People who have been hoping to cruise the northern waters of North America this summer will have to place their travel dreams in dry dock for now.

Because of the worsening Covid-19 pandemic, Canada has extended its cruise ship ban until February 2022. That affects popular voyages in Canada, including the St. Lawrence River and Maritime Provinces on the Atlantic side to British Columbia along the Pacific Coast.

On Thursday, Canadian Minister of Transport Omar Alghabra announced the interim orders that ban pleasure craft in its Arctic waters and cruise vessels in all Canadian waters until February 28, 2022.

The government said "passenger vessels carrying more than 12 people are still prohibited from entering Arctic coastal waters, including Nunatsiavut, Nunavik, and the Labrador Coast. Pleasure craft used by local Arctic residents will not be affected by these measures."

But the bigger vacation impact will be for folks who enjoy the big cruise ship experience. Cruise ships that ferry more than 100 passengers will still be prohibited from operating in Canadian waters.

It's notable that there's no ban on "smaller cruise ships certified to carry 100 or fewer people."

Source: CNN

Lawmakers resumed the session after police managed to remove the mob, which had been encouraged by President Donald Trump in a bid to overturn his defeat.

The certification clears the way for Mr Biden to be sworn in on 20 January.

In response, Mr Trump finally pledged an "orderly transition" of power.

Democrat Joe Biden's victory was confirmed at about 03:30 local time (08:30 GMT) on Thursday by a joint session presided over by Vice-President Mike Pence, who said the violence had been a "dark day in the history of the United States Capitol".

Wednesday's chaotic scenes followed months of escalating rhetoric from Mr Trump and some Republican allies that sought to undermine the result of the 3 November election. The invasion of the Capitol by the president's supporters - some armed - was an event without precedent in modern American history.

BBC NEWS

The former Argentina attacking midfielder and manager suffered a heart attack at his Buenos Aires home.

He had successful surgery on a brain blood clot earlier in November and was to be treated for alcohol dependency.

Maradona was captain when Argentina won the 1986 World Cup, scoring the famous 'Hand of God' goal against England in the quarter-finals.

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BBC NEWS

As Democrat Joe Biden inched closer to the 270 Electoral College votes needed to win the White House, President Donald Trump’s campaign put into action the legal strategy the president had signaled for weeks: attacking the integrity of the voting process in states where the result could mean his defeat.

Democrats scoffed at the legal challenges the president’s campaign filed Wednesday in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Georgia. And the flurry of court action did not seem obviously destined to affect the election’s outcome.

ASSOCIATED PRESS