Bieber booed, Lightfoot lauded during splashy Grey Cup halftime

Justin Bieber faced a hostile homecoming at the 100th Grey Cup on Sunday, with the jeering capacity crowd at the raucous Rogers Centre providing the teen idol with a reception as unyieldingly cold as a long Canadian winter.

The 18-year-old grew up roughly 150 kilometres down the road in Stratford, Ont., but that didn't help his cause with the rowdy crowd on hand, who took aim at the ubiquitous pop star whenever possible.

They booed when his face popped up on the JumboTron. They booed when a host spoke his name at the onset of halftime. And they booed with extra glee as he took the stage and throughout his medley of the finger-snapping, chart-topping hit "Boyfriend" and the disco-inflected club come-on "Beauty and a Beat."

If Bieber was bothered by the boo-birds, it didn't show.

"It's an honour to be here at the Grey Cup in Canada," he said, a smile tugging at his lips despite the reaction.

"Make some noise. I said make some noise!"

Unfortunately, the crowd obliged. More boos.

Still, Bieber was outwardly unruffled. Clad in a black leather tanktop with baggy pants and a gold chain dangling around his neck, he put in a lithe performance, slickly executing his steps surrounded by dancers dressed in black-and-gold letterman jackets branded with his second initial.

As he wrapped up "Beat" — which typically features a verse from rap's reigning oddball queen Nicki Minaj — a dazzling array of pyro popped into the air and at first the crowd responded enthusiastically. But once again, the cheers dissolved into boos.

"Thank you so much Canada," Bieber announced, ignoring the response. "I love you."

If the feeling of this particular crowd wasn't mutual, there were certainly omens. There were those early-game jeers any time Bieber's face popped up onscreen, and as fans poured into the Rogers Centre, few summoned much enthusiasm for the teen idol.

Most figured that while Bieber is a bona fide draw — an international star and tabloid fixture whose latest record "Believe" became his third straight to reach multi-platinum status in Canada after its June release — most of those fans simply weren't at the game.

Surely, the CFL was hoping to court his army of tween followers (numbering more than 30.6 million), who hang on Bieber's every tweet but might otherwise be unlikely to tune into the Grey Cup game between Toronto and Calgary.

But the divide between Bieber's young, predominantly female fanbase and the CFL faithful is as broad as a lineman's shoulders.

"Not a real big fan of Justin Bieber, sorry," said 52-year-old Johanna Ellis of Kitchener, Ont., as she navigated the Rogers Centre before the game.

"It's not a very good choice in a stadium full of football fans."

Indeed, recent Grey Cup halftime performers have skewed toward the comparatively heavy likes of Bachman & Turner, Nickelback, Theory of a Deadman and Lenny Kravitz, a drastic contrast to Bieber's fizzy pop confections.

"J-Biebs doesn't scream football, you know? Neither does Carly Rae Jepsen," agreed Calgary's Ryan Prisque, 22.

"Gordon Lightfoot — that'll be the time I turn back from the beer gardens and watch."

The 74-year-old Lightfoot certainly did captivate the crowd Sunday. With the stadium lights down, Lightfoot opened the halftime show by materializing on a modest stage near the 50-yard line, dressed in black and strumming an acoustic guitar. The crowd roared.

His long grey hair swept back, the stalwart songwriter — originally from Orillia, Ont. — put in a gentle performance of his iconic 1967 hit "Canadian Railroad Trilogy" that lacked the theatrics of Bieber's performance but nonetheless enthralled the audience, who gamely clapped along. When he was finished, they roared again.

Attention then shifted to set of three stages lined up along one side of the stadium, with a cluster of amped-up fans rushing in and clustering around.

Vancouver pop outfit Marianas Trench was greeted mostly with indifference after their performance, while 27-year-old Jepsen also received a mixed reaction at first but won the crowd over during an enthusiastic medley of her latest single, "This Kiss," and her dangerously infectious smash hit "Call Me Maybe."

But the crowd was seemingly immune to Bieber's charms — and some seemed to have been waiting for the opportunity to show their displeasure with the young star.

He had certainly been visible during Grey Cup week.

Bieber was spotted at a trendy local club on Friday night after being photographed earlier in the evening playing hoops with Toronto rap star Drake and Raptors forward Amir Johnson.

Earlier in the week, he was presented with a Diamond Jubilee Medal by Prime Minister Stephen Harper and courted controversy with his casual wardrobe choice: striped blue overalls (unbuttoned on one shoulder) over a white T-shirt, accessorized with a backwards black baseball cap and glittering jewelry jangling around his neck and wrist.

There was sufficient uproar over his outfit that Harper even weighed in on Twitter.

"In fairness to [Bieber]," Harper tweeted Sunday, "I told him I would be wearing my overalls too."

Well, the fashion feedback seemed tame compared to the scathing response from the Toronto crowd.

Of course, Bieber — who will return to both the Rogers Centre and his usual bevy of deliriously adoring fans next Saturday — did have faithful supporters sprinkled among the fans crammed into the cavernous building.

"I missed Justin Bieber in Winnipeg ... so this is good for me," said Brittnay Dueck, attending the game with her mom.

"I'm surprised that they chose someone who's a little bit younger. Being 26, I'm OK with it. But I think everyone else who's here might not like it."

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Don Murray: From Scotland to Catalonia, Europe's sovereignty-association moment

The appetite for independence in Europe today, in small nations encased in larger countries, brings together the following: a long memory, a sense of grievance and a talent for overblown rhetoric.

Mayor Carles Puigdemont of Girona, in northern Catalonia, knitted all three into one sentence: "These elections are not just the most important of our lives, they're the most important of the past three centuries."

In that declaration, rhetoric and memory need little explanation. The sense of grievance takes us back to 1714 when, after a siege of 11 months, the forces of Philip V of Spain finally took Barcelona, Catalonia's treasure.

The region, the mayor believes, has been suffering ever since.

The mayor is also the president of the Assembly of Municipalities for Independence in Catalonia and the results of Sunday's regional elections are certain to have pleased him.

For the first time, parties with a clear majority of seats in the Catalonian legislature are in favour of a referendum on Catalonian independence, something that is now expected within the next four years.

That's because Artur Mas, the leader of the biggest party in Catalonia, the nationalist but conservative Catalan Nationalist Coalition (CiU), suddenly reversed field this fall, calling early elections and promising just such a referendum, which he had previously opposed.

Follow the money

One reason for this change of course might be the Catalonian government's enormous debts coupled with Madrid's refusal this summer to agree to an economic bailout (while it was desperately applying its own national austerity measures).

Artur Mas, leader of the Catalan Nationalist Coalition, rallies supporters just prior to Sunday's vote. (Emilio Morenatti / Associated Press)

Another reason might be the huge march that brought up to one and a half million people into the streets of Catalonia on September 11, calling for independence. September 11 was the anniversary of the taking of Barcelona in 1714.

It wasn't, however, Mas and his party who "won" these elections. The CiU are actually projected to lose a few seats.

But the left-wing nationalists, the ERC, long in favour of a referendum, stand to double their seat total and become the second biggest party.

Catalan independence would seem to be moving forward, if crabwise.

Scotland and Flanders too

The forces of nationalism in Scotland and Flanders will now undoubtedly proclaim that history is on the side of small nations.

In Edinburgh, the Scottish first minister, Alex Salmond — a man who has spent his political lifetime working towards independence —signed a deal last month with the British prime minister to hold an official referendum on independence in 2014.

Meanwhile, in Antwerp, Bart De Wever and his party have taken the city hall.

Antwerp is Belgium's second city and De Wever is a Dutch-speaking Flemish separatist who wants to see the end of Belgium as it exists, to be replaced by a confederal state — two countries in all but name.

So powerful are the Flemish nationalists and De Wever that they were able to block the formation of a national government for a year and a half.

With De Wever in power in Antwerp the shaky new Belgian government may not last much longer.

Revenge of the recently rich

One curious strand unites these movements. It might be called the revenge of the recently rich.

Catalonia, a brutalized battlefield in the Spanish Civil War of the 1930s, now produces more than a fifth of the output of stuttering Spain, although it has just 17 per cent of the population.

Flanders was once the poor relation of Belgium; the mines and the money were in the French-speaking south.

Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond and British Prime Minister David Cameron, in October, after signing their agreement allowing for a Scottish referendum on independence. (Associated Press)

Now the mines have closed, the French speakers are poorer, and the economy has moved north where the Dutch-speaking Flemish population is almost 60 per cent of the country and doesn't want to subsidize the south.

Even Scotland, though statistically poorer than England, sees itself as rich, oil-rich like Norway.

But Salmond and the nationalists complain they have been cheated for decades, that the North Sea oil money was siphoned directly to London.

Still, much divides these movements. While the Scottish will vote on their future, with approval from London, the Spanish constitution specifically prohibits secession referendums.

Madrid has already intervened once to negate one such vote in the Basque country. And there is almost no talk of referendums in Flanders.

The problem is Brussels. It lies in Flanders but is overwhelmingly French-speaking.

More to the point, it is also the capital of the European Union, and its future is a conundrum the nationalists can't solve.

Good Europeans

Language is a spur to nationalism for both the Flemish and the Catalans. For decades both were treated as little more than peasant dialects by the reigning establishments in their countries.

Catalan was even outlawed as a language to be learned in school under the dictatorship of Franco.

In Scotland, meanwhile, there is a decided lack of linguistic friction: English is the language of both unionists and nationalists, which may help explain why, after almost six years in power, Alex Salmond and his troops have not been able push support for independence much past 35 per cent in the polls.

The leaders of these independence movements all see themselves as good Europeans, ready to increase and reinforce the European Union.

The problem for them, though, is that the leaders of the European Union don't see things the same way at all.

In the midst of economic crisis the breakup of component countries is not a problem Germany and France want to think about.

Brussels, in turn, has made it clear that any newly independent nation would automatically find outside the Union and would have to apply to join.

And under the terms of the EU treaties, any member state could veto any new application.

When presented with that stark choice, polls show Catalans much more hesitant about independence.

As for Scotland, Alex Salmond woos the voters with the promise that they could have the Queen, the pound and Europe, too. Canadians may recall something similar; it was once called sovereignty-association in Quebec.

Breaking up peacefully can be done, of course. The Czechs and Slovaks did it 20 years ago and both countries later joined the European Union.

But breaking up from the inside may be a far harder task to bring off.

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Rob Ford to learn fate in conflict case

A judge will hand down a decision this morning in a conflict-of-interest case that will determine whether Toronto Mayor Rob Ford stays in office.

Ford is accused of breaking the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act, after the mayor spoke and voted at city council in February on whether he would personally have to repay $3,150 in donations collected for his football charity.

Weeks after that vote, Toronto resident Paul Magder filed an application alleging that Ford had violated the act, and should lose his job and be barred from running for office as a result.

Ford testified in court in September, revealing that he had never read the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act he is accused of breaking, nor the handbook given to city councillors that spells out the rules for declaring conflicts.

On Sept. 6, Ontario Superior Court Justice Charles Hackland indicated he would try to return a decision in the conflict case involving Ford in a timely manner.

That decision is due to be released at 10 a.m. ET Monday.

If Hackland finds Ford guilty, he can order him out of office and ban him from running again for up to seven years.

However, if Hackland finds that Ford committed a conflict of interest without realizing he was doing so or through a simple error in judgment, the mayor would keep his job.

Ford is accused of not declaring a conflict of interest when he participated in a council vote to recommend he repay donations that he solicited for his private football foundation using official city letterhead.

Mayor believes he did nothing wrong

The mayor testified in September and told court he believed he did nothing wrong, while lawyer Clayton Ruby argued Ford acted in bad faith by not familiarizing himself with the city's conflict of interest rules.

Ford said he didn't remember receiving or reading a handbook for municipal councillors that outlines when to declare conflict of interest or the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act, which he is accused of breaking.

In 2010, Ford used his staff to help send out donation requests for his football fund and mail them out to donors who had officially lobbied the city government.

The city's integrity commissioner found Ford's actions broke the conduct code for councillors and recommended he pay back donors from his own pocket.

Council adopted the commissioner's findings and sanction in a resolution Ford voted against — but he never made the repayments, despite several reminders from the commissioner.

Council later voted to overturn the integrity commissioner's penalty. Ford voted in favour of the motion that would allow him to keep the money.

With files from CBC's Jamie Strashin, The Canadian Press

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All eyes on Calgary-Centre in today's byelections

Byelections can be attention-getting because they're seen as bellwethers, or can be humdrum affairs with low voter turnout because they can't generate the excitement of electing a new government.

Of the three federal byelections Monday, only Calgary Centre has drawn the intense scrutiny usually seen in a leadership race or a general election.

Even though the riding may stay Conservative — as it has, in one form or another, for four decades — the race carries the drama of a possible upset in a province that the Conservatives own.

"We had the Joe Clark race in 2000 where he defeated the Canadian Alliance, but that was a conservative-conservative battle. This is a unified Conservative Party with the potential of losing its first election in Calgary since 1968," said Duane Bratt of Mount Royal University in Calgary.

The Conservative candidate is former Calgary Herald managing editor and broadcaster Joan Crockatt, whose identification with the Wildrose Party may have alienated the progressive conservatives in the Conservative Party.

Plus, Bratt thinks her "classic front-runner" campaign "out of the Conservative textbook" — which he said translates into "don't go to forums, don't speak to the media much, spend your time door knocking" — isn't helping her.

The former Conservative MP, Lee Richardson, who resigned to become Premier Alison Redford's chief of staff, was viewed as a moderate conservative. He won the riding with 58 per cent in 2011.

Calgary-Centre Liberal candidate Harvey Locke has received public support from some conservatives in the riding. (CBC)

But Crockatt, several recent polls suggest, is running just five points ahead of Harvey Locke, a conservationist and the Liberal candidate. Some conservatives in the riding have thrown their support to Locke and have even fundraised for him.

The Green candidate, Chris Turner, an author and advocate for sustainability and clean technology, is polling a close third, while the NDP candidate, anti-poverty advocate Dan Meades, is trailing in fourth place.

3-way race

The Calgary Centre race looks like a three-way battle between the Conservatives, Liberals and Greens, with the NDP not a stong contender — even though the New Democrats hold the only non-Conservative federal seat in Alberta, Linda Duncan in Edmonton–Strathcona.

"Crockatt could very well win this with 36 per cent of the vote, and the only way you can do that is with a significant vote split on the other side," Bratt said. "Chris Turner would be the spoiler. The higher the Turner vote, the more likely it is for Crockatt to win."

One factor that could pull votes away from the Liberal candidate is the anti-Alberta comments made by Liberal MP David McGuinty and by federal Liberal leadership candidate Justin Trudeau.

McGuinty said that Alberta MPs should "go back to" their home province if they weren't prepared to work for the national interest, rather than just Alberta's, when it comes to energy. McGuinty apologized and resigned his role as natural resources critic.

Trudeau said on a Quebec TV program two years ago that Canada wasn't doing well because "it's Albertans who control our community and socio-democratic agenda." Trudeau has also apologized.

Bratt thinks the McGuinty comments are more harmful than Trudeau's remarks for the Liberals' Locke, because Trudeau has paid a lot of attention to the riding. Calgary was his first campaign stop after he launched his leadership bid, and he has visited a second time.

Victoria

The western-most of Monday's byelections is in the riding of Victoria, where one of the key issues is a proposed $738-million dollar sewage plant. Since there's no distracting question about who will be the next prime minister, federal byelections can become intensely local.

The sewage plant is a controversial issue since some residents fear higher taxes will ensue, and it's also a federal issue given the Harper government has pledged to help pay for it.

The byelection in Victoria was triggered by the resignation of NDP MP Denise Savoie, the deputy Speaker of the House of Commons, who left due to undisclosed health issues. Savoie's win in 2011, when she capture more than 50 per cent of the vote to the Conservative runner-up's 23 per cent, makes the riding a good bet for the NDP

The NDP candidate is environmental lawyer Murray Rankin, who is the only proponent of the proposed sewage treatment plant.

For years, Victoria has been dumping partially treated sewage into the Juan de Fuca Strait. It's been an embarrassment for decades, with some saying a treatment plant is needed and others arguing the turbulent waters of the strait safely wash the sewage away.

The Green Party candidate, University of Victoria professor Donald Galloway, is against the plant, favouring a better plan.

Conservative candidate Dale Gann, who is president of the Vancouver Island Technology Park, opposes the sewage plant.

Paul Summerville, running for the Liberals, has called the plant a million-dollar boondoggle and wants it put off until 2040. Summerville, who also teaches at the University of Victoria, once ran for the NDP in the Toronto riding of St. Paul's but switched to the Liberals after the 2006 election.

Polls suggest an NDP victory with the Greens coming in second.

Durham

The Ontario riding of Durham was held for eight years by the embattled Bev Oda, the former minister for the Canadian International Development Agency, who quit over a scandal about her expense accounts, including a famous $16 charge for a glass of orange juice. Despite her sudden resignation in July, the riding still seems a strong one for the Tories.

The Conservative candidate is retired Royal Canadian Air Force captain Erin O'Toole, who is the son of the provincial Conservative MPP for Durham, John O'Toole.

Grant Hume of Bowmanville, a retired businessman who spent 31 years with the Toronto Board of Trade, is the Liberal candidate.

The NDP candidate is former MPP and former mayor of Brock Larry O'Connor. The NDP surge during the 2011 election wasn't seen in Durham, with Oda winning the riding by almost 55 per cent and the NDP far behind at 21 percent.

Polls suggest the Conservatives are in line to win.

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Argonauts corral Stampeders for Grey Cup on home turf

All week the story of the 100th Grey Cup had been pointing to Chad Owens.

On Sunday night, Chad Kackert stole the script and ran with it.

The Toronto Argonauts running back, who didn't become a starter until after Cory Boyd was cut in mid-August, turned pre-game predictions he would be the X-Factor into reality by leading the Double Blue to a 35-22 victory over the Calgary Stampeders in the 100th Grey Cup, at the Rogers Centre.

Yes, the truth was out there, and it was found both on the ground (20 carries for 133 yards) and in the air (8 catches for 62 yards and a 195 overall total) for the New Hampshire-grad, who had bounced around a pro career looking for a home until he arrived in Toronto last year.

Well, he's home. And he has the game Grey Cup Most Valuable Player award to put on his mantle piece.

After scoring two majors in the first playoff game against Edmonton, Kackert added 139 yards on the ground in Montreal in the East final. That kind of output opened things up for quarterback Ricky Ray then, and it did the same in the championship game.

A first half of 101 yards from Kackert begat a second half of 94 on this Sunday, and it was more than enough to bring the silver chalice home to Toronto for the first time since 2004, and 16th overall.

"You can't make this up," said Kackert afterwards, still with a look of incredulity about him. "It's a great end to a story and the next chapter will be starting pretty soon. We're going to enjoy this."

The running back, who actually had a short tryout with Calgary after being cut by the NFL's Jacksonville Jaguars two years ago, now is a key part of a Toronto offence that struggled in the early going of 2012 as it tried to pick up the complicated scheme brought west from Montreal by rookie head coach Scott Milanovich.

"We've been in a rhythm since Saskatchewan [Week 18, and the start of a five game winning streak] when we had to win to get in and ever since them we've realized the opportunity we had."

Ever humble, Kackert deflected credit.

"You know, we've got a lot of guys in this offence who can do the job," he said. "I just did my part."

Milanovich was not unsparing with his praise.

"He's been amazing all year. He's stepped up huge in the playoffs, he did it again tonight. He's been a sparkplug for our team."

Ray, winning his third Grey Cup in four tries and his first for the Argos since being traded over from Edmonton last December in one of the most lobsided deals in CFL history, was 18-for-30, 231, two TDs and a pick.

"It was hard to get into a rhythm tonight," he said. "Man, it was like the longest game I've ever played. The pre-game, and the [40-minute] halftime, just not being able to get into the whole flow of the game.

"But we were able to make enough plays and score enough points to get this win."

Owens, the league's Most Outstanding Player who had been held in check by the Stamps in two regular season games, again struggled to pile up the yards, getting 103 from catching and run backs.

He didn't care a bit, pointing out afterwards there are so many weapons in the Argo offence that shutting him down only opened another avenue. That would be Kackert.

Quarterback Kevin Glenn, always second choice for Calgary coach John Hufnagel as long as Drew Tate was healthy, and a man who had an outstanding year in relief, was just 14 of 27 for 222 yards, no touchdowns and an interception that went back for a touchdown.

League top Canadian Jon Cornish was a non-factor with 15 carries for 57 yards.

Rene Paredes provided the bulk of the scoring for the West champs, going 4-for-4 in field goals.

Chance for Calgary was there

Trailing 27-11 into the fourth quarter, Glenn was given a chance on a questionable pass interference call to Ahmad Carroll, who television replays suggested did not actually touch Maurice Price.

Again, as had been the case all game when prosperity came to call, the Stamps refused to answer and settled for a three, making it 27-14 with 9:46 to go.

Andre Durie wrapped things up by taking a short dump pass from Ray for a seven yard major at 9:38 of the fourth, making it 34-14 and sealing the deal. That score had again been set up by a long run from Kackert.

Calgary added a meaningless touchdown from Maurice Price in the final minute of the game.

The teams had traded field goals in a third quarter that might have turned things around for Calgary if they had remained mistake free.

One example saw the Stamps, down 21, spring Larry Taylor for an apparent 105-yard touchdown return off a kickoff. Keon Raymond was caught holding, however, and it came right back.

That kind of night.

Half to forget for Calgary

Turnovers and poor play selection turned the first half into a nightmare for the Stampeders.

Both teams struggled on offence to open the game, so it made sense a turnover might help Toronto, given they led the league in giveaway-takeaway.

Glenn handed the ball to Cornish at his own 45 and the CFL most outstanding Canadian fumbled it, recovered by Ricky Foley (who would go on to be the game's top non-import).

Even then, the Argos looked to be stalled until a bad face mask penalty gave them 15 extra yards from where, two plays later, Ray rolled in desperation to his right, found Owens as his outlet man, and the diminutive runner skipped by a defender to score the opening touchdown for a 7-0 lead.

Finding nothing from Cornish, Glenn instead dropped a nice outlet pass into Taylor's hands and the Stamps' own little guy danced down the right side for 42 strong yards.

It came for naught again, however, when the Toronto defence swamped Cornish and Calgary settled for a 30 yarder from Paredes to make it 7-3 into the second quarter.

Stamps had just 48 yards in total offence to Toronto's 78.

Glenn opened the second 15 deep in his own end, mixing up a pass route for Mo Price who was no-where near the ball. Pacino Horne said hello to the little pigskin and ran it back 25 yards for the pick-six and it was suddenly 14-3 for the Argos.

All 14 of those points came off Stamps turnovers.

Next time Glenn had the ball back, he tried to force one into triple coverage and almost had another pick on his hands as Jordan Younger got the paws on it but couldn't squeeze.

Later, Calgary was third and one just inside Toronto territory and went for it, handed off and turned it over.

The Stampeders couldn't even stare fortune in the face without turning away. Bad Toronto tackling on a pass to Nik Lewis sent him 42 yards to the 25. That looked promising until a second down in the shadow of the posts went horribly wrong.

Glenn looked downfield, saw nobody open and rolled to his right on what turned into a naked bootleg stopped by Ejiro Kuale, resulting in a field goal.

Ray came right back, using Kackert's skills to set up a deep pass that went to Dontrelle Inman on a corner pattern that beat Brandon Smith and put them on the one.

Potential trouble. Last week, Toronto's offence embarrassed itself on three straight shots from the one against Montreal. Kackert going nowhere this week on the first try was a nasty piece of déjà vu.

Time for something new. Backup QB Jarious Jackson actually rolled out, found a wide-open Inman (Calgary was shocked as well) and he danced in for the 24-6 halftime lead.

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Egypt judges urge strike after Morsi widens powers

Egypt's judges have called for an immediate strike in all courts and prosecutors offices to protest against President Mohammed Morsi's decree expanding his powers, according to BBC News and Reuters.

After an emergency meeting on Saturday, the Supreme Judicial Council urged Morsi to retract the decree, which they call an "unprecedented assault on the independence of the judiciary and its rulings."

The judiciary, which was the main target of Morsi's edicts, pushed back Saturday. The country's highest body of judges, the Supreme Judical Council, called his decrees an "unprecedented assault." Courts in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria announced a work suspension until the decrees are lifted.

On the streets, anger continued as Egyptian security forces fired tear gas to disperse protesters in the capital Cairo.

Prominent Egyptian democracy advocate Mohammed el Baradei warned Saturday of increasing turmoil that could lead to military involvement unless the Islamist president withdraws his new, near absolute, powers.

Egypt's liberal and secular forces — long divided, weakened and uncertain amid the rise of Islamist parties to power — are seeking to rally themselves in response to the decrees issued this week by President Mohammed Morsi. The president granted himself sweeping powers to "protect the revolution" and made himself immune to judicial oversight.

Decree an 'unprecedented assault'

Outside the high court building in Cairo, several hundred demonstrators rallied against Morsi, chanting, "Leave! Leave!" echoing the slogan used against former leader Hosni Mubarak in last year's uprising that ousted him. Police fired tear gas to disperse a crowd of young men who were shooting flares outside the court.

The edicts issued Wednesday have galvanized anger brewing against Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood, from which he hails, ever since he took office in June as Egypt's first freely elected president. Critics accuse the Brotherhood — which has dominated elections the past year — and other Islamists of monopolizing power and doing little to bring real reform or address Egypt's mounting economic and security woes.

Opposition groups have called for new nationwide rallies Tuesday — and the Muslim Brotherhood has called for rallies supporting Morsi the same day, setting the stage for new violence.

Protesters run for cover after riot police launch tear gas canisters in Cairo on Friday. (Ahmed Mahmoud/AFP/Getty)

Morsi supporters counter that the edicts were necessary to prevent the courts, which already dissolved the elected lower house of parliament, from further holding up moves toward stability by dispersing the assembly writing the new constitution, as judges had considered. The assembly is dominated by Islamists.

Morsi accuses Mubarak loyalists in the judiciary of seeking to thwart the revolution's goals and barred the judiciary from disbanding the constitutional assembly or parliament's upper house.

In an interview with a handful of journalists, including The Associated Press, Nobel Peace laureate el Baradei raised alarm over the impact of Morsi's rulings, saying he had become "a new pharaoh."

"There is a good deal of anger, chaos, confusion. Violence is spreading to many places and state authority is starting to erode slowly," he said. "We hope that we can manage to do a smooth transition without plunging the country into a cycle of violence. But I don't see this happening without Mr. Morsi rescinding all of this."

Speaking of Egypt's powerful military, el Baradei said, "I am sure they are as worried as everyone else. You cannot exclude that the army will intervene to restore law and order" if the situation gets out of hand.

Morsi opposition chronically divided

But anti-Morsi factions are chronically divided, with revolutionary youth activists, new liberal political parties that have struggled to build a public base and figures from the Mubarak era, all of whom distrust each other. The judiciary is also an uncomfortable cause for some to back since it includes many Mubarak appointees who, even Morsi opponents, criticize as being too tied to the old regime.

Opponents say the edicts gave Morsi near dictatorial powers, neutering the judiciary when he already holds both executive and legislative powers. One of his most controversial edicts gave him the right to take any steps to stop "threats to the revolution," vague wording that activists say harkens back to Mubarak-era emergency laws.

Tens of thousands of people took to the streets in nationwide protests on Friday, sparking clashes between anti-and pro-Morsi crowds in several cities that left more than 200 people wounded.

On Saturday, new clashed broke out in the southern city of Assiut. Morsi opponents and members of the Muslim Brotherhood swung sticks and threw stones at each other outside the offices of the Brotherhood's political party, leaving at least seven injured.

El Baradei and a six other prominent liberal leaders have announced the formation of a National Salvation Front aimed at rallying all non-Islamist groups together to force Morsi to rescind his edicts.

The National Salvation Front leadership includes several who ran against Morsi in this year's presidential race — Hamdeen Sabahi, who finished a close third, former foreign minister Amr Moussa and moderate Islamist Abdel-Moneim Aboul-Fotouh. El Baradei says the group is also pushing for the creation of a new constitutional assembly and a unity government.

Morsi 'cannot get away with murder'

El Baradei said it would be a long process to persuade Morsi that he "cannot get away with murder."

The Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice political party, once headed by Morsi, said Saturday in a statement that the president's decision protects the revolution against former regime figures who have tried to erode elected institutions and were threatening to dissolve the constitutional assembly.

Morsi's edicts also removed Abdel-Meguid Mahmoud, the prosecutor general first appointed by Mubarak, who many Egyptians accused of not prosecuting former regime figures strongly enough.

Speaking to a gathering of judges cheering support for him at the high court building in Cairo, Mahmoud warned of a "vicious campaign" against state institutions. He also said judicial authorities are looking into the legality of the decision to remove him — setting up a Catch-22 of legitimacy, since under Morsi's decree, the courts cannot overturn any of his decisions.

"I thank you for your support of judicial independence," he told the judges.

Several hundred protesters remained in Cairo's Tahrir Square Saturday, where a number of tents have been erected in a sit-in following nearly a week of clashes with riot police.

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Vito Rizzuto summoned to Quebec corruption inquiry

Reputed Mafia boss Vito Rizzuto has been summoned to testify at Quebec's corruption inquiry.

Quebec Police served Rizzuto with a subpoena on Nov. 19 in Montreal.

Rizzuto is widely believed to be the head of the Sicilian Mafia in Canada and was once the most powerful figure in Montreal's underworld.

"He was met – I can confirm that," provincial police Sgt. Claude Denis told The Canadian Press. "But that's all I can say."

The sight of a prominent underworld figure answering questions on a live TV broadcast would only be the latest twist in an inquiry that has shocked Quebecers, and the country.

The corruption inquiry is looking into collusion in Quebec's construction industry.

Rizzuto named by witnesses

This is not the first time that Rizzuto's name has come up in the corruption inquiry. Once known as Montreal's Teflon Don, for his success at dodging the law, he has been described as charming and an entertaining travel companion by witnesses.

The inquiry has heard testimony about how construction executives colluded to decide ahead of time who would win the bidding on public contracts and at what price — and how they would pay a 2.5 per cent cut of the proceeds to the Rizzuto clan.

Former construction firm vice-president Lino Zambito testified that Rizzuto once mediated a conflict between himself and construction magnate Tony Accurso over a contract for Transport Québec.

RCMP surveillance videos played at the hearings showed executives handing over stacks of cash to Rizzuto's father, who has since been slain. Wiretaps caught everything from threats over unpaid debts to mundane chatter about a gift for a retiring businessman.

Nearly four decades ago members of the Cotroni-Violi family, whom the Rizzutos violently supplanted, were called as witnesses to the last Quebec inquiry into organized-crime corruption.

At the time, the witnesses were uncooperative.

"I don't refuse to testify," crime boss Paolo Violi told the 1974 inquiry, in an account described in a book about the Rizzutos, "The Sixth Family."

"I have a lot of respect for the court but I don't have anything to say," he said.

Violi was slapped with a one-year jail sentence for contempt of court.

Friends and family of reputed mob boss killed

Rizzuto flew back to Canada in October after serving an eight-year sentence in a U.S. prison for his role in the 1981 murders of three Mafia lieutenants in New York.

During his years behind bars, the Rizzuto family faced a violent putsch. Many of Rizzuto's friends and family disappeared or were killed, including his father and a son who were both gunned down.

Police now believe people loyal to Rizzuto may be behind several retaliatory acts since he was released.

With files from The Canadian Press

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Calgary mayor says road to Ottawa 'travels through Alberta'

In an interview airing Saturday on CBC Radio's The House, Calgary's outspoken Mayor Naheed Nenshi said that while Justin Trudeau's apology was "good," the road to becoming prime minister runs through his province.

Asked if he was satisfied with Trudeau's apology for comments he made about Albertans in 2010, Nenshi told host Evan Solomon "I don't know that I heard much of an explanation there. Certainly an unreserved apology — which is good."

However, Nenshi cautioned "if you really want to be prime minister, it doesn't matter what party you are... the road to being prime minister travels through Calgary and Edmonton, it travels through Alberta."

"I think that you have to understand this place, but particularly understand the two big cities here well. And that would be advice I'd give to anybody who wants to be prime minister regardless of party," the mayor said.

"I should say, if we are being charitable, that [Trudeau] was in Calgary on the first day of his campaign and he actually gave what I thought was a very interesting speech about Alberta and the future of the energy industry."

On Friday, Trudeau offered an apology for comments he made in French during a November 2010 interview on the Télé-Québec program Les Francs-tireurs, but continued to argue his comments were being misinterpreted and that they were directed at the government of Stephen Harper and not Albertans in general.

"I'm sorry I said what I did. I was wrong to relate the area of the country that Mr. Harper is from with the people who live there and the policies that he has that don't represent the values of most Canadians," Trudeau told reporters in Vancouver.

"It was wrong to use a shorthand to say Alberta, when I was really talking about Mr. Harper's government, and I'm sorry I did that."

In the 2010 interview, Trudeau took aim at Alberta politicians and argued Canada was better off in the hands of leaders from Quebec.

'Is it possible that the Liberals or, believe it or not, the Green Party is going to come through and win in that riding? It's not outside the realm of possibilities.'—Calgary mayor Naheed Nenshi

"Canada isn't doing well right now because it's Albertans who control our community and socio-democratic agenda. It doesn't work," Trudeau told interviewer Patrick Lagacé.

When asked whether he thought Canada was "better served when there are more Quebecers in charge than Albertans," Trudeau replied, "I'm a Liberal, so of course I think so, yes. Certainly when we look at the great prime ministers of the 20th century, those that really stood the test of time, they were MPs from Quebec. There was Trudeau, there was Mulroney, there was Chrétien, there was Paul Martin. We have a role. This country, Canada, it belongs to us."

Days earlier, Trudeau's caucus colleague Liberal David McGuinty also apologized and resigned his role as Liberal energy critic after he said Conservative MPs "really should go back to Alberta" and run for the provincial legislature or municipal office if they weren't willing to adopt a national vision on energy policy.

All eyes on Calgary-Centre

Trudeau and McGuinty's comments have put a national spotlight on a what has become a competitive byelection race in the Conservative stronghold riding of Calgary-Centre.

"Who knew this byelection would be so interesting," Nenshi told Solomon.

The Calgary mayor said the odds are that the Conservatives will win Monday's byelection but that they will probably do so with "the lowest plurality" in recent memory.

"Is it possible that the Liberals or, believe it or not, the Green Party is going to come through and win in that riding? It's not outside the realm of possibilities," Nenshi said.

A poll released last Sunday by Forum Research in Calgary-Centre found Conservative Joan Crockatt was leading with 35 per cent, followed by Liberal Harvey Locke with 30 per cent, Green Party Chris Turner with 25 per cent, and New Democrat Dan Meades with 8 per cent.

The findings represented a 13-point drop for Crockatt, who was at 48 per cent support in a similar poll conducted a few weeks earlier.

'Precursor to what we should expect'

Nik Nanos, pollster and President of Nanos Research, told Solomon in a House interview that even with various factors at play in the race for Calgary-Centre, this byelection will give Canadians a glimpse of what to expect in the next general election.

"I think it's a bit of a precursor as to what we should expect in the next federal election as the opposition parties try to push back the government and whether the Stephen Harper Conservative-led party will have to fine tune their strategy," said Nanos.

When asked if Trudeau and McGuinty's comments will have an impact in Monday's byelection race in Calgary-Centre Nenshi said "who knows."

"Would the average Albertan have any idea who David McGuinty was before this week? Probably not," Nenshi said.

According to Nanos, "one comment gets people's attention" but it's "an accumulation effect" that can motivate voters to come out and "punish" the culprits.

Nenshi, who was elected in 2010 following a grassroots campaign, said voters no longer define themselves along party lines.

"That whole left-right centrum is completely irrelevant to people's lives. They're looking for good candidates and good government and people who are going to lead them well. And I think that's what you're seeing in Calgary-Centre," said Nenshi, who is the first Muslim politician to be elected mayor of a major Canadian city.

When it comes to byelections, the question is, according to Nanos, "who can deliver the vote, who can convert their supporters and the good will that they have on the street into the ballot booth?"

Voters in British Columbia and Ontario will also be going to the polls in two other byelections on Monday.

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Bangladesh factory fire death toll expected to rise

Searchers are picking their way through the site of a fire that killed at least 112 people at a clothing factory just outside Bangladesh's capital.

The blaze broke out late Saturday at the seven-storey building, operated by Tazreen Fashions.

By the morning, firefighters had recovered 100 bodies, fire department Operations Director Maj. Mohammad Mahbub said.

He said another 12 people who had suffered injuries after jumping from the building to escape the fire later died at hospitals. The death toll could rise as the search for victims was continuing, he said.

An army employee inspects the burnt interior of the factory in Savar. (Andrew Biraj/Reuters)

Local media reported up to 124 people were killed in the fire. The cause of the blaze was not immediately clear, and authorities have ordered an investigation.

Bangladesh has some 4,000 garment factories, many without proper safety measures. The country annually earns about $20 billion from exports of garment products, mainly to the United States and Europe.

Relatives of the factory workers were frantically looking for their loved ones. Sabina Yasmine said she saw the body of her daughter-in-law, who died in the fire, but had no trace of her son, who also worked at the factory.

"Oh, Allah, where's my soul? Where's my son?" wailed Yasmine, who works at another factory in the area. "I want the factory owner to be hanged. For him, many have died, many have gone."

'I want the factory owner to be hanged. For him, many have died, many have gone.'—Relative of workers who died or are missing

Mahbub said firefighters recovered 69 bodies from the second floor of the factory alone. He said most of the victims had been trapped inside the factory, located just outside of Dhaka, with no emergency exits leading outside the building.

Many workers who had taken shelter on the roof of the factory were rescued, but firefighters were unable to save those who were trapped inside, Mahbub said.\

He said the fire broke out on the ground floor, which was used as a warehouse, and spread quickly to the upper floors.

Bodies of dead garment workers are seen on the floor of a local school after the fire. (Andrew Biraj/Reuters)

"The factory had three staircases, and all of them were down through the ground floor," Mahbub said. "So the workers could not come out when the fire engulfed the building."

"Had there been at least one emergency exit through outside the factory, the casualties would have been much lower," he said.

Many of the victims were burned beyond recognition. The recovered bodies were kept in rows on the premise of a nearby school.

Army soldiers and paramilitary border guards were deployed to help police keep the situation under control as thousands of onlookers and anxious relatives of the factory workers gathered at the scene, Mahbub said. He would not say how many people were still missing.

People console a woman whose relative was killed in the fire. (Hasan Raza/Associated Press)

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina expressed shock at the loss of so many lives in the blaze and asked authorities to conduct thorough search-and-rescue operations.

The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association said it would stand by the victims' families.

Bangladesh's garment factories make clothes for brands including Wal-Mart, JC Penney, H&M, Marks & Spencer, Carrefour and Tesco.

Separately, a flyover under construction fell onto a busy market, leaving at least 14 people dead including three construction workers in southeastern city of Chittagong, an official said Sunday.

Local fire official Abdul Mannan said the concrete structure collapsed on Saturday night, and authorities recovered the bodies by Sunday morning from under the debris in the second-largest city after Dhaka.

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