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This Week in Canada: The Tragedy of Tumbler Ridge
Last week. a mass shooting in British Columbia killed eight people and injured 27. (Paige Taylor White/AFP via Getty Images)
We still don’t know what turned an 18-year-old into a killer; U.S. lawmakers take Canada’s side on tariffs; remembering the ‘Shawinigan Handshake’; and more.
By Rupa Subramanya
02.17.26 — Canada
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Welcome back to This Week in Canada, where one of the most difficult weeks in recent memory leaves many unanswered questions, tariff relief is rumbling, and so are those separatists in Alberta—with help from America. Let’s jump in!

After last week’s mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, speculation swirled about whether the shooter being transgender was the main cause of the horrific attack. But there is no confirmed evidence that Jesse Van Rootselaar, 18, had medically transitioned, had received gender-affirming medical treatment, or was in inpatient care, according to the regional healthcare authority in northern British Columbia.

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Rupa Subramanya
Rupa Subramanya is a writer for The Free Press. She lives in Ottawa, Canada.
Tags:
Guns
International
Crime
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