Posted on 4 November, 2009 by Mathias Vermeulen
Richard Fadden, director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, chastised the country’s civil-rights advocates and media, accusing them of presenting a distorted picture of the threat alleged extremists pose.
“Many of our opinion leaders have come to see the fight against terrorism not as defending democracy and our values but as attacking them. Almost any [...]
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Posted on 27 October, 2009 by Mathias Vermeulen
A CSIS agent testified in the extradition case of Abdullah Khadr, brother of infamous Omar Khadr. The agent said that the Americans wanted to render Khadr to a U.S.-run foreign prison – perhaps Guantanamo Bay or one of the undisclosed “ghost sites” – but that the Canadians and Pakistanis refused to consent to his transfer. [...]
Filed under: Canada, Intelligence sharing, Rendition, Torture | Leave a Comment »
Posted on 25 October, 2009 by Mathias Vermeulen
The provincial government in Alberta, Canada is threatening to unleash its counterterrorism plan if activists continue using civil disobedience to protest the tar sands, Canada’s fastest source of greenhouse gas emissions. Civil disobedience from Greenpeace, leading to 37 arrests, has enraged Alberta’s conservative government. Fred Lindsay, the solicitor general suggested the province might use its [...]
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Posted on 25 October, 2009 by Mathias Vermeulen
Public backing for the mission in Afghanistan is eroding in two countries, according to a poll by Angus Reid Strategies. 59 per cent of respondents in Britain oppose the military operation involving UK soldiers in Afghanistan, up six points since July. In Canada, overall support for the mission stands at 37 per cent, down six [...]
Filed under: Afghanistan, Canada, UK | 1 Comment »
Posted on 24 October, 2009 by Mathias Vermeulen
Abdelrazik’s suit seeks 24 million Canadian dollars (22 million US) from Ottawa alleging the government’s involvement in his detention and torture, and three million dollars (2.76 million US) from Foreign Minister Lawrence Cannon for “misfeasance in public office.”
It claims the foreign minister “deliberately and flagrantly violated (Abdelrazik’s) constitutional right to enter Canada, and his legal [...]
Filed under: Accountability, Canada, Detention, Rendition, Torture | Leave a Comment »
Posted on 21 October, 2009 by Mathias Vermeulen
Canada’s Federal Court ruled that key questions about what Canada’s spy service must reveal in court do not deserve another look. Federal lawyers last month chose to walk away from a key case – that of Adil Charkaoui, a Moroccan living in Montreal – rather than divulge information that they said could compromise national security. [...]
Filed under: Accountability, Canada, Secrecy | 1 Comment »
Posted on 20 October, 2009 by Mathias Vermeulen
Omar Khadr, a Canadian citizen captured by US forces in Afghanistan at the age of 15 and imprisoned in Guantanamo Bay for 7 years, recently succeeded in convincing the Canadian Court of Appeal to order the Canadian government to request his immediate repatriation by the US (Khadr v. Prime Minister of Canada 2009 FCA 246). Until [...]
Filed under: Academic, Canada, Intelligence, Intelligence sharing, Torture | Leave a Comment »
Posted on 14 October, 2009 by Mathias Vermeulen
A security certificate against a Montreal man accused by Ottawa of having terrorist ties has officially been declared null and void.
Adil Charkaoui, a married father of three who has steadfastly denied any links to terrorists, said Wednesday he’s elated with the judgment.
Federal Court Justice Daniele Tremblay-Lamer wrote that the certificate has been quashed and that [...]
Filed under: Canada, Detention, Fair Trial | Leave a Comment »
Posted on 11 October, 2009 by Mathias Vermeulen
[JURIST] The Canadian Federal Court released a decision Tuesday ruling that the Canadian Security Intelligence Service may monitor the communications of Canadian citizens abroad. The case arose from two Canadian nationals who had their communications abroad monitored after a judge issued an emergency warrant permitting the interception. Judge Richard Mosley, who also issued the emergency [...]
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Posted on 21 August, 2009 by Mathias Vermeulen
Canadian Bar Association (CBA) President Guy Joubert Saturday urged the Canadian government to seek the repatriation of Canadian Guantanamo detainee Omar Khadr rather than appeal the Federal Court of Appeal’s decision directing repatriation efforts. Joubert said the CBA was “very pleased” with the court ruling, in keeping with the CBA’s past appeals to Canadian officials [...]
Filed under: Canada, Guantanamo | Leave a Comment »