Teachers fended off a grizzly bear that attacked a school group walking along a trail in British Columbia, Canada, on Thursday, officials said.

“The group had stopped along a trail near the community when a grizzly bear emerged from the forest and attacked,” Insp. Kevin Van Damme of British Columbia’s Conservation Officer Service, said in an update on social media. “Teachers successfully repelled the bear using pepper spray and a bear banger.”

Eleven people were injured in the attack, including students in the fourth and fifth grade, according to CBC News.

Two were in critical condition, two in serious condition and the other seven were treated at the scene, the British Columbia Health Services said.

STATE DEPARTMENT WARNS AMERICANS IN JAPAN AS DEADLY BEAR ATTACKS KILL 13 PEOPLE SINCE APRIL: ‘BE DILIGENT’

The incident happened in Bella Coola, a town more than 400 miles north of Vancouver.

The victims were taken to Bella Coola Hospital and were being transferred to Vancouver for further care, Van Damme said.

Officials were still searching for the bear as of Friday, who they believe may have been previously injured.

HIKER’S FRIEND WATCHES IN HORROR AS BROWN BEAR DRAGS MAN INTO BUSHES ON MOUNTAIN: REPORT

“We recognize this incident is distressing for the community. We are in close contact with the Nuxalk Nation as our investigation continues. We thank them for their collaborative efforts to ensure community awareness and shared safety information,” Van Damme said. “Our thoughts are with the victims and their families, and we wish them a full and speedy recovery.”

Tamara Davidson, British Columbia’s Minister of Environment and Parks, called the teachers who fought off the bear “true heroes,” adding that they were well-prepared, according to the Guardian.

By&nbspEuronews

Published on
23/11/2025 – 7:00 GMT+1

As Europe Today prepares to launch, we turn to one of the journalists driving this new Euronews chapter. Starting Monday, Méabh Mc Mahon, one of Euronews’ most recognisable faces and a prominent figure in the Brussels media scene, will co-host the network’s new flagship morning show alongside Maria Tadeo.

A Brussels-based TV journalist with more than 15 years of experience, Méabh has reported on the EU and global affairs from the Brexit vote to the Brussels terrorist attacks. She has extensive experience as a field reporter and has travelled across the continent from Kyiv to Lisbon, often with just a mojo kit for broadcasting.

Speaking five languages, she previously served as a live correspondent for France24 before joining Euronews in 2018. She has interviewed global leaders, moderated major Euronews events and anchored the much-loved “Brussels, My Love?” — now a successful podcast she will continue to host as Chief Anchor.

Known for her “firm but fair” questioning and her deep knowledge of European politics, she now brings her sharp, authoritative voice to Europe Today. So, what can viewers expect from this new morning programme? Let’s hear from her.

Méabh, you’re going back to morning television. What can we expect on Monday from Europe Today?

“Expect sharp analysis, trust-worthy news updates and engaging content and guests. As a natural morning person, you can count on good humour too and great banter between myself and my exceptional co-host Maria Tadeo. With the ultimatum set by President Donald Trump for Ukraine, a lot is at stake next week for one of the most important moments in Europe’s history and a story we care deeply about at Euronews. We will try to make sense of it all to our viewers.”

Apart from Europe Today, where else can we find you on Euronews?

“You can also find me on Euronews’ brand new debating show “The Ring” which aims to bring European Parliament debates to your sitting room. Viewers already told us they love this new informative but entertaining format so it is a pleasure to be part of the great team. And once a week, I am producing and hosting a podcast version of “Brussels, my love?” – which can bring you up to speed on the week in European politics. As someone who cares deeply about the challenges and threats facing the EU, I am pleased to be able to keep listeners informed with this friendly format.”

What names do you want to have on Europe Today?

“You can expect the big European players that are shaping Europe today to be regulars on Europe Today. Just like on national TV broadcasters, we will be joined by Commissioners, key MEPs, government ministers, CEOs and more. With our global outreach on TV, online and on social media, and the multi-lingual element of this show, there is no other way to share a message so quickly than on this brand new daily morning show. With so much at stake for the EU now and its attempt to stay relevant in these turbulent times, it is important for European leaders to speak to their voters and become regular faces on shows like Europe Today. Having interviewed Anthony Blinken just before the full scale war in Ukraine started, I am eager to speak to Marco Rubio as he has moved from a more traditional Republican with a very hawkish position on Russia to the more transactional ideological flexibility of President Trump.”

Sign up here.

Dmitriev and his fund were blacklisted by the U.S. government in 2022 following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The sanctions effectively bar American citizens and companies from dealing with them.

It has also prompted criticism from the Ukrainians and their allies for appearing heavily tilted toward Russian interests, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy vowing on Friday that he would not betray Ukraine’s interests.

The document, which calls for major concessions from Ukraine, appears to run counter to the tougher stance the Trump administration has lately taken toward Moscow, including with sanctions on its energy sector.

It’s unclear whether Dmitriev came to the meeting in Miami with certain Russian demands and whether those were incorporated into the peace plan.

Two people familiar with the meeting said Rustem Umerov, Secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, was also in Miami early this week to discuss the plan with Witkoff.

One source familiar with the situation said that Witkoff told Umerov about the plan during that visit and that the United States gave the plan to Ukraine via the Turkish government on Wednesday, before directly presenting it in Kyiv on Thursday.

Umerov has described his role as “technical” and denied that he discussed the plan in substance with U.S. officials.

Dmitriev and the Ukrainian embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said in a statement that any peace plan “must offer security guarantees and deterrence for Ukraine, Europe and Russia” and offer economic incentives to both Ukraine and Russia.

“This plan was crafted to reflect the realities of the situation, and to find the best win-win scenario, where both parties gain more than they must give,” she said.

SOME OFFICIALS CAUGHT OFF GUARD

One senior U.S. official said Secretary of State Marco Rubio was read in on the 28-point plan, but didn’t clarify when he was briefed.

“Secretary Rubio has been closely involved throughout the entire process of developing a plan to end the war in Ukraine. Any insinuation otherwise is completely false. That includes speaking with both sides of this conflict – many times – to facilitate the…exchange of ideas to establish a durable peace,” said State Department Principal Deputy Spokesperson Tommy Pigott in a statement.

U.S. officials and others consulted by Reuters disputed that characterization.

“There was no coordination, no one at State had seen this, not Rubio,” another U.S. official said. The official added that the plan contains material that the secretary of state had previously rejected.

The situation has sparked worries inside the administration and on Capitol Hill that Witkoff and Kushner skirted the interagency process and that the discussions with Dmitriev have resulted in a plan that favors Russian interests.

It includes demands that Russia has previously made – that Ukraine give up some of its territory in the eastern part of the country that it still controls, recognize Crimea as Russian and pledge not to join NATO.

“This so-called ‘peace plan’ has real problems, and I am highly skeptical it will achieve peace,” said Senator Roger Wicker of Mississippi, the Republican chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee. “Ukraine should not be forced to give up its lands to one of the world’s most flagrant war criminals in Vladimir Putin.”

Experts also criticized the proposed deal.

“Putin said today the plan he saw is a ‘basis’ for a future agreement — likely a signal they plan on asking for inclusions and revisions on top of what is already a disadvantageous proposal for Kyiv,” said Dara Massicot of the Russia and Eurasia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. “One week seems ambitious for resolution.”

CONCERNS ABOUT DMITRIEV

The administration’s discussions with Dmitriev have also worried some inside the intelligence community, one U.S. official familiar with the matter said.

Dmitriev has previously used his role at RDIF to make inroads with various Western governments and businesses, even amid American sanctions.

The CIA declined to comment about concerns within the intelligence community about Dmitriev.

During the first Trump administration, Dmitriev established contacts with the president’s team to reset relations between Washington and Moscow.

In a 2017 meeting with Erik Prince, the former CEO of Blackwater and a Trump ally, Dmitriev discussed U.S.-Russia relations, according to a Department of Justice report published by Special Counsel Robert Mueller in 2019. Mueller’s team was investigating ties between the Trump team and Russia.

In a separate meeting with a friend of Kushner’s, Dmitriev drafted a reconciliation plan to strengthen ties between the U.S. and Russia, the report says.

The Mueller team said in its report that it did not establish that the Trump campaign coordinated with the Russians to influence the 2016 election.

Dmitriev also worked directly with Kushner during the first administration. During the pandemic, Dmitriev coordinated with Kushner on the delivery of ventilators to the U.S. The ventilators were provided by RDIF and caused concern among officials at the Treasury Department that the U.S. might be violating its own sanctions, according to a senior U.S. official.

In recent years, Dmitriev has appeared on various American television stations and at events like the World Economic Forum in Davos, to promote the strengthening of trade ties between the U.S. and Russia.

He pushed a similar message at the meeting in Miami, according to public readouts of the meeting.

His visit also included a sit-down with U.S. Representative Anna Luna, a Florida Republican. In the meeting, Dmitriev and Luna spoke about increasing trade ties between the U.S. and Russia. Rep. Luna’s office did not respond to requests for comment.

The meeting between the two was set earlier in the month amid statements by Luna that she had received Russia’s JFK files.

In a video by RIA, one of Russia’s state news agencies, Luna is seen accepting a box of chocolates with Putin’s face inscribed on the front.

The images appear to show Luna and Dmitriev in a conference room at the Faena Hotel in Miami.

The Faena Hotel is owned by Access Industries, a company run by Len Blavatnik, a Russian billionaire, according to the company’s website. Blavatnik made his money partnering with Viktor Vekselberg, a Russian billionaire sanctioned by the U.S. for his ties to Putin. Witkoff’s company, the Witkoff Group, does business with Blavatnik, including in Miami.

(This story has been corrected to fix the reference to Umerov as Secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, not defense minister, in paragraph 9)

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