end. The standard 2 a.m. closing time remains the same and the extension does not apply to outdoor areas. 

The commission approved a similar extension for Toronto early this month.

In a news release, the City of Hamilton said it “reminds residents and businesses to celebrate safely and responsibly.” 

Does Koropatnicki expect anyone to order a beer at 8 a.m.? “Yeah, sure they will,” he said, adding EndZone plans to have coffee, beers, mimosas and Caesars available. 

Some people have raised their eyebrows at the 6 a.m. start time, Koropatnicki said, but EndZone isn’t planning to open that early for bobsleigh. The extension really only “moves the needle” for men’s hockey.

First though, Team Canada has to win in a Friday semi-final against Finland, Switzerland or Sweden. They beat Czechia 4-3 in a tight win-or-go-home quarterfinal that started Wednesday morning at 10:40 a.m. 

WATCH | Sydney Crosby out with lower-body injury:

Canada captain Sidney Crosby leaves quarterfinal game with lower-body injury

Team Canada captain Sidney Crosby left their quarterfinal game against Czechia in the second period, with what appeared to be a lower-body injury.

That game drew a few customers, and people have been coming to EndZone to watch the other Canadian men’s and women’s hockey games, Koropatnicki said, most of which have been during normal serving hours. 

The Canadian women’s hockey team — which has two players from Burlington, Ont., and one from Hamilton — plays the United States for gold Thursday afternoon at 1:10 p.m.

The Olympics are broadcast and streaming on CBC. 

Arsenal winger Noni Madueke was the target of the Wolves boo boys during Wednesday’s clash between top and bottom in the Premier League.

The England international might appear an unusual player for the Molineux faithful to single out, but the 23-year-old has a bit of history with the relegation threatened club.

Ahead of Chelsea’s game at the same venue last season, Madueke committed social media gaffe by publishing a story on Instagram that read ‘Everything about this place is s***’.

Upon realising his mistake, Madueke published a clarification that did little to appease those of a Wolves persuasion.

He said: ‘Damnn wrong Instagram account.. You lot are too fast [laughing emoji, face palm emoji].’ 

Madueke’s every touch was subsequently booed by the home fans, but they clearly had little impact on the then Blues forward who scored a hat-trick in a thumping 6-2 win on that occasion.

The former PSV Eindhoven star moved from west to north London in the summer and has begun to win over the Arsenal supporters who were not keen on their club sanctioning a £50million transfer.

Madueke had started Arsenal’s previous six games in all competitions prior to Wednesday night, in part down to Bukayo Saka’s unavailability.

And even though Saka returned to the visitors’ XI at Molineux, he continued in the No.10 position behind Viktor Gyokeres, with Madueke given the nod on the right flank.

Mikel Arteta made no secret of the fact he could use Saka more centrally after experimenting with the England international in the same role in Arsenal’s FA Cup win over Wigan on Sunday.

‘Yeah, that’s something that’s a possibility and I wanted to try it,’ Arteta told reporters after the Gunners booked their place in the fifth round.

‘We might use it in the future.

‘There’s still so many games, competitions and different scenarios to play from now until the end of the season.

‘That’s a possibility that we have, yeah.’

For more stories like this, check our sport page.

Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on
Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

MORE: Chelsea and Man Utd urged to avoid £82m transfer mistake in bid to catch Arsenal

MORE: RB Leipzig set price for Man Utd, Chelsea and Arsenal transfer target Yan Diomande

MORE: ‘The Secret Footballer’ finally revealed as former Premier League star

The U.S. took aim at Nicaragua’s regime over alleged human rights violations, announcing a designation against a prison official.

“Today I’m designating Nicaraguan Prison Director Roberto Clemente Guevara Gómez for his involvement in gross violations of human rights,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a post on X. “We continue to call for accountability for the crimes committed by the Murillo-Ortega dictatorship and urge for the immediate, unconditional release of all unjustly detained political prisoners in Nicaragua.”

The U.S. Embassy in Nicaragua also announced the designation, clarifying that it was done under Section 7031(c) of the Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2024 “for his involvement in a gross violation of human rights of a political prisoner.” The embassy added that the U.S. was calling for “the immediate, unconditional release of all unjustly detained political prisoners in Nicaragua.”

NICARAGUA BLOCKS KEY ROUTE FOR CUBAN MIGRATION INTO THE US

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio looks on during a meeting with oil and gas executives in the East Room of the White House on Jan. 9, 2026. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

In December, the embassy announced actions taken by the United States Trade Representative (USTR) under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 in response to “Nicaragua’s acts, policies, and practices related to abuses of labor rights, abuses of human rights and fundamental freedoms, and dismantling of the rule of law.” In making the decision, the USTR considered more than 2,000 public comments and consulted with government agency experts and USTR cleared advisors.

Guards and police officers stand outside “Jorge Navarro” prison known as “The Model” in Tipitapa, Managua on Feb. 26, 2019.  (INTI OCON/AFP via Getty Images)

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION FILES SEIZURE WARRANTS TARGETING SHIPS TIED TO VENEZUELAN OIL TRADE: REPORT

The move meant that starting Jan. 1, 2026, the U.S. would impose a phased-in tariff over the course of two years that would impact all Nicaraguan goods that “are not originating under the Dominican Republic-Central America-United States Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR).” The tariff started at 0% on Jan 1., 2026, and is set to grow to 10% by Jan. 1, 2027 and then 15% by Jan. 1, 2028, the embassy said, adding that any tariff would be imposed in addition to the existing 18% reciprocal tariff.

“Should Nicaragua show a lack of progress in addressing these issues, this timeline and these rates may be modified,” the embassy added.

President Donald Trump speaks as Secretary of State Marco Rubio listens during a cabinet meeting at the White House, Thursday, Jan. 29, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

The Trump administration has taken tougher action in the Western Hemisphere in recent months, starting with the Jan. 3, 2026, capture of Venezuela’s dictatorial leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. 

Fox News Digital reached out to the State Department for comment.

Posting on the Truth Social platform on Wednesday, Trump wrote: “I have been telling Prime Minister Keir Starmer, of the United Kingdom, that Leases are no good when it comes to Countries, and that he is making a big mistake by entering a 100 Year Lease…”

The British Columbia First Nation that announced the discovery of 215 potential unmarked graves at a former residential school in 2021, catapulting the issue into public discourse, says there may never be consensus on what to do with the site.

A statement from the Tk’emlups te Secwepemc First Nation says possible future outcomes for the Kamloops Indian Residential School property include excavation or preserving its orchard as a sacred site, “a place of memory and healing.”

The nation says its investigation is ongoing, with the findings so far pointing to several areas of focus, with “signatures that resemble burials” identified in some, and other areas ruled out as burial sites.

Tuesday’s statement says more than 500 children from 38 Indigenous nations living in 119 B.C. communities attended the institution at its peak, and the nation must seek consensus on how ancestral remains should be treated.

Still, it says “we also understand that full consensus may never be achieved.”

Get breaking National news

For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen.

The nation says any remains would need to be repatriated in their home communities, calling it an “extremely complex and sensitive process” involving consultation with those nations, DNA analysis and forensic expertise.

Whether to dig at the site has been a fraught question, with no agreement among survivors of the institution. Some have said they see exhumation as a process to help lay victims to rest, while others don’t want the site disturbed.

In 2022, a year after the initial announcement of the discovery of suspected unmarked graves, Tk’emlups Chief Rosanne Casimir described the nation’s approach as an ongoing process of “exhumation to memorialization.”

The probe has included the use of ground-penetrating radar, LIDAR scanning and specially trained dogs, along with the examination of records from the Catholic Church and the B.C. and federal governments, said the statement this week.

“While the investigation has been more complex than we initially thought, we are making progress and will continue adapting our methodologies and information as it advances,” it said.

A report by the National Truth and Reconciliation Commission in 2015 detailed harsh mistreatment at residential institutions across Canada, including emotional, physical and sexual abuse of children, and at least 4,100 deaths.

The report cited records of at least 51 children dying at the Kamloops school between 1914 and 1963. Health officials in 1918 believed children at the school were not being adequately fed, leading to malnutrition, the report noted.

The Kamloops institution operated between 1890 and 1969, when Ottawa took control from the Catholic Church and ran it as a day school until it closed in 1978.

&copy 2026 The Canadian Press

Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee’s car was stolen — after a brazen thief broke into her City Hall office to abscond with the black SUV, a source told The California Post.

Lee’s car was recovered in nearby Vallejo, Calif. after the shameless car bandit reportedly stole the mayor’s keys from her office two days ago. The door to her office was found tampered with, according to a source close to the Oakland Police Department.

The police believe they know who the culprit is and there is a warrant for their arrest, per the source.

Lee, a longtime East Bay congresswoman, narrowly won the Oakland mayor’s race in 2024 and inherited a city plagued by burglaries, car thefts and other property crimes.

Oakland has one of the highest rates of auto thefts in the country, with 9,914 motor vehicle theft crimes in 2024, according to FBI data.

Its overall crime rate was 4 times the national average in 2024 amid a severe Oakland police staffing shortage, with the department running about 280 officers short, according to an independent report cited in local media.

The city has made headlines for violent crimes like the murder of beloved Laney College football coach John Beam.

In October, more than 1,000 historic artifacts, including Native American jewelry and relics, were stolen from the Oakland Museum of California’s storage facility.

In December, the Oakland City Council voted in for a contract with Flock Safety to maintain safety cameras after a highly contentious public debate.

Representatives for Lee’s office and Oakland City Hall did not immediately respond to requests for comment.