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Great White North

Secret files against terror suspects revealed

2008-02-24

The case against a group of Canadians sometimes referred to as "the Secret Trial Five" isn't as secret as it used to be. Ottawa unveiled more specific allegations against the five terrorism suspects yesterday: for example, that one suspect called the satellite phone of al-Qaeda's second-in-command, and that another was in charge of a group of training camp recruits in Afghanistan. In hundreds of pages of court documents yesterday, Canadian ministers signed new security certificates against alleged members of the al-Qaeda network. In doing so, the government narrowly beat a date imposed by the Supreme Court for the previous certificates to expire. A Supreme Court ruling last year forced the federal government to relaunch its security certificate power. The controversial measure is intended to be used to jail and deport Canada's most dangerous non-citizens through court proceedings where the defendants are not allowed to hear all of the evidence against them. The new process will still involve some court hearings the suspects can't attend, but to make the process fairer and more constitutional, the government yesterday appointed 13 "special advocate" lawyers to represent the suspects. Federal Court judges have already ruled that the five suspects are likely threats who, for the most part, lied in court about their travels and associates. One suspect remains jailed while the rest are under strict house arrest. Fears that the suspects would be tortured abroad continue to stymie efforts to deport them. Government officials did not say yesterday why they are now revealing more about the allegations against the men. Among the details the government apparently kept up its sleeve for years: Syrian Hassan Almrei, accused of document forgery, is alleged to have gained access to a restricted area at Toronto's Pearson Airport in September, 1999. "Almrei and the five individuals appeared to have access cards and codes for a restricted access building on the [Pearson] grounds," the documents state. Egyptian Mahmoud Jaballah, long alleged to be a communications conduit for terrorist cells involved in the 1998 African embassy bombings, is said to have "communicated closely" with Ayman al-Zawahiri, the al-Qaeda No. 2. The new documents indicate that conversations Mr. Jaballah had in Canada were recorded, including ones in which he referred to Mr. al-Zawahiri as "the father" and dialled his satellite phone. A Moroccan, Adil Charkaoui, is said to have admitted to CSIS that fellow Montrealer Abderraouf Hannachi - who sent the so-called millennium bomber, Ahmed Ressam, to Afghan training camps - sent him there too. The court documents say that Mr. Charkaoui didn't just attend a terrorist training camp but was also in charge of recruits. An Egyptian who has admitted working for Osama bin Laden in Africa, Mohamed Zeki Mahjoub, was allegedly fingered as a high-level terrorist by another Egyptian security certificate detainee, Mr. Jaballah. "On Nov. 16, 1996, Jaballah disclosed that he and Mahjoub once worked alongside each other 'over there.' And that he [Jaballah] regards Mahjoub as a shrewd and manipulative individual." An alleged Algerian sleeper agent, Mohamed Harkat, is said to have been overheard making ominous remarks. "In February, 1998, Harkat stated that he had to keep a 'low profile' as he needed status in Canada. Further Harkat said that as soon as he received his 'status' he would be 'ready,' which the (Crown) concludes meant that Harkat would be prepared to undertake a jihad in support of Islamic terrorism." The charge sheets make no reference to earlier allegations made by Abu Zubaydah, a Guantanamo Bay detainee, who was recently revealed to have been interrogated by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency using harsh methods. Compared with the earlier cases, the charge sheets filed yesterday include more references to Canadian Security Intelligence Service spy methods, including telecommunications intercepts. The government also announced yesterday that a sixth man, who was being held as an alleged Tamil Tiger terrorist, will no longer be subject to a security certificate. "The government of Canada has decided not to reissue a security certificate to [Manickavasagam] Suresh at this point," Mélisa Leclerc, a spokeswoman for Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day, said in a statement. She said the government is eyeing other legal measures. Last year, Mr. Charkaoui's name was affixed to a Supreme Court ruling that parts of the old security certificate regime violated the Charter of Rights. The court gave the government one year to fix the law. Yesterday was the last working day before the court deadline. The 13 "special advocates" that the new law created include many veterans of judicial inquiries who've fought government secrecy.

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Great White North

Accused terrorist may have been planning airline attack: CSIS

2008-02-23

A Montreal man accused of terrorist ties displayed secretive and violent behaviour and once discussed commandeering a commercial aircraft for "aggressive ends," Canada's spy service alleges. The Canadian Security Intelligence Service allegations against Morocco-born Adil Charkaoui came late Friday as the federal government renewed its efforts to deport five Muslim men accused of terrorist links. Ottawa filed updated national security certificates against the five - including some pointed fresh accusations - following recent passage of new legislation. The reworked law creates special advocates to defend the interests of suspected terrorists and spies tagged for deportation under the controversial security certificate process. The change is intended to bring the process in line with the Charter of Rights, after the Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional last year. Facing removal from Canada are Charkaoui, Mohamed Harkat, Mahmoud Jaballah, Mohamed Zeki Mahjoub and Hassan Almrei, all five of whom have been fighting to remain in the country. The government did not file a new certificate against a sixth man, Manickavasagam Suresh, accused of ties to the Tamil Tigers. It was not immediately clear what would become of his case. Charkaoui, a landed immigrant from Morocco, was arrested in Montreal in May 2003, accused of being an al-Qaida sleeper agent prepared to wage terror attacks against western targets. He denies the allegations. Lies, all lies, as usual, despite all the evidence ... CSIS claims convicted terrorist Ahmed Ressam has identified Charkaoui as being present at an al-Qaida training camp in Afghanistan. The newly filed documents say that in November 2001, Charkaoui described the war in Afghanistan as a battle against Islam "led by the wicked and the Crusaders." In June 2000, Charkaoui allegedly had a conversation with two others about their apparent desire to take control of a commercial plane for aggressive purposes. The documents say he once applied to work in the air traffic control operations at Air Canada and, later, had an interest in working in the baggage section of Mirabel airport. CSIS suggests the job search, taken in connection with the earlier conversation, may have been part of the "planning of an attack." The documents allege he has shown violent and impulsive behaviour, once beating up a delivery man. CSIS also says that on several occasions Charkaoui stressed the need for secrecy, once cautioning an associate to "speak only in generalities." Security certificates have been issued in 28 cases in Canada since 1991. The secrecy of the process has drawn vocal criticism from lawyers, civil libertarians and human-rights advocates in recent years. Under the new law, the special advocate would serve as a check on the state by being able to challenge the government's claims of secrecy over evidence, as well the relevance and weight of the facts. The five men facing deportation under the refiled certificates will each be granted a new court hearing to determine the validity of the case.

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