I woke up on Saturday morning, rolled out of bed and made a cuppa tea. “Terror plot near Toronto”, screamed my first email of the day and I almost choked on my chai masala (thanks, Abhi!). My blood pressure grew worse as I scoured the web for more and found only speculation, fabricated tie ins with Al Qaeda and fictitious “targets”. My five simple ‘W’s remained unanswered. Three days later a story has finally emerged in bits and pieces.
A report by the Toronto Star says the Canadian Security Intelligence Service began monitoring internet sites, which the suspects allegedly used, and in 2004 brought the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in on the case to facilitate a criminal investigation. Toronto mayor David Miller was informed of the investigation this past winter due to growing concerns about the groupÂ’s activity. Upon learning of their plot to build a bomb using ammonium nitrate, investigators intercepted the delivery of three tons of fertilizer to certain group members in a massive sting operation. There have also been reports of a connection between the Toronto group and two U.S. citizens, one was indicted while the other was arrested on terror charges earlier this year.
Shortly after the operation, on Friday night, RCMP officers arrested 17 Canadian residents on terror-related charges in a raid on their homes. Many of these suspects are long-time Canadian residents, five of them are teens under 18 years of age while the oldest two in the group are 30 and 43 years of age.
Details of the suspects are being revealed slowly as trusty journos bang on doors and beat on windows to answer that one as-yet elusive ‘W’. Who?The suspects are, well, multicultural, and include Somali, Pakistani, Indian, Egyptian, and West Indian backgrounds. Three appear to be of South Asian background in profile reports to date.
The first is Saad Khalid:
The 19-year-old is said to be a business student at the University of Toronto’s’ Mississauga campus. Khalid, who moved to Canada from Pakistan when he was 8, told his parents he was attending a job fair in Toronto on the day police stormed his parents’ townhouse. [Link]
Khalid became friends with two of the other suspects, Fahim Ahmad and Zakaria Amara, in school:
As the four high school years passed, the three friends began to change. They became more serious, at times depressed, devout in their faith. Khalid created R.A.C., the “Religious Awareness Club,” where he’d preach Islam during lunch hours in the school’s drama room. But there were still glimpses of the goofiness for which they were known. In a 2005 video made by Khalid and other friends, he spoofed the stylized Bollywood films. Khalid donned a hijab for his role as a forlorn lover and in one scene is shown running in slow motion across a field with his arms outstretched. [Link]
In 2005, Mr. Khalid… left a serious message to his graduating class at Meadowvale Secondary School, a public school with a large Muslim population. He wrote “La ilaha illallah,” a creed that every person has to say to be considered a Muslim and means there is no one worthy of worship but Allah. “Do you really believe in it? You do? Then prove it … .” he added “Before us there were many … after us there will be none … we are the ones … Allahu Akbar.” [Link]
In 2005, Khalid, Amara, and Ahmed began associating with Quayyam Abdul Jamal, the alleged mastermind, at Al Rahman Islamic Centre in Missaussauga:
Jamal, the eldest member of the group now charged, has been a key fixture at the centre since 1999, working as a caretaker who had enough free time to go and open the doors for several daily prayer sessions. An immigrant from Karachi, Pakistan, Jamal is married to a Canadian woman who converted to Islam and has four sons. “(Jamal) was very popular among the children and young people” recalled one member who asked to remain anonymous. “He played basketball, went camping and went fishing with them. He would sit down and talk with them — he hung out with the youth crowd.” Although Jamal’s radical Wahhabist and anti-Western views alarmed some of the centre’s members, many of the older members never perceived him as a dangerous extremist. [Link]
Five of the suspects will incur charges relating to the bomb plot. It is being alleged that 20-year-old Zakaria Amara, father of an 8-month-old child, purchased the ammonium nitrate. Saad Khalid, Quayyam Abdul Jamal, Asad Ansari, and Shareef Abdelhaleem are also being counted among the five.
A third (presumably) South Asian suspect is 25-year-old Steven Vikash Chand:
Friends of Mr. Chand say he hasn’t always been the devout Muslim he is today. Born into a Hindu family, the Toronto native converted to Islam about four years ago. Mr. Chand regularly distributed material about Islam at local public schools, encouraging youths to accept God, Mr. Ally said. He would sometimes go with Jahmaal James, 23, another of the 17 terror suspects arrested on Friday. About six months ago, Mr. Chand moved in to a basement suite near his mosque. The homeowner, Mohamed Attique, said Mr. Chand was quiet and polite. His son, Mohsin Attique, 17, said he thought Mr. Chand’s conversion to Islam may have caused tension between him and his family. [Link]
The suspectsÂ’ profiles are varied and no details of a unifying link between all suspects have been released. Interaction between some of the 12 adults can be broken down into groups depending on where they prayed, family connections, or in the case of Mohammed Dirie and Yasin Abdi Mohamed, who they went to prison with. The plot is still unfolding as further arrests are expected. Reaction to the arrests by the suspectsÂ’ families, friends, and neighbours has, for a large part, been disbelief. On Sunday the International Muslims Organization of Toronto mosque was vandalized in what clearly appears to be a hate crime. Toronto muslims, especially those who reside in areas where the arrests were made, are fearing a backlash. The atmosphere is tense as people start readying their pointer fingers. Starting off the blame-slinging (in a very public way, his name is in every newspaper) we have Mr. Aly Hindy, Imam at the Salaheddin Islamic Centre:
“Are we now the enemy within? We completely reject that,” Mr. Hindy said, outside court. The imam said that because “Afghanistan is closed now,” CSIS and the RCMP are targeting young Canadian Muslims, just so that departments can justify their budgets. “This is to keep George W. Bush happy, that’s all,” he scoffed. Mr. Hindy said he knew about half of the defendants, mostly from the times when they used to pray at his mosque. He conceded there might be one or two troublemakers in the group, but predicted most of the accused would be acquitted. More worrisome, the imam said, was the direction Canada is headed. Devout Muslims, he said, are at the moment more free to practise religion in Canada than in states like Egypt that crack down on fundamentalists. Mr. Hindy is afraid authorities here will round up people indiscriminately. [Link]
The sheer amount of international coverage given to this story makes one wonder if a fair trial can really be possible. Many questions surround the actual sting operation used to tie suspects to the bomb plot. But seeing as Hindy has been personally linked to at least two of the suspects, I canÂ’t wrap my head around why he would choose this particular time to launch an unfounded attack on CSIS or the RCMP. Now would be a good time to at least pretend to respect the arms of Canadian justice. Legal aims cannot be justified using illegal means. That goes for both sides of this fence we find ourselves teetering on.
Story = Developing…
+++ UPDATE +++
The CBC is reporting that Steven Chand’s lawyer, Gary Batasar, has made a statement regarding allegations against his client:
Batasar said he was given an eight-page synopsis of the allegations, including storming Parliament, blowing up some of the buildings and taking politicians hostage to demand the withdrawal of Canadian troops in Afghanistan. If the demands were not met, it is alleged, the hostages would be beheaded. The documents allege that Chand, 25, personally wanted to behead Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
Yikes!
Um, Mr. “Get Real” what are you trying to say by posting an article that is full of sweeping generalizations about Islam – Islam is a religion prone to violence, domination, etc etc? This is nothing but a repetition of the bigoted stereotypes so dear to both north Indian Hindus (among whom I grew up) and right wing Israelis. You are better off reading some real history and actual studies on the politics of Islam. And this Karsh person is not a scholar of either, as far as I know from my years of studying the subject. This is something I have noticed occasionally on this blog – a disconnect between a concern for minority rights as brown people in the West and a willingness to accept all sorts of blather when it comes to Muslims. Examples include the concern that multiculturalism could let “terrorists” off the hook, references to viruses and cults of death to which “conventional explanations do not apply” – this seems to be the one issue that turns many people here into the sort of right-wingers you’d oppose on many other issues. Terrorism and extremism are hard enough to resolve without throwing generalizations about religion into the mix. Take the issues seriously and don’t just be concerned about how this will “rub off” on the “good” brown people.
Apparently, NYT’s use of “South Asian descent” for the terror suspects arrested in Toronto seems to rattle American conservatives:
Um, SP? Speaking of “sweeping generalizations”? Can you check yours please? Particularly the generalization that all north indian Hindu’s see Islam as a religion prone to violence and domination. I suppose I could be categorized as a “North Indian Hindu.” I could also be characterized as an Italian. And a Canadian. Does this make me a muslim hating hindu fundamentalist? A pasta loving, greasy hand talker? An idealistic, too friendly multiculturalist? Or just a chick, whose best friends happen to be all and none of the following: muslim, queer, hindu, white, yellow, conservative, liberal, radical, god-fearing, god-hating etc etc etc. Please don’t “box” us. Biology loves diversity. Society seems to hate it, right below our shining, multicultural veneer. This, of course (to avoid a generalization of my own) does not necessarily apply to all individuals who belong to any given society. Or to those of us who CHOOSE not to belong anywhere – and everywhere all at once. Let’s get postmodern already, people.
Manisha – READ. I said “so beloved of north Indian hindus” not ALL north Indian Hindus. I am one and I don’t share those stereotypes, but I know how hard it is to counter them when they are deeply entrenched, and the discussion on this thread seems to confirm that. I am not sure what point you are making other than calling for postmodernism. I generally enjoy the intelligent and humorous discussion on this blog and find it worrying to hear such cookie-cutter statements about Muslims emerging in this discussion.
Al beruni, I agree that just because they seem to be putzes doesn’t make them any less dangerous. As I said in my comment, “removing people who want to blow shit up from the general public is a good thing, regardless of how incompetent they may be.” However, I think there is a lot of fear mongering going on in the Canadian papers.
Do we have to be politically correct all the time??..
I mean, if a bunch of Hindus gather in a temple every saturday to get a political speech from the “priest” and then go, buy bombs to kill people, i’d say screw the Hindus and take Hinduism to task or atleast open it up for scrutiny..
First of all, I’d ban political sermons / speeches in religious places.. Some religious mumbo jumbo / BS in languages no one knows like Sanskrit / Swahili / (Arabic for indians) is fine if followed by sundal/mutton biriyani before returning home..
🙂
That happens all the time in India with Hindu maniacs going on the rampage. The only difference is that they are part of the government, police force, civil service. Try having a full and frank ‘politically incorrect’ discussion on the roots of Hindu fascism and terrorism and see the reaction, contextualisation, explanation, howls of offence.
That happens all the time in India with Hindu maniacs going on the rampage. The only difference is that they are part of the government, police force, civil service. Try having a full and frank ‘politically incorrect’ discussion on the roots of Hindu fascism and terrorism and see the reaction, contextualisation, explanation, howls of offence.
India is a big and diverse country. The part where I come from, one leader (an atheist: google Periyar E.V.Ramasamy) is idolised with his statues all over the place. He was famous for breaking the idols of Rama and denigrating various tenets of Hinduism.. “One who believes in God is a barbarian” are the words written in his statues..
After the latest assembly elections, the first thing the leader who got elected did was to visit Periyar’s grave to pay respects.. and the next step was to open up “temple priests” to anyone qualified irrespective of caste.
Now let’s come back to the current problem.. What’s your beef with opening up any religion / idea and scrutinising it in the “politically incorrect” way..??
Yeah, Hindus meet in RSS shakhas every week and do militaristic drills and learn to hate various other groups, but do we ever start asking “what is wrong with Hinduism” or insist that their activism has “precisely Hindu reasons” or insist that the cosmology and fatalism of Hinduism make it totalizing and incapable of “normal politics” or extrapolate from the idea of the caste system that Hinduism is somehow innately oppressive and incapable of reform? No, and if anyone tried to say those things, I’m sure many here would consider that rank prejudice and not reasoned or informed comment.
SP,
I for one would welcome any critique on any religion/idea/concept and I have not seen any one threatening people/leaders with a “fatwa” (read my earlier comment) for discussing / even denigrating tenets of Hinduism..
If there are some people who threaten such “critiques”, I’d be opposing those people and would not like to see people succumb to such threats..
“vikash – from what i can see people are trying to explain how this sort of thing can happen in your average north american setting. you don’t need a phd to take a stab at explaining the world around you. i think the discussion has been a good one.”
With all due respect Neha, is explanation via hearsay truly an explanation? Yeah, it is true that you do not “need a phd to take a stab at explaining the world around you.” But how just and credible is your explanation without any expertise? Surely I can explain the external world in terms of broad generalizations and resort to communalist thought to categorize people, but is such a thinking justified? Perhaps you misunderstand my point: it is one thing to discuss the events, it is another to postulate theories on the marginalized muslims of the “western” world.
I understand your reason to have this post and it is commendable that you wish to promote a “dinner table” discussion. But, surely, you must be curious as to what everyone takes away from such a discussion. Is such a discussion truly positive or are we all just propogating hearsay?
Dear sweet Ladies and Ladoos, please to be keeping in mind the topic of discussion: Canadian terror threats.
This Muslim vs. Hindu bidness has been beaten to death already but for some reason it refuses to die, like some Nightmare on SM Street scenario. Please fight the Freddie in you, blaming religion (or flinging its minor points at each other) is not going to enlighten anyone’s view of the Ontario situation.
SP:
Some Hindus may be RSS members, but they aren’t a threat to the West. It’s the transnational ideology of jihadi groups which is worrisome for those in the West (e.g., Toronto, London, NYC). RSS shakhas aren’t likely to do the same thing in the West. Parenthetically, I’d argue the real worry in India is not the RSS but the Bajrang Dal–especially since the median age of the members in the latter is much younger.
All of those arguments, and more, have been on offer for the past, oh, couple of hundred years. The stuff about the ‘cosmology’ and ‘fatalism’ of Hinduism is especially pretty old hat.
Gabriel:
All the time? The record of the GOI is very far from perfect in protecting the rights of its citzens (both non-Hindus and Hindus, btw). But such patent exaggeration is pointless.
I’m not sure I’d characterize the attitude on this board as reverent to Hinduism, or any other religion for that matter. Speaking as a traditionalist Hindu, I can tell you that I am very much worried by the Bajrang Dal, etc.: Not just for the damage they do to the Indian polity, but also the damage they inflict on Hinduism(s).
Regards, Kumar
Neha:
Oops, I just read your admonition. My apologies: Only the first few lines of my comment are on-topic.
That said, I wonder if you (or any other Canadian lurking here) might expand on the Canadian rules about (pre-trial) publicity. If I recall correctly, in the Homolka case wasn’t there fairly restricted coverage of the case in the press (in order to ensure a fair trial)? Is that likely to apply here, or was that specific to the Homolka case?
Regards, Kumar
I wouldn’t be so quick to dismiss their capabilities, given the proper motivation and guidance…Steven Vikash Chand was a member of the Royal Regiment of Canada. So atleast one of them did have formal military training and weapons knowledge. Ali Mohammed was a US Army Special Forces sergeant who was passed on his military training and knowlege to his Al Qaeda comrades who in turn used those tactics against the US embassies in Africa in the 1998 bombings. Given enough time and resources it is hard to tell how far the Canadian terrorist wannabes could have gone and how many more such people could have joined the plot.
Amazing if the RCMP can find their rear ends with both hands. I just wonder if they would have had any difficulty mentioning what the “unifying link” was between the suspects if they were say members of the local Boy Scouts club. They would have been dissecting every Boy Scouts of Canada organization piece by piece looking for similar fanatical groups I’m sure. But apparently not so in this case…
By unifying link i think they mean some real tie – beyond ideology – that explains how people of various ages and from opposite ends of the city (Mississauga is a western suburb, Scarlem’s east) could have come into contact with each other. The Star made a decent attempt at it: a high school, a mississauga prayer centre, a scarborough mosque. The article Ramanan linked to mentions a website that might have played a role too.
Is it unusual for people living in the same city to have trouble connecting up with each others given their common “interests” ? Seems a pedestrian enough social occurence in most cities around the world, even those without all the amenities of Toronto. Or is this considered (to the RCMP anyway) that extraordinary and patternless ?
I don’t think the RCMP is trying to skirt around the issue that all of the suspects are muslim, I think their religious views are very clear to everyone. The investigators are trying to figure out what relationships, processes, places etc. were involved in the formation and development of this cell. Obviously you’re trying to make a point about their religion, but i’m not sure what that achieves at this point.
My point is the religion factor is pivotal in the formation of the cell. The impression one gets at times is that the religion/ideology aspect is treated as almost unimportant in several news reports. The painfully contrived “broad strata” phrase used to describe the group is meaningless in this context. Mohammed Atta was Egyptian and had a degree in urban planning from Germany and Ziad Jarrah came from a wealthy Lebanese family. But those data points are hardly relevant in the core motivators for what they did. The RCMP is wasting its resources rather than following the motivational trigger to what led this group down the path its took. Everything else is a symptom of that.
As usual on sepiamutiny there is a lot of kneejerk criticism of Islam, followed by retalitation from leftists resulting in knee jerk critisism of ‘less oppressed’ groups by leftists.
Someone brought up the dot busters in New Jersey said they were white skinheads, which is not true-
15 members eventually arrested on assault, theft, criminal mischief and insurance fraud charges — were a cross section of America: one black; one Jew; several Greeks and Italians; three Filipinos; one half-Filipino and half-Indian and several Anglos.source
The only common link was their judeo-christian heritage. This doesn’t mean I go around blaming Christians and Jews becase I recgnize that the vast majority of Christians and Jews are good people and weren’t responsibe.
It’s really unfortunate so many people are unwilling to extend this basic rational attitude of indifference to ordinary muslim individuals.
hey beef-eating-atheist-hindu,
very good point on looking at people rationally and as individuals (and this is coming from the darkest of dark leftist bleeding heart liberal corners where only michael moore-stalkers and noam chomsky readers dare tread).
am very sick of deterministic thinking that looks at a muslim male as either some oppressed victim of western imperialism via mcdonalds and coke or worse, a bomb-inside-my-turban osama protege.
demonising people is terrible, but it’s even more harmful to angelicise them because that is just as racist and patronising. each of the people involved in the crime needs to be looked at as an individual.
when the columbine kids went on their massacre did anyone think of their race/culture/religion as the first big factor in their personalities? no, because they were a couple of a socially maladjusted bitter little suburban goth kids who were angry at the world. the people who planned these attacks are most probably also socially maladjusted bitter young men with anger management issues. they weren’t ‘reprazenting’ anyone apart from their own egotistical selves.
i am sick of having to choose between the unappealing options of either sticking up for them or condemning them as brown muslims. what happened to looking at people as individuals with wills and choices, not helpless victims being pushed along by social forces? i am the first to acknowledge such forces, but they are the backdrop of terrorism. the act of terrorism itself is an (often economically privileged and educated) individual’s choice to commit mass murder.
The Italian Red Brigades terrorist movement that killed Prime Minister Aldo Moro was driven by its militant leftist idealogy. The Japanese Aum Shinrikyo Cult that killed a number of people in a chemical weapon attack was driven by its religious/political motivations. In each case the political or religious motivations of the groups provided the fuel for their hatred for the society around them. Comparing the NJ Dot Busters is an eye rollingly bad analogy. That is kind of like saying Ted Kaczynski is in the same league as Bin Laden just because they both used bombs to kill. Scope and motivations set them light years apart. And in certain contexts fundamentalist Judeo Christian religious beliefs are the motivating factor for some, like the majority of anti-abortionist extremists in America, like Eric Rudolph. When was the last time an atheist or an agnostic was involved in a firebombing of an abortion clinic ? I’m sure the public and police have no problem publicly identifying the motivations for the anti-abortiion terrorists.
Re: link between the suspects and how their plan unfolded, the Globe’s Colin Freeze snagged a look at the Crown’s dossier. His report has nice timeline of events leading to the arrests. It’s looking as though 21-year-old Fahim Ahmad might have been the real organizing force behind this bunch.
Kumar – from what I’ve seen there appear to be no rules on pre-trial publicity. However, once the trial begins it is up to the judge decide whether a media gag order is required. The five juveniles are, of course, going to have their details protected but the rest seem to be fair game at this point. So much for unbiased potential jurors.
Side note on the trial itself: Since the charges fall under the anti-terrorism act, the Crown is not required to release evidence that they deem crucial to national security. If they choose to keep evidence from the public I can only imagine what a field day the media is going to have while trying to fill in the blanks.
Looks like the suspects called their mission “Operation Badr” – the same name that Pakistan used for their invasion of Kargil in 1999. In addition, the suspects used status of Hindu idols for target practice. More below (could not find link…)
M. Nam
How the police watched the plan unfold Fahim Ahmad group’s alleged ’emir’ COLIN FREEZE
TORONTO — It’s alleged that they called their project Operation Badr. And before its unravelling gripped the world’s attention on the weekend, it made quieter noises that police say they picked up on: a seemingly inconsequential gun seizure at the Canada-U.S. border; a gunshot near Cochrane in Northern Ontario; bullets shattering statues of Hindu gods during a target practice in a remote area in the Township of Ramara, Ont.; and the printing of business cards with a decidedly non-threatening e-mail address, Studentfarmers@hotmail.com.
According to a copy of a Crown synopsis viewed yesterday by The Globe and Mail, police have months worth of surveillance, communication intercepts and physical evidence that were amassed before a monitored buy of $4,000 worth of ammonium nitrate fertilizer on Friday. This sting is said to be the final chapter of months of dogged police work, leading to the arrest of 17 suspects.
None of the evidence has been tested in court and all suspects are presumed innocent until proved guilty. Indeed, most of the suspects have minor roles in a plot that appears to have two ringleaders. Still, the eight-page Crown dossier is thick with allegations.
The upshot? The police and spies who caught wind of this were as meticulous as their targets were ambitious.
It has been called a made-in Canada plot against Canadian targets, but this is only half the story. It’s alleged the group’s emir, or leader, was Fahim Ahmad, and that he was in touch with shadowy terrorist figures in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Britain.
But the bulk of the action occurs entirely within Ontario.
Mr. Ahmad, who faces the most charges of any suspect, cuts a distinctive figure in the Crown dossier. He is accused of bearing the brunt of the responsibility for the gun-running, the training and the final phase of the operation, a series of ammonium-nitrate truck bombs to be exploded against Canadian targets.
According to Crown information, the group discussed many possible targets before settling on three main ones: an unspecified Canadian Forces base, the Toronto Stock Exchange and the downtown Toronto office of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service.
According to Aly Hindy of the Salaheddin Islamic Centre, Mr. Ahmad blamed constant spying by CSIS for forcing him into criminal activity.
In August, 2005, two young men were stopped at the Canada-U.S. border and searched. Authorities found three handguns, boxes of ammunition and even a bullet stashed in a sock.
The men, Mohammed Dirie and Yasim Mohamed, told authorities they bought the weapons from a drug addict in Columbus, Ohio, for “protection” from criminals. They were sentenced to two years each.
The smuggling incident was brought to the attention of the RCMP-led Integrated National Security Enforcement Team.
They noted that the car intercepted at the border was a rental. And, according to the Crown dossier, the credit card used to obtain the vehicle belonged to one Fahim Ahmad.
It was at that point that authorities began to regard the case as much, much more than a gun-smuggling incident.
Mr. Ahmad had such a radical, Internet-influenced approach to Islam that even Mr. Hindy regards him with suspicion.
According to Mr. Hindy, the young man told him of renting a car for a gun-smuggling operation. Mr. Hindy said he called some Toronto undercover police detectives he knew, and reported on Mr. Ahmad’s alleged involvement.
Mr. Hindy was stunned to see the suspect keep returning to the mosque: Why hadn’t police done anything?
But according to the Crown dossier seen by The Globe, police were doing a lot: They were watching Mr. Ahmad’s communications, and came to believe he was talking to overseas figures with ties to international terrorism; they were trying to tie him to two Georgia-based terrorism suspects who had visited Toronto that spring; and they were keeping a close eye on the Toronto-area circles he moved in.
As the summer of 2005 turned to fall, it is alleged that Mr. Ahmed increasingly drew upon a fellow suspect, Zakaria Amara. According to the dossier, he sent him to Cochrane, Ont., to scout out a possible location for a training camp.
It is alleged that Mr. Amara was spotted approaching government offices in the far Northern Ontario community. Someone claims to have heard him fire off two shots with a shotgun.
Police allege he returned back to brief the emir on his travels. In the end, the location was not suitable. A community closer to Toronto was chosen.
It is alleged that the ringleaders had amassed a number of followers, including young men in their late teens. Police say they wanted to become jihadis.
Two guns may have been seized at the border, but the group had access to a 9 mm Luger, according to police. They also had an air rifle and a paintball gun. Strangely, by this time, CSIS had long since released a discussion paper under the Access to Information Act, indicating it was keeping tabs on young extremists playing paintball.
The training started on Dec. 18 and finished on Christmas Day, according to the Crown information. Sentries were posted around the Ramara camp 24/7. Police say the group shot at statues of Hindu gods for target practice. In quieter moments, it is alleged they reviewed jihadist videos and talked. They even had a course in confidence building, according to the Crown dossier.
According to the document, they had a name for their project: Operation Badr. A list of possible targets was overheard, according to the Crown synopsis.
The Parliament buildings are said to have came up. So did the Toronto headquarters of the CBC and RCMP headquarters in Ottawa. So, too, did the notion of taking politicians hostage. (One lawyer’s assertion yesterday that his client stands accused of plotting to “behead” Prime Minister Stephen Harper was not seen in the document The Globe viewed yesterday.)
As the Canadian Forces mission in Afghanistan began to ramp up, the group talked of hitting a military base back home, the dossier states.
And then there was CSIS: Police say they picked up conversations targeting the spy service at its downtown Toronto offices or possibly its Ottawa headquarters.
In one conversation, police say they overheard concerns about whether the Toronto office was appropriate. One suspect allegedly said he didn’t care whether the attack caused mass casualties on the street.
Police assert the attacks would be multiple, and simultaneous, for maximum effect. It is alleged the explosions were to be delivered by truck bombs.
But tensions began to arise within the group, according to the Crown dossier. It is alleged that Mr. Amara grew impatient that Mr. Ahmad was not moving fast enough.
Mr. Amara, who lived on the other side of the Toronto area, in Mississauga, is alleged to have joined forces with a charismatic figure at a local Islamic centre: Qayyum Jamal. With the help of the 43-year-old, Mr. Amara surrounded himself with a small group of young men and teenagers.
It is alleged that Mr. Amara was seen hatching plans to buy a detonator and researching bomb construction in public libraries. From the beginning, the bomb was said to be big: 1.5 tonnes of ammonium nitrate, according to police, mixed with several litres of nitric acid to get the explosion going.
Police monitor large purchases of such substances. But what if a lot of people make individual purchases? The Crown alleges a plot manifested itself with 200 business cards that would allow suspects to approach suppliers individually and acquire smaller batches. The Crown says the e-mail address had a memorable ring: Studentfarmers@hotmail.com.
Then there was a change of plan. The Crown alleges Mr. Amara brought in another Mississauga man, Shareef Abdelhaleem, to assist with buying thousands of dollars worth of fertilizer.
According to the Crown information, a police agent was on the opposite end of a payment of $2,000. After that point, the operatives are alleged to have rented a house and industrial storage unit.
There is a second payment recorded by Crown officials. It was for $4,000 and it took place on June, 2, 2006 — the day of the arrests.
Looks like the suspects called their mission “Operation Badr” – the same name that Pakistan used for their invasion of Kargil in 1999.
That’s interesting.. “Battle of Badr” carries special significance.. It was said that angels helped the true believers during the original “battle of badr” in the 7th century.. And the 1973 attack of Israel by the arab forces were codenamed “operation badr” too, I believe.. Looks like “angels” are not helping these days.. 🙂
Very interesting article posted by MoorNam in post# 124.
Anyway, a couple of thoughts in general:
There is nothing wrong with the diversity resulting from multiculturalism — except when certain values within minority/immigrant groups are in opposition to the “core” values of the mainstream culture. If there isn’t common ground on the basics, especially with regards to certain human rights issues (eg. status of women etc), then that’s where many of the problems start.
I completely agree that people should be looked at “rationally and individually” — I’m certainly no advocate of group responsibility or collective guilt, as long-time readers of SM will know; however, if people are basing their actions on their religious beliefs, you cannot avoid factoring this into the equation with regards to what is motivating their behaviour, especially if it is occurring on a sufficiently large scale. Either they are grossly misinterpreting the tenets of their faith, or there is something fundamentally wrong with some of the basics of the religion itself. The latter is, of course, possibly an argument for another time, as Neha herself has mentioned in her previous “admonishment”.
I’ve mentioned this a couple of times before on similar discussions on SM, but I can’t help wondering if some aspect of their upbringing has also contributed to this animosity towards the West. To some extent it could well be plain racism towards white people. We all know that plenty of older-generation desis have this kind of mindset; unless one really “steps back” and thinks for onself, continuous exposure to that attitude is obviously going to have a detrimental effect on people brought up in such an atmosphere, especialy if a disproportionate number of their wider social circle also thinks in the same way. This is exacerbated if there is an element of “moral superiority” involved — also a common occurance, and I’m sure many of you will have read the transcripts of conversations between UK-based wannabe jihadists who are currently on trial for, amongst other things, wanting to bomb London’s biggest nightclub and have rationalised it by stating (quote) “no-one could say they were innocent, those slags* dancing around”.
The idea of immigrant populations containing individuals (even those born in the West) whose primary allegiance is to their co-religionists domestically and, more pertinently, internationally potentially poses a serious internal security risk, if any military action internationally risks retaliation by your own country’s citizens, against fellow citizens and within the borders of your own country. This problem will remain as long as this mindset continues, ie. unity first and foremost with co-religionists, and disregard for your country’s laws. How to deal with this ? I don’t know. Maybe it’ll take a few more generations of integration and assimilation.
I also thought the extract by “Get-Real” in post #99 was excellent and addressed a number of the major problems in this whole issue.
*Slags = a derogatory British term, analogous to “sluts”.
Thanks for the reprint M. Nam, you’ll find the link in my comment above yours. It really is a good article with lots of juicy details.
🙂 do you have a single mean bone in your body neha? folks, it’s the last genuine snark-free person among us.
Sorry – did not see Neha’s email just before mine. Feel free to delete my redundant post.
M. Nam
Actually I think these attacks were perpetrated by people who waited too long to get married. If they were forced to marry while they were fetuses their back problems and ability to consume liquids through their pores would be highly developed, and hence take away any rage they have towards western countries.
In fact,
Only when I’m watching Next Top Model 🙂
No worries, M. Nam, I know that the Globe sometimes requires a subscription so it’s good to have it up there, folks are going to be scrolling for days just to get down here to the last comments, what’s a little more scrolling?
I dont know how many muslims are there in Canada or in US, but there are 160 million of them in India and they are definitely a threat to the Indian way of life, freedom and nationhood.
Fatwa against singing Vande Mataram
Md A Basith
[ Thursday, June 08, 2006 TIMES NEWS NETWORK ]
HYDERABAD: With the new academic year set to start next week and the admission process at its peak, several city–based muftis issued a fatwa on Tuesday asking Muslims not to admit their children in schools where Vande Mataram is sung every morning. Children who are already studying in such institutions must be immediately shifted to other schools, the fatwa ordered.
Muftis, including All–India Sunni Ulema Board president Moulana Syed Shah Badruddin Qadri Aljeelani, Moulana Mohammed Hasnuddin, Moulana Mohammed Mastan Ali, Nazima Aziz and Rizwana Zarreen of Jamiat–ul–Mominath, jointly issued the fatwa when some parents approached them seeking a shariah ruling on Vande Mataram. Several schools in the city start their day with a recital of the national song. “Vande Mataram was written by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee.
It emphasises that Indians treat their land as God. Ours is a secular country. Asking Muslims to do something like this cannot be advocated,” Moulana Badruddin Qadri Aljeelani told TOI after issuing the fatwa.
Even if these institutions offer quality education, they cannot force students to violate the shariah norms. Muslims cannot compromise on Kalma–e–Tayyaba, the basic pillar of Islam which says there is only one God and Mohammed is the Prophet, he added.
Parents sending their children to such schools are committing the ‘Gunaah–e–Kabira’. Hence, stay away from schools which are not secular, advised Mastan Ali. According to Islam, there is only one God.
The moment one starts believing in more than one God, it is treated as Shirk (anti–Islam), said Moulana Mufti Hasnuddin. School authorities should not force Muslim children to either recite Vande Mataram or any other rendition which is prohibited in Islam, Mastan Ali added.
I dont know how many muslims are there in Canada or in US, but there are 160 million of them in India and they are definitely a threat to the Indian way of life, freedom and nationhood.
I suggest that we come up with a final solution for the ‘Indian’ Muslims. Gujarat was a nice trailer, but we need a permanent solution to the problem.
.
True.
What measures should we take, Raj?
‘We’ watch.
I know it’s not a good idea to feed a troll, but….
Raj Mehta:
Mr. Mehta, the signal:noise ratio in your comments has increasingly fallen. And with your latest outpouring, I’m afraid it’s all noise (132, 134, 136 in particular). Do you really think your undemocratic (and yeah, anti-Indian) effusions are the answer to India’s many problems? Or, is it a slow day at work?
Regards, Kumar
Raj Mehta, I’m hoping there’s some sarcasm hidden deep in post #134. You can’t really be serious right?
Some of the discussion here (Shri Raj Mehta vs. the beef-eathing-atheist-hindu) illustrates the dangers of taking an unbalanced approach to discussing islamist terror. For the beef chomping hindu, the discussion here included “kneejerk criticism of Islam” in reference to questions such as: why werent the would-be bombers identified as muslims in newspapers, or, isn’t there this really nasty tendency for some mosques to tolerate active hate-mongers on their fringes?
For Raj Mehta, the refusal of indian muslims to participate in some ritual singing (sort of like the seventh-day adventist refusal to take the US pledge of allegiance) is a sign of “treason”. Never mind that the indian muslim minorities problems have much more to do with education, broader engagement with modernity and plain-old prejudice. I dont really care what they sing or dont; if there was a drive for education and modernization it would take care of 80% of the issues. I would think that many religous jews and christians might also have some problem with singing “Bande Matram”.
So where is the sane center in all of this? This is a rhetorical question, but I hope it is well right of the hindu beef chomper and definitely left of the raj mehtas of the world. It would be good if we could honestly point to islamism as a problem (definitely linked to certain practices within islam) while rejecting misplaced criticism of generic muslim cultural preferences (burka, veil, no bande matram).
Alright. it works like this.
Freedom of religion is good and all that. But If you’re living in a democratic society, you have to curtail some of the “outlier” type practices to the majority. If that means, singing Vande Mataram, then you do it. It depends if Vande Mataram is meant as a secular/cultural thing, or meant as a strict religious song. I don’t live in India, so I don’t know.
so they can wear burkas, veils, pirate one-eye patches, and sunglasses fitted in infra-red vision for all I care. But as soon as they want to exercise EXTREME practices that go against the main, its time to get the fuck out. So sorry mr man, you can’t have 20 wives and 10 kids with each. If you want that, move to utah. By the way the adventist case has to do more with separation of religion and state rather than a former-conquering power asserting religious hatred.
But the example is useful this way: , in the US, the pledge of allegiance is recited daily by most students. But students have the option of not reciting it, but they don’t have the option of grabbing their crotch, spitting, and farting loudly during it. Get me? Everyone bends to majority practices in some way shape or form. So for me, I stood up, kept quiet and stared blankly at my hot teacher’s body during the pledge.
in the US, the pledge of allegiance is recited daily by most students. But students have the option of not reciting it, but they don’t have the option of grabbing their crotch, spitting, and farting loudly during it.
They can show their disapproval of the pledge of allegiance by sitting through it.
neha, if people are rude would you get mad and stomp your feet, or would you sing a song? curious minds need to know. 🙂
Fine, but the point is, peeps still have to be respectful of it, even if they disagree with it. get me? Either way the biggest beef with the POA is the inclusion of “under god” its a far cry from issuing a fatwa
There’s a wicked article by Tarek Fatah of the Muslim Canadian Congress in the Star, titled “Keep politics out of our mosques”. Brave soul, that man, a big shaabash.
Reminds me of my Catholic school days in India – we were forced to say prayers(Dear Father, Thou Art in Heaven…) every morning.
I (and most other Hindus) would stand up, say it, but not mean it, ie, our minds would be elsewhere. The cricket match. The lunchbox. The Amitabh movie. How to twist the prayer into something funny (Dear Farter, Thou farts in heaven…). Etc etc…
So – yes, if you are forced to do something that you don’t want to do, there are ways of doing it without actually doing it. You can have my body, but you’ll never have my mind.
M. Nam
I thought we were the only ones to do this!
Mnaam – it’s “WHO art in Heaven” 🙂
Btw, I went to a Catholic school too and my mind was elsewhere during prayers as well (as were most of my Catholic friends’)
Hey, Badmash, did you ever have to sing the UAE national anthem at morning assembly? I STILL remember the words even though I have never understood their meaning.
YES! 🙂
Ugh! I was DEFINITELY thinking of something else during that hahaha
Ishi bilady aash ittiha ittihadu imaratina…
Reminds me of my Catholic school days in India – we were forced to say prayers(Dear Father, Thou Art in Heaven…) every morning.
Well.. I think they have a duty to propagate their religion (otherwise, why the need for a “Catholic” school??).. If you do not like it, you can move to a diff. school.. But I think they kinda overdo it, like prohibiting “girls” from having “dots” etc.. They are the “dot busters” in India.. 🙂
don’t know if they still do it after the growth of the BJP..