by Andrew Duffy
Source: The Ottawa Citizen
URL: [link]
Date: December 9, 2010
OTTAWA - Mohamed Harkat planned to hold a press conference Friday morning to respond to a Federal Court decision that brands him a member of the Osama bin Laden terrorist network and a threat to national security.
In a 186-page judgment released Thursday, Judge Simon Noël endorsed the government's view of Harkat as an active and dangerous member of the extremist network allied with al-Qaeda.
Harkat, 42, now faces the prospect of being deported to his native Algeria where, he contends, he will be tortured or killed.
Defence lawyer Matt Webber vowed to fight any attempt to send Harkat back to the country from which he fled in 1990.
"He was completely devastated," Webber said of Harkat's reaction to Thursday's Federal Court judgment.
That judgment, Webber charged, relies heavily on evidence heard in secret and unavailable to Harkat's defence team. "So we come out of this," he said, "still feeling as if we were deprived of the ability to meaningfully respond to the allegations."
Harkat, a former pizza delivery man and gas station attendant, has lived in Ottawa since September 1995.
A federal immigration officer must now assess whether Harkat faces a significant risk of torture if deported to Algeria, and whether that is outweighed by the danger he poses to Canada.
[ Read the rest ... ]
Ottawa's Harkat a terrorist, faces deportation, court rules
posted on December 10, 2010 | in Category Mohamed Harkat | PermaLinkHarkat: a long battle lost
posted on December 10, 2010 | in Category Mohamed Harkat | PermaLink
by Dr Dawg
Source: Dawg's Blog
URL: [link]
Date: December 9, 2010
It’s always been a tough slog for Mohamed Harkat.
Imprisoned for four years under a security certificate, and then released under tough bail conditions for another four, he has been fighting deportation to Algeria as a suspected terrorist for nearly a decade.
And now he’s been declared, “on the balance of probabilities,” to be an al-Quaeda sleeper agent. Justice Simon Noël, who has been scathing about the machinations of CSIS in the past, apparently found the shaky testimony of CSIS agents sufficiently compelling to uphold most of the government’s allegations against Harkat.
Much of the evidence against him, however, was examined by the judge in secret. It was not available to the defence in open court, and so no cross-examination was possible. As for CSIS, it destroyed other evidence and withheld exculpatory evidence in the case. The onus was on Harkat to prove his innocence—when he was not even permitted to be aware of the entirety of the government’s case against him.
The behaviour of CSIS, under a judicial microscope as the hearing wore on, certainly led me to believe that Justice Noël would find in Harkat’s favour. But perhaps the judge felt it was time for the government to win one. Maybe he shared similar concerns to those of the foaming former CSIS Director Jim Judd. Certainly from what was publicly available during this long process, considerable doubt remains that Harkat had anything to do with terrorism.
Here’s the judgement. I have not yet had time to digest it. In the meantime, I confess to feeling queasy about both the fairness of the hearing and its outcome.
Source: Dawg's Blog
URL: [link]
Date: December 9, 2010
It’s always been a tough slog for Mohamed Harkat.
Imprisoned for four years under a security certificate, and then released under tough bail conditions for another four, he has been fighting deportation to Algeria as a suspected terrorist for nearly a decade.
And now he’s been declared, “on the balance of probabilities,” to be an al-Quaeda sleeper agent. Justice Simon Noël, who has been scathing about the machinations of CSIS in the past, apparently found the shaky testimony of CSIS agents sufficiently compelling to uphold most of the government’s allegations against Harkat.
Much of the evidence against him, however, was examined by the judge in secret. It was not available to the defence in open court, and so no cross-examination was possible. As for CSIS, it destroyed other evidence and withheld exculpatory evidence in the case. The onus was on Harkat to prove his innocence—when he was not even permitted to be aware of the entirety of the government’s case against him.
The behaviour of CSIS, under a judicial microscope as the hearing wore on, certainly led me to believe that Justice Noël would find in Harkat’s favour. But perhaps the judge felt it was time for the government to win one. Maybe he shared similar concerns to those of the foaming former CSIS Director Jim Judd. Certainly from what was publicly available during this long process, considerable doubt remains that Harkat had anything to do with terrorism.
Here’s the judgement. I have not yet had time to digest it. In the meantime, I confess to feeling queasy about both the fairness of the hearing and its outcome.
TV Coverage, Video clips
posted on December 10, 2010 | in Category Mohamed Harkat | PermaLinkCSIS wins three court rulings on terrorism suspect Harkat
posted on December 09, 2010 | in Category CSIS | PermaLink
by Colin Freeze
Source: The Globe and Mail
URL: [link]
Date: December 9, 2010
Canada’s embattled spy service won three key court rulings Thursday, all centred on a single terrorism suspect: Mohamed Harkat, said a Federal Court judge, is a probable terrorist sleeper agent, one who needs to be banished for the greater good.
The rulings by Mr. Justice Simon Noel amount to a rare and unequivocal victory for the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, which has suffered many legal setbacks of late. A battery of top defence lawyers had failed to impugn CSIS – a fact made all the more significant given that some of Mr. Harket’s counsel had scrutinized highly secret “human source reports” whose release to outsiders would have been unthinkable not very long ago.
The judge’s rulings could have big implications for Canada’s so-called security-certificate law, a polarizing power that allows federal ministers to jail and deport foreigners on the basis of secret CSIS intelligence.
The rulings uphold three points. First, the security certificate alleging Mr. Harkat is a terrorist threat is reasonable. Second, CSIS’s investigative missteps – and there were some – do not constitute “abuses” significant enough to fundamentally undermine the Harkat case. Third, the government’s security-certificate power remains consistent with Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
[ Read the rest ... ]
Source: The Globe and Mail
URL: [link]
Date: December 9, 2010
Canada’s embattled spy service won three key court rulings Thursday, all centred on a single terrorism suspect: Mohamed Harkat, said a Federal Court judge, is a probable terrorist sleeper agent, one who needs to be banished for the greater good.
The rulings by Mr. Justice Simon Noel amount to a rare and unequivocal victory for the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, which has suffered many legal setbacks of late. A battery of top defence lawyers had failed to impugn CSIS – a fact made all the more significant given that some of Mr. Harket’s counsel had scrutinized highly secret “human source reports” whose release to outsiders would have been unthinkable not very long ago.
The judge’s rulings could have big implications for Canada’s so-called security-certificate law, a polarizing power that allows federal ministers to jail and deport foreigners on the basis of secret CSIS intelligence.
The rulings uphold three points. First, the security certificate alleging Mr. Harkat is a terrorist threat is reasonable. Second, CSIS’s investigative missteps – and there were some – do not constitute “abuses” significant enough to fundamentally undermine the Harkat case. Third, the government’s security-certificate power remains consistent with Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
[ Read the rest ... ]
Harkat a security threat: Federal court
posted on December 09, 2010 | in Category Mohamed Harkat | PermaLink
by Justin Sadler
Source: The Ottawa Sun
URL: [link]
Date: Deember 9, 2010
[PHOTO: Ottawa resident Mohamed Harkat has been either in jail, or house arrest under strict conditions, since being arrested on a national security certificate eight years ago. The Supreme Court ruled Thursday he does pose a security risk to the country.]
A federal court judge has ruled that Ottawa resident Mohamed Harkat does pose a threat to national security, meaning he could be kicked out of the country.
The court ruled there are reasonable grounds to believe Harkat has engaged in terrorism, is a danger to the security of Canada and is a member of the Bin Laden terror network through his past work for the Khattab group and his association with terrorists and Islamist extremists such as Ahmed Said Khadr and Abu Messab Al Shehre.
In its ruling, the court "finds that he was not truthful, honest or transparent.
"The Court concludes that, while in Canada, Mohamed Harkat maintained contacts and assisted Islamist extremists, and used some methodologies typical of a 'sleeper agent'."
The court said that although Harkat's threat has diminished, a danger remains,
When informed of the ruling, Harkat broke down in tears in the office of his Ottawa lawyer. He and wife Sophie are reported to be "devastated" by the ruling, but they are not planning to speak publicly today.
Lawyers for Mohamed Harkat will appeal the decision handed down Thursday in federal court. Asked whether there would be an appeal, Matthew Webber, Harkat’s lawyer, said: “Absolutely, absolutely.”
He said the legal team was working on a formal response and would release further details later.
It was eight years ago this month that Harkat was arrested on a national security certificate.
Harkat, who worked as a gas station attendant and pizza delivery driver, was accused of operating a safehouse for Islamic extremists in Pakistan and having associations with a known jihadist and a top al-Qaida operative, both now deceased.
The Algerian refugee was arrested in December 2002 and held for 3 1/2 years before his release on bail in June 2006. He has remained out of jail under strict conditions ever since.
The ruling means federal officials can now pursue having him deported from Canada to his native Algeria, where Harkat and his defence team have maintained he could face torture.
Copyright © 2010 Ottawa Sun All Rights Reserved.
Source: The Ottawa Sun
URL: [link]
Date: Deember 9, 2010
[PHOTO: Ottawa resident Mohamed Harkat has been either in jail, or house arrest under strict conditions, since being arrested on a national security certificate eight years ago. The Supreme Court ruled Thursday he does pose a security risk to the country.]
A federal court judge has ruled that Ottawa resident Mohamed Harkat does pose a threat to national security, meaning he could be kicked out of the country.
The court ruled there are reasonable grounds to believe Harkat has engaged in terrorism, is a danger to the security of Canada and is a member of the Bin Laden terror network through his past work for the Khattab group and his association with terrorists and Islamist extremists such as Ahmed Said Khadr and Abu Messab Al Shehre.
In its ruling, the court "finds that he was not truthful, honest or transparent.
"The Court concludes that, while in Canada, Mohamed Harkat maintained contacts and assisted Islamist extremists, and used some methodologies typical of a 'sleeper agent'."
The court said that although Harkat's threat has diminished, a danger remains,
When informed of the ruling, Harkat broke down in tears in the office of his Ottawa lawyer. He and wife Sophie are reported to be "devastated" by the ruling, but they are not planning to speak publicly today.
Lawyers for Mohamed Harkat will appeal the decision handed down Thursday in federal court. Asked whether there would be an appeal, Matthew Webber, Harkat’s lawyer, said: “Absolutely, absolutely.”
He said the legal team was working on a formal response and would release further details later.
It was eight years ago this month that Harkat was arrested on a national security certificate.
Harkat, who worked as a gas station attendant and pizza delivery driver, was accused of operating a safehouse for Islamic extremists in Pakistan and having associations with a known jihadist and a top al-Qaida operative, both now deceased.
The Algerian refugee was arrested in December 2002 and held for 3 1/2 years before his release on bail in June 2006. He has remained out of jail under strict conditions ever since.
The ruling means federal officials can now pursue having him deported from Canada to his native Algeria, where Harkat and his defence team have maintained he could face torture.
Copyright © 2010 Ottawa Sun All Rights Reserved.
Harkat est une menace pour la sécurité, dit la Cour fédérale
posted on December 09, 2010 | in Category Mohamed Harkat | PermaLink
par La Presse Canadienne
Source: La Presse
URL: [link]
Date: 09 décembre 2010
Un juge de la Cour fédérale statue qu'il y a des raisons de croire que Mohamed Harkat, un homme d'Ottawa, représente une menace pour la sécurité nationale.
La décision du juge Simon Noël pourrait entraîner la déportation de M. Harkat vers son Algérie natale. Dans un jugement séparé, le juge Noël confirme la constitutionnalité du système de certificat de sécurité que le gouvernement canadien invoque pour déporter M. Harkat. Mohamed Harkat, un ancien livreur de pizza et commis dans une station-service âgé de 42 ans, a été arrêté il y a huit ans alors qu'il était soupçonné d'être un agent dormant d'Al-Qaïda. Le gouvernement fédéral le décrivait comme un terroriste calculateur qui brouillait constamment les pistes à l'aide de mensonges. M. Harkat, qui vit à Ottawa avec son épouse Sophie, a toujours nié son implication dans des activités terroristes. Il affirme être un simple réfugié ayant fui l'Algérie et ayant travaillé pour un organisme d'aide au Pakistan avant son arrivée au Canada, en 1995, en utilisant un faux passeport saoudien. La cause a été ralentie par de multiples anomalies et délais lors des procédures, notamment par une contestation de la constitutionnalité des certificats de sécurité, qui a forcé le gouvernement à revoir le système. Le gouvernement a délivré un nouveau certificat contre M. Harkat en 2008. Celui-ci affirme qu'il risque la torture s'il est renvoyé en Algérie. Le juge Noël a étudié les preuves entendues à huis clos et en cour avant de rendre cette décision sur la validité du certificat de sécurité. © 2000-2010 Cyberpresse inc., une filiale de Gesca. Tous droits réservés.
Harkat security certificate upheld
posted on December 09, 2010 | in Category Mohamed Harkat | PermaLink
Source: CBC News
URL: [link]
Date: December 9, 2010
A Federal Court judge says there are reasonable grounds to believe Ottawa resident Mohamed Harkat, who has been detained under a security certificate for eight years, remains a threat to national security.
The decision from Justice Simon Noel opens the door for the deportation of the Algerian-born Harkat, who has been living under virtual house arrest since 2002.
Harkat, 42, was arrested after Canada's spy agency, CSIS, alleged he was a sleeper agent for al-Qaeda.
The former pizza delivery man and gas station attendant has maintained his innocence, saying he fled his native Algeria and worked as an aid worker in Pakistan before coming to Canada in 1995 as a refugee using a fake Saudi passport.
Noel said Harkat's links to the Ibn Khattab terror group — for whom he operated a guesthouse while in Pakistan — and his association with Islamic extremists provided reasonable grounds to believe he engaged in terrorism activities. Noel also said Harkat was "not truthful, honest or transparent."
[ Read the rest ... ]
URL: [link]
Date: December 9, 2010
A Federal Court judge says there are reasonable grounds to believe Ottawa resident Mohamed Harkat, who has been detained under a security certificate for eight years, remains a threat to national security.
The decision from Justice Simon Noel opens the door for the deportation of the Algerian-born Harkat, who has been living under virtual house arrest since 2002.
Harkat, 42, was arrested after Canada's spy agency, CSIS, alleged he was a sleeper agent for al-Qaeda.
The former pizza delivery man and gas station attendant has maintained his innocence, saying he fled his native Algeria and worked as an aid worker in Pakistan before coming to Canada in 1995 as a refugee using a fake Saudi passport.
Noel said Harkat's links to the Ibn Khattab terror group — for whom he operated a guesthouse while in Pakistan — and his association with Islamic extremists provided reasonable grounds to believe he engaged in terrorism activities. Noel also said Harkat was "not truthful, honest or transparent."
[ Read the rest ... ]
Court backs CSIS case against suspected Ottawa terrorist Mohamed Harkat
posted on December 09, 2010 | in Category Mohamed Harkat | PermaLink
by Colin Freeze
Source: The Globe and Mail
URL: [link]
Date: December 9, 2010
A Federal Court judge has upheld CSIS allegations of terrorism against an Ottawa man, despite the spy agency's investigative blunders and years of hard-fought litigation in the case.
"I find that [Mohamed] Harkat has engaged in terrorism, that he is a danger to the security of Canada and that he is a member of the [Osama] Bin Laden Network," Justice Simon Noel writes in a decision released Thursday.
Among other reasons, he cites Mr. Harkat's past associations with Ahmed Said Khadr, the Egyptian-Canadian father of Omar Khadr, the Canadian citizen still held in Guantanamo Bay.
[ Read the rest ... ]
Source: The Globe and Mail
URL: [link]
Date: December 9, 2010
A Federal Court judge has upheld CSIS allegations of terrorism against an Ottawa man, despite the spy agency's investigative blunders and years of hard-fought litigation in the case.
"I find that [Mohamed] Harkat has engaged in terrorism, that he is a danger to the security of Canada and that he is a member of the [Osama] Bin Laden Network," Justice Simon Noel writes in a decision released Thursday.
Among other reasons, he cites Mr. Harkat's past associations with Ahmed Said Khadr, the Egyptian-Canadian father of Omar Khadr, the Canadian citizen still held in Guantanamo Bay.
[ Read the rest ... ]
Judge says grounds to declare Harkat security threat
posted on December 09, 2010 | in Category Mohamed Harkat | PermaLink
by The Canadian Press
Source: CTV News
URL: [link]
Date: December 9, 2010
The Canadian Press
OTTAWA — A judge says there are grounds to believe Algerian-born Mohamed Harkat is a security threat who maintained ties to Osama bin Laden's terror network after coming to Canada.
Thursday's Federal Court decision in the long-running case could pave the way for Harkat's deportation to his native country.
In a separate ruling, Judge Simon Noel upheld the constitutionality of the national security certificate system the government is using to remove Harkat from Canada.
Harkat, a 42-year-old former gas bar attendant and pizza delivery man, was arrested eight years ago on suspicion of being an al Qaeda sleeper agent.
Harkat did not offer credible testimony to the court, Noel said in his ruling on the certificate.
"He has surrounded himself in layers of clouds in which he does not let any light come through," Noel wrote.
"At times, his testimony was simply incoherent, implausible if not contradictory."
The federal government had painted Harkat as a calculating terrorist who consistently covered his tracks with lies.
[ Read the rest ... ]
Accused al-Qaida sleeper agent to hear fate Thursday
posted on December 09, 2010 | in Category Mohamed Harkat | PermaLink
by Andrew Duffy, Postmedia News
Source: The Montreal Gazette
URL: [link]
Date: December 8, 2010
OTTAWA — Eight years after the government labelled him an al-Qaida sleeper agent, Ottawa's Mohamed Harkat will find out whether a judge believes he's a terrorist threat.
Federal Court Justice Simon Noel is expected to release his judgment in the Harkat case Thursday morning.
Noel must decide if the Algerian-born Harkat was a member of the al-Qaida network and whether he still poses a security threat. He must also rule on a constitutional challenge to the 2008 law that remade the security certificate system.
Harkat's lawyers contend the system remains fundamentally unfair.
Two other terror suspects, Adil Charkaoui and Hassan Almrei, had their certificates quashed last year. Both men are now suing the federal government for millions in damages.
The Harkat ruling will either extend that judicial losing streak or establish a signal victory for the federal government.
"I think it's a very significant ruling: What's at stake is whether the security certificate process is viable," said University of Toronto professor Wesley Wark, a national security intelligence expert.
Harkat, 42, is one of three foreign-born terrorism suspects still before the courts.
[ Read the rest ... ]
Source: The Montreal Gazette
URL: [link]
Date: December 8, 2010
OTTAWA — Eight years after the government labelled him an al-Qaida sleeper agent, Ottawa's Mohamed Harkat will find out whether a judge believes he's a terrorist threat.
Federal Court Justice Simon Noel is expected to release his judgment in the Harkat case Thursday morning.
Noel must decide if the Algerian-born Harkat was a member of the al-Qaida network and whether he still poses a security threat. He must also rule on a constitutional challenge to the 2008 law that remade the security certificate system.
Harkat's lawyers contend the system remains fundamentally unfair.
Two other terror suspects, Adil Charkaoui and Hassan Almrei, had their certificates quashed last year. Both men are now suing the federal government for millions in damages.
The Harkat ruling will either extend that judicial losing streak or establish a signal victory for the federal government.
"I think it's a very significant ruling: What's at stake is whether the security certificate process is viable," said University of Toronto professor Wesley Wark, a national security intelligence expert.
Harkat, 42, is one of three foreign-born terrorism suspects still before the courts.
[ Read the rest ... ]
