---
Plastic Mess Clean-Up Coming This Summer
The Manitoba government says that cleaning up a plastic mess left over from last year's flood control measures in Brandon will happen later this year.
Motorists say the plastic from sandbags and other flood protection materials is an eyesore on the Highway 110 Eastern Access Route to Brandon.
A provincial spokesperson says the debris is mixed in with the material that was flattened after the flood, and will require heavy equipment and considerable work to pick up.
The government says it will do the cleanup at the same time it raises two other roads in the area this summer.
---
Second Ontario Farm Tests Positive For Avian Flu
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency says preliminary testing has confirmed the presence of avian flu at a chicken farm in Oxford County, Ontario.
That makes it the second poultry farm in southwestern Ontario where avian flu has been detected.
The agency says initial tests for the disease were conducted on Friday after the chicken farm experienced sudden deaths of birds over several days.
Further testing is underway to determine the precise subtype and strain of the virus.
---
Al-Qaida Strikes In Somalia
Officials now say 10 people are dead after a bomb exploded on a bus or van carrying UN employees in northern Somalia.
The al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab group is claiming responsibility.
A UN employee who insisted upon anonymity says most of the victims are foreigners working with the UN, and that the bus belonged to the children's agency UNICEF.
However, the nationalities of the victims haven't been released.
Officials say there are many wounded.
---
Tragedy Strikes Migrant Boat
An Italian coast guard ship has brought the bodies of 24 victims of a migrant tragedy to the nearby island of Malta.
The boat is now continuing to Sicily with what may be the only 28 survivors among hundreds.
The smuggler's boat overturned off Libya's coast yesterday as rescuers approached.
Some survivors say 700 migrants were on board, while one survivor from Bangladesh says the number was 950.
Meantime, Italy's coast guard says it intercepted another boat this morning off Sicily, containing 100 Syrian refugees who left from Turkey.
---
Canada To Speak Out Against Russian Military Aggression
Canada will use a meeting of the Arctic Council this week in Iqaluit to voice its concerns over what it calls Moscow's military aggression in Ukraine.
Environment Minister Leona Aglukkaq has chaired the eight-nation council for the last two years.
She says she'll be making Canada's concerns known to Russia's environment minister.
