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An army general who is reported to have criticised aspects of the war in Afghanistan has resigned. Reports said Maj Gen Andrew Mackay, General Officer Commanding Scotland, Northern Ireland and Northern England, was unhappy about strategy. Prince Harry spent 10 weeks from December 2007 in Afghanistan under the command of Maj Gen Mackay. The Ministry of Defence has insisted that the general's departure was a "personal matter". Maj Gen Mackay's operational tour to Afghanistan was notable for the re-capture of Musa Qaleh, a strategic town, from the Taliban. He was subsequently awarded a CBE for his role in the mission....

Canada interjected itself squarely into the hostage standoff between Iran and Britain yesterday after dressing down the Iranian envoy in Ottawa, joining the growing international effort to pressure Tehran to release the 15 captured sailors. Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay said he summoned Iran's top diplomat in Canada for a meeting on Thursday to urge Tehran to immediately release 15 British sailors and marines, now entering their second week of captivity after their boat was intercepted in the northern Persian Gulf region in what Britain says was a lawful United Nations patrol in international water. "We view this as a...

Oh, what a dog's breakfast Peter MacKay's taunts at Belinda Stronach should come back to bite him. He should be cast into the doghouse By Dianne Rinehart The Hamilton Spectator Oct 28, 2006 There's a bigger issue behind Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay's alleged reference to Liberal MP Belinda Stronach as a dog than misogyny -- though that is surely bad enough coming from a former leader of the Progressive Conservative Party. There's the issue of whether our foreign affairs minister has the "right stuff" -- in this case, maturity and a recognition of the fragility of women's human...

Stronach remark dogs MacKay cnews.canoe.ca October 20, 2006 By ALEXANDER PANETTA OTTAWA (CP) - Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay referred to Liberal MP Belinda Stronach - his ex-girlfriend - as a dog Thursday in the House of Commons, the Liberals say. MacKay denies saying any such thing. The purported slur prompted Toronto-area Liberal Mark Holland to lodge a complaint with the Commons Speaker, and other Liberals expressed disgust at the alleged remark. Holland says the foreign minister made the slur while exchanging jeers with the Liberals during a debate on the environment. While the government was being peppered with...

Belinda Stronach has slid while former boyfriend Peter MacKay has soared. Their failures and successes speak to the shifts in political mood.There was a moment in May 2005 when it appeared as though Belinda Stronach had managed, with a little help from her friends, to catapult herself over the entire Canadian political landscape, coming down, to considerable fanfare, among the top decision-makers in government. Without a shred of real political experience, without ever having held a job she was not appointed to by her father, without even a university degree, Stronach had claimed credit for uniting the right, placed second...

It doesn't take much when you're the U.S. secretary of state, you're a woman and you're single. Condoleezza Ms. Rice spent some time this week with Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay in his Nova Scotia riding. And there they were on the front page of the New York Times on Wednesday, clasping hands in greeting. The article, with the teaser headline “Dance of Diplomacy,” gently mocks the twitter of the gossip mill and “baseless speculation” about a blossoming romantic relationship. But the story took care to note that Mr. MacKay is “the closest thing to eye candy on the diplomatic...

It's been a long time since an appearance was made in New York as affecting as that at the Regency Hotel Thursday morning by Karnit Goldwasser. She is the wife of one of the Israeli soldiers held by Hezbollah. She spoke under the auspices of the United Jewish Appeal-Federation of Jewish Philanthropies of New York, which is launching an appeal in respect of its emergency humanitarian effort for Israelis whose lives have been disrupted by the war. The head of the Federation, Morris Offit, and Mayor Bloomberg spoke at the event. Mrs. Goldwasser will be remembered for years for the...

OTTAWA -- Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay blamed Hezbollah yesterday for starting the current Middle East war, describing the Lebanese group as a "cancer destroying democracy in Lebanon." The Conservative government believes "it is not a difficult choice between a democratic state [Israel] that was attacked by terrorists and cold-blooded killers," he said. As the civilian death toll mounted, Mr. MacKay used some of the harshest language against Hezbollah to date by a Tory minister. "Lebanon's being held hostage by Hezbollah," Mr. MacKay told a House of Commons foreign-affairs committee special session that was called by the opposition parties to...

It's time to start working diplomatically toward peace in Lebanon - but that doesn't mean a unilateral ceasefire by Israel, says Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay. Speaking Sunday on television, MacKay refused to join other countries who have called on the Israelis to rein in their military offensive in the region. Before hostilities can end, he said, both sides will have to agree on a solution that will ensure Israel doesn't come under attack again from Hezbollah guerrillas using Lebanon as their base of operations. "A ceasefire and a return to the status quo is a victory for Hezbollah," MacKay...