World Customs Organization: The investigation was led by Interpol while the Caribbean council and the World Customs Organization also partnered in the anti-smuggling operation, which was supported by the French Coast Guard and the Mounties, according to Times Colonist. The operation seized roughly US$822 million in drugs and led to 142 arrests, law enforcement authorities in Europe announced and KINGSTON, Jamaica - The Royal Canadian Mounted Police have lent a helping hand to an international police operation in the Caribbean and Central America that seized hundreds of millions of dollars of cocaine and other drugs. "Disrupting this activity is not only critical for the source and transit countries of these drugs and weapons, but also for the destination countries such as Canada," RCMP Commissioner Bob Paulson said in a Tuesday statement from Ottawa. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

background checks: NEW YORK - Altegrity Inc, owned by private equity firm Providence Equity Partners, is looking to sell a division that provides background checks for private-sector employers and could fetch up to $1 billion, two people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday, according to Reuters. Unlike USIS, which is the largest private provider of federal government background checks in the United States, HireRight focuses on private-sector employers and provides employee background checks, as well as drug and health screening for companies and By Soyoung Kim A potential sale of the HireRight division comes at a tough time for Altegrity, as another of the latter's units, USIS, faces a U.S. government investigation over its 2011 background check into Edward Snowden, the National Security Agency leaker. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

electronic travel document: With the launch of a new 10-year passport on Tuesday , Canada also joined over 100 other countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom, to issue an electronic travel document embedded with a chip that stores personal information, the persons photo and a digital security feature to prevent fraud, according to The Star. The new, 10-year ePassport provides more convenience for Canadians, and facilitates safe, secure travel which, in turn, helps create jobs, growth and long-term prosperity for Canadians, Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said in an announcement Tuesday and Canadians wont have to go through the hassles of renewing their passports every five years again. Resembling a regular passport, the information on the e-chip cannot be read unless the passport is held within 10 centimetres of an ePassport readable zone, and allows the machine to verify the country-specific signature a system created by the International Civil Aviation Organization to determine a passports authenticity. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

the Federal Reserve: Non-farm payrolls are expected to have increased by 165,000 last month, according to a Reuters survey of economists. More Related to this Story, according to Globe and Mail. economy U.S. recovery to be put to the test U.S. employers likely kept up a steady pace of hiring in June and the jobless rate probably dipped, which could keep the Federal Reserve on track to start curtailing its monetary stimulus later this year. Fed officials say bond purchases wont slow until economy strengthens (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Australia: Has immigration policy lost its compassion? June 29, according to The Star. Studies have also shown that the wage divergence over time between immigrants and native-born citizens is significantly narrower in Australia than in Canada. Although we have had an admirable immigration record over the years, we can still learn and improve and Re: Has immigration policy lost its compassion? June 29 Immigration Minister Jason Kenneys statement, Canada has the highest levels of immigration per capita in the developed world, is incorrect. In fact we are second to Australia. OECD figures show that, for the years 2009 through 2011 most recent years reported , Australia had an immigration rate of 9.7 per 1,000 population vs 7.6 per 1,000 for Canada. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

National Intelligence James Clapper: Clapper apologized in a letter to Senate Intelligence Committee Chairwoman Dianne Feinstein. His agency posted the letter Tuesday on its website, according to Times Colonist. Clapper was asked during a hearing in March by Sen. Ron Wyden, a Democrat on the Intelligence Committee, if the NSA gathered "any type of data at all on millions or hundreds of millions of Americans." WASHINGTON - Director of National Intelligence James Clapper apologized for telling Congress earlier this year that the National Security Agency does not collect data on millions of Americans, a response he now says was "clearly erroneous." Leaks by former NSA systems analyst Edward Snowden have revealed the NSA's sweeping data collection of U.S. phone records and some Internet traffic every day, though U.S. intelligence officials have said the programs are aimed at targeting foreigners and terrorist suspects mostly overseas. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Nicolas Maduro: President Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela told Russian reporters on Tuesday that his country has not received an application for asylum from Snowden and dodged the question of whether he would take Snowden away with him. But Maduro also defended the former National Security Agency contractor who released sensitive documents on U.S. intelligence-gathering operations. More Related to this Story, according to Globe and Mail. Obama defends U.S. spying on Europe, others as normal for all nations NSA leaker Edward Snowdens best chance of finding refuge outside the United States may hinge on the president of Venezuela, who was in Moscow on Tuesday meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Snowden threatens new U.S. leaks, asks numerous countries for asylum (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Nicolas Maduro: President Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela told Russian reporters on Tuesday that his country has not received an application for asylum from Snowden and dodged the question of whether he would take Snowden away with him. But Maduro also defended the former National Security Agency contractor who released sensitive documents on U.S. intelligence-gathering operations, according to The Star. During his Kremlin meeting with Putin, Maduro spoke about plans to build on the strong ties with Russia formed under his late predecessor, Hugo Chavez. Neither he nor Putin mentioned Snowden in their public statements and MOSCOW NSA leaker Edward Snowden s best chance of finding refuge outside the United States may hinge on the president of Venezuela, who was in Moscow on Tuesday meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. He did not kill anyone and did not plant a bomb, Maduro said ahead of his meeting with Putin, the Interfax news agency reported. What he did was tell a great truth in an effort to prevent wars. He deserves protection under international and humanitarian law. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

federal government: Fees to replace certain documents will be waived until Sept. 19 and those whose immigration status was set to expire will have it automatically extended or restored if they're living in a flood-affected area, according to Times Colonist. "This is another measure the federal government is taking so that those affected by the flooding have one less thing to worry about." OTTAWA - People whose citizenship or other immigration documents were destroyed by flooding in Alberta are getting a break from the federal government. "As Canadians we come together to ensure that we do what we can to help people get through times like these and to help them get back to their employment and caring for their families," Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said in a statement. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

David Gauci: I cant get a credit card. A CRA garnishee prevents me from getting credit of any kind, he said. If I want to buy airline tickets, I have to ask someone with a credit card to do it for me, according to The Star. When he contacted me, I suggested that he try the Taxpayers Ombudsman, an arms length agency set up in 2008 to review service-related complaints about the CRA and David Gauci worked in the United States from 1999 to 2003. An error made by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service and compounded by the Canada Revenue Agency CRA threw his life into disarray. Gauci has worked full-time in Canada, earning a higher-than-average wage, since 2006. But most of his income was going to pay interest and penalties to the CRA under a garnishment order. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.