Politics
Suspected poison mushroom killer’s daughter ate leftovers of fatal meal – National TenX News
The latest development in the high-profile Australian court case of Erin Patterson, who has been charged with the murders of her former in-laws, Don and Gail Patterson and her ex-husband’s aunt Heather Wilkinson, and the attempted murder of her ex-husband’s uncle Ian Wilkinson, features a video of her daughter giving evidence to police.
On the eighth day of the murder trial, the video, recorded on Aug. 16, 2023, shows her daughter talking to police about the meal her mother made on July 29 of that same year.
Patterson, 50, has pleaded not guilty and her legal team says she “panicked” after unintentionally serving poison to her family members in a “terrible accident.”
Her daughter, who has not been named, told police she ate leftovers of the deadly mushroom meal of beef Wellington, mashed potatoes and green beans with her mother and brother the day after her mother served it to her former in-laws and the Wilkinsons.
Patterson’s daughter said her mother said she was sick on the morning of July 30, the day after the lunch.
Later that night, Patterson served her children and herself “leftovers” from the meal, including mashed potatoes, green beans and steak — but no mushrooms.
When the officer asked Patterson’s daughter to tell him everything she could remember about the lunch her mother hosted, she said, “I wasn’t there so I don’t know.”
She told the officer that her mother said “she wanted to have a lunch with my grandparents and Heather and Ian,” and that they were going to talk about “adult stuff,” according to The Guardian.
On the sixth day of trial, Ian Wilkinson told the courtroom on May 6 that Patterson told her guests she had cancer. “She said she was very concerned because she believed it was very serious, life-threatening,” he said. “She was anxious about telling the kids. She was asking our advice about that. ‘Should I tell the kids or not tell the kids about this threat to my life?’”
The court also heard from Cindy Munro, a nurse on duty at Leongatha hospital on July 31, 2023, who treated the Pattersons and Wilkinsons after they became very sick, experiencing vomiting and diarrhea the same evening as the lunch.
Munro said that Patterson “didn’t look unwell” in comparison to two of her lunch guests. She told the court that Patterson was angry and emotional and kept repeating, “I don’t want any of this” in regards to hospital treatment.
The nurse said it was only her observation that Patterson did not appear as sick as the Wilkinsons did, who were transferred to a larger hospital in Melbourne.
“She didn’t look unwell like Heather and Ian,” Munro said. “Ian looked so unwell he could barely lift his head. She [Patterson] didn’t look unwell to me.”
Munro also told the court she learned that Patterson’s children had eaten the leftovers of the deadly meal, but the mushrooms had been scraped off their portions.
Get daily National news
Get the day’s top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.
She said she told Patterson there was still a risk that the death cap mushroom toxin could have “seeped through the meat” and advised that her children seek medical care immediately.
“She didn’t want to cause any hassle, she didn’t want to take them out of school,” Munro said of Patterson’s response. “And that’s when she became quite teary and quite worried, and … said ‘I don’t want the children to be involved in this.’”
Throughout the trial, the jury has heard details about the lunch and there is no dispute that the meal of beef Wellington, mashed potatoes and green beans contained death cap mushrooms, which are highly lethal when ingested, and caused the guests serious illnesses.
The judge told the jury the main issue in the case is whether Patterson planned to kill or cause very serious injury with the meal she prepared.
Wilkinson previously told the courtroom that Patterson had plated “all of the food” and appeared “reluctant” for her lunch guests to go into her pantry, according to the BBC.
Heather Wilkinson (left) and Ian Wilkinson (right) attended a lunch with a relative that led to Heather’s death and left Ian fighting for his life. Police believe they were poisoned with death cap mushrooms.
The Salvation Army Australia – Museum/Facebook
“Each person had an individual serve, it was very much like a pastry,” Wilkinson said. “It was a pastry case and when we cut into it, there was steak and mushrooms.”
He said they all ate from four grey plates and Patterson ate from an “orangey tan” plate.
“Erin picked up the odd plate and carried it to the table. She took it to her place at the table,” he told the court.
Wilkinson also said his wife told him the next day that she “noticed the difference in colours” of the plates.
He said he and his wife “ate the entire meal,” while Don ate his meal and half of the beef Wellington that Gail did not finish.
“There was talk about husbands helping their wives out,” he said.
Patterson’s ex-husband, Simon Patterson, declined the lunch invite. Last week, Justice Christopher Beale told jurors that prosecutors had dropped separate charges against Patterson alleging she had also attempted to murder her estranged husband with the poisonous mushrooms, also known as death cap mushrooms.
Death cap mushrooms are present in many of B.C.’s forests but may also be found in city environments associated with many species of imported trees. According to the B.C. Centre for Disease Control, the mushrooms have been spotted on Vancouver Island and in the Lower Mainland.
Death cap mushrooms look similar to common puffball mushrooms but should never be eaten. If you suspect you may have consumed a death cap mushroom, you should seek emergency medical care immediately.
Symptoms of being poisoned by a death cap mushroom include low blood pressure, nausea and vomiting.
Patterson’s trial is expected to last six weeks. If she’s found guilty, she faces a maximum penalty of life imprisonment for the murder charges and a maximum of 25 years behind bars for attempted murder.
— With files from Global News’ Michelle Butterfield
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
The Trump administration said Friday it was denying and revoking U.S. visas from members of the Palestinian Authority and the Palestine Liberation Organization.
That comes ahead of next month’s United Nations General Assembly, where Canada and several other countries have said they intend to officially recognize a Palestinian state.
The U.S. State Department cited the groups’ efforts to secure statehood recognition at the UN, along with their appeals to the International Criminal Court and International Court of Justice to investigate alleged Israeli crimes in Gaza, as reasons for the decision by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
“Both steps materially contributed to Hamas’s refusal to release its hostages, and to the breakdown of the Gaza ceasefire talks,” the department said in a statement.
“The Trump Administration has been clear: it is in our national security interests to hold the PLO and PA accountable for not complying with their commitments, and for undermining the prospects for peace.”
The statement did not name the officials being denied entry. It was not immediately clear if the list included Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who was expected to travel to New York for the UN gathering.
The Palestinians’ ambassador to the UN, Riyad Mansour, told reporters at the UN headquarters that they were checking exactly what the U.S. move means “and how it applies to any of our delegation, and we will respond accordingly.”
Get breaking National news
For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen.
Representatives assigned to the Palestinian Authority mission at the UN, led by Mansour, will be granted waivers so they can continue their New York-based operations, the U.S. statement said.
Mansour said Abbas still intends to lead the delegation to the high-level meetings and is expected to address the General Assembly — as he has done for many years — and to attend a meeting on the afternoon of Sept. 22 on a two-state solution co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia.
U.S. President Donald Trump will travel to New York and address the general assembly on Sept. 23, the White House said on Thursday.
Canada, Britain, Australia and France in recent weeks have announced or signalled their intention to recognize a Palestinian state during the meeting.
The countries have said their recognition is conditional on the Palestinian Authority — which has limited self-rule over parts of the occupied West Bank and has for years been positioning itself as a legitimate government alternative to Hamas in Gaza — undergoing reforms and new elections.
Abbas has signalled he will co-operate with the Western nations’ demands.
The Palestinian Liberation Organization is an internationally recognized coalition that represents Palestinian people in its occupied territories and abroad.
The Trump administration has staunchly backed Israel’s military offensive in Gaza. The U.S. has also refused to condemn expanded Israeli settlements in the West Bank, which Canada and other allies have said undermine two-state solution efforts.
Rubio hosted Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar in Washington on Wednesday “to reaffirm our two nations’ close cooperation,” the U.S. secretary said in a post on X.
Saar, asked after the meeting what the plan was for a Palestinian state, said there would not be any.
The Israeli minister on Friday thanked Rubio for holding the PA and PLO “accountable for rewarding terrorism, incitement and efforts to use legal warfare against Israel” in a social media statement.
Officials with the Palestinian Authority reject that they’ve undermined peace prospects.
Under the 1947 UN “headquarters agreement,” the U.S. is generally required to allow access for foreign diplomats to the UN in New York. But Washington has said it can deny visas for security, terrorism and foreign policy reasons.
Hamas earlier this month said it had accepted a U.S.-backed proposal on a ceasefire in Gaza that would see the release of some hostages in exchange for talks with Israel that would end the conflict and see the return of all remaining hostages.
But Israel has said it will only accept the full return of all the hostages and has pressed ahead with a plan to occupy Gaza City, which international monitors like the UN have warned could worsen a famine already afflicting the Palestinian territory.
Rubio last week announced sanctions against multiple International Criminal Court judges and prosecutors involved in the court’s investigation into Israel’s actions in Gaza and the issuing of arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant.
—With files from Reuters
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
Politics
Israel launches new offensive in Gaza, says remains of 2 hostages returned – National TenX News
Gaza City is now a dangerous combat zone, Israel says, adding that it is in the “initial stages” of a planned offensive that has drawn international condemnation.
Israel’s military said it suspended midday pauses to fighting, which had allowed food and aid supplies to enter from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. in Gaza’s largest city.
It also said it had recovered the body of a hostage and the remains of another, and vowed its military offensive would return more.
The shift comes weeks after Israel first announced plans to widen its offensive in Gaza City, where hundreds of thousands of displaced people are sheltering and enduring famine.
Father of hostage calls recovery operation a ‘bittersweet moment’
Israel’s recovery of more hostages Friday felt like a “stab in the stomach” for Rubi Chen, who believes his son is still in captivity in Gaza.
Israel said it had returned the body of one captive and the remains of another from Gaza Friday. It identified one as Ilan Weiss, a man killed in the initial Hamas attack.
“It’s a bittersweet moment that the Weiss family is reunited with their loved one, even though he’s coming back not as they would have wanted,” said Chen. “But at least they have closure … there are still 49 families waiting to have that closure.”
Chen said his family has received intelligence that his son did not survive the Oct. 7 attack but Hamas has not provided any information about his son’s whereabouts.
Netanyahu details hostage recovery operation
The Israeli prime minister said the body of a dead Israeli and the remains of another were recovered following an operation in the Gaza Strip by Israeli forces and the country’s internal security service Shin Bet.
Get breaking National news
For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen.
Netanyahu said Friday one set of remains belongs to Ilan Weiss who was killed on Oct. 7, 2023 while defending Kibbutz Be’eri against attacking Hamas gunmen.
The remains of the second Israeli are now being examined for positive identification at the Institute of Forensic Medicine.
Weiss’ wife Shiri and daughter Noga, also kidnapped in the Hamas attack, were released from captivity in November 2023.
He has two other daughters.
The Israeli Hostages and Missing Families Forum said the return of all hostages remains the “highest national priority” and urged the Israeli government to enter into negotiations “and stay at the table until every last hostage comes home.”
Israeli military says attack on Gaza City will intensify
A spokesman for the Israeli military says the country’s forces have started their attack on Gaza City which are operating “with great force” on the city’s outskirts.
Avichay Adraee, the Arabic-speaking spokesman for the Israeli Defense Forces, posted on X Friday that the military operation is in its initial phase, but that the Israeli military will “intensify our strikes” and “will not hesitate” until all Israeli hostages are returned and Hamas is dismantled “militarily and politically.”
Adraee said Israel is “not waiting” and is moving ahead with its attack against Hamas which has “transformed from a military organization into a defeated organization waging guerrilla warfare.”
The U.N.’s humanitarian agency said they were “deeply concerned” by the military’s statement that it would intensify its operation in Gaza City.
It predicted that the offensive would have a “horrific impact on people already exhausted, malnourished, bereaved, displaced, and deprived of basics needed for survival.”
It said UN and NGO teams would remain on the ground in Gaza City to provide life-saving support but maintained that its work would need to be facilitated.
Israel says hostage bodies recovered
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement that the body of Ilan Weiss of Kibbutz Be’eri and the remains of another unnamed hostage were returned to Israel.
“The campaign to return the hostages continues continuously. We will not rest or be silent until we return all of our hostages home — both the living and the dead,” Netanyahu said.
Israel on Friday said its military had recovered the bodies of two hostages, including an Israeli man who was killed in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack that sparked the war.
Of the 251 hostages taken by Hamas-led militants almost 22 months ago, roughly 50 remain in Gaza including 20 that Israel believes to be alive.
Israeli military begins Gaza City offensive
Israel declared Gaza’s largest city a dangerous combat zone and said it was in the ″initial stages″ of a planned offensive that has drawn international condemnation.
The suspension comes weeks after Israel first announced plans to widen its offensive in Gaza City, where hundreds of thousands of displaced people are sheltering and enduring famine.
440 people are now sheltering inside Gaza’s only Catholic church, spokesman says
A spokesman for Gaza’s only Catholic church said some 440 people who have taken shelter there had unanimously agreed to stay, despite word that Israel was preparing to mount a new military offensive in the Palestinian territory.
Farid Jubran told The Associated Press Friday that their decision to stay in Gaza City’s Holy Family Catholic Church was made of their own free will and “wasn’t imposed on the people.”
He said five clergy have also stayed in the church to assist those sheltering that include women, children and older people.
But Jubran, who is currently outside of Gaza, said it’s “up to them” if they want to leave the church at some point later.
The spokesman said there are no additional measures that have been taken inside the church to bolster the safety of the people.
He said “when we feel danger, people get closer to the walls or whatever, it’s more protected” but that the church “doesn’t have any specific defenses.”
© 2025 The Canadian Press
Politics
Canada places further sanctions on Russia over Moldova interference claims – National TenX News
Ottawa is placing further sanctions on Russia after allegations that Moscow interfered to influence elections in Moldova, Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand’s office said on Thursday.
Canada is imposing sanctions against 16 individuals and two entities under the Special Economic Measures (Moldova) Regulations for their role in “Russia’s malign interference activities in Moldova,” Anand’s office said.
“These individuals have actively participated in coordinated efforts aimed at destabilizing the democratically elected government in Moldova. They are associated with politician and businessman Ilan Shor, who has been sanctioned by Canada, and who fled Moldova in 2019,” the statement continued.
Get daily National news
Get the day’s top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.
The list of people who’ve been sanctioned include officials of the Shor Party, a political party led by Ilan Shor. The party was sanctioned by the Canadian government in June 2023.
The list also includes former officials of Moldova and officials of the Autonomous Territorial Unit of Gagauzia, “a region in Moldova whose current administration has strong links to Russia.”
Canada is also placing sanctions on members of pro-Russian Moldovan media outlets accused of “disseminating disinformation,” as well as “other participants in Russia’s malign operations abroad.”
The two entities on which Canada placed sanctions Thursday include Victory/Pobeda, a political bloc led by the Shor Party, and a Shor-backed paramilitary group that Canada accused of being “involved in organizing a series of anti-government protests in Moldova in 2023.”
Anand’s office said Canada is rolling out these measures “as political actors and organizations under Mr. Shor’s influence are ramping up their efforts to interfere in Moldova’s next parliamentary elections, which will be held on September 28, 2025.”
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
U.S. scraps Palestinian officials’ visas ahead of UN General Assembly – National TenX News
Israel launches new offensive in Gaza, says remains of 2 hostages returned – National TenX News
Canada places further sanctions on Russia over Moldova interference claims – National TenX News
-
Fashion6 months agoThese ’90s fashion trends are making a comeback in 2017
-
Entertainment6 months agoThe final 6 ‘Game of Thrones’ episodes might feel like a full season
-
Fashion6 months agoAccording to Dior Couture, this taboo fashion accessory is back
-
Politics4 months agoBefore being named Pope Leo XIV, he was Cardinal Robert Prevost. Who is he? – National TenX News
-
Entertainment6 months agoThe old and New Edition cast comes together to perform
-
Sports6 months agoPhillies’ Aaron Altherr makes mind-boggling barehanded play
-
Entertainment6 months agoDisney’s live-action Aladdin finally finds its stars
-
Business6 months agoUber and Lyft are finally available in all of New York State