Lunes, Abril 22, 2013

Canada thwarts train terror plot


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Canada thwarts train terror plot

A Via Rail Canada passenger train pulls into Dorval Station in Montreal, in this July 22, 2009 file photo. Canadian police authorities said on Monday they had arrested and charged two men with an "al Qaeda-supported" plot to derail a passenger train. (REUTERS/Shaun Best/Files)
A Via Rail Canada passenger train pulls into Dorval Station in Montreal, in this July 22, 2009 file photo. Canadian police authorities said on Monday they had arrested and charged two men with an "al Qaeda-supported" plot to derail a passenger train. (REUTERS/Shaun Best/Files)


OTTAWA: Two foreign nationals have been arrested in Canada in connection with an Al-Qaeda-supported plot to derail a passenger train in the Toronto area, authorities said Monday.
Chiheb Esseghaier, 30, and Raed Jaser, 35, were allegedly planning to carry out an attack on a Via Rail passenger train with help from Al-Qaedain Iran, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said. The suspects “were receiving support from Al-Qaeda elements located in Iran” and “there’s no indication that these attacks were state-sponsored,” a spokesman said.
The plot “involved a domestic attack [with] planning being supported by Al-Qaeda. And when I speak about support, of course, I mean direction and guidance,” he added.
Authorities said the pair were “not Canadian citizens” but declined to reveal their respective nationalities. The main suspect lived in Montreal for several years, another official added.
The suspects’ plans were “not based on their ethnic origins but on an ideology,” police said.
They are expected to appear in Tuesday for a bail hearing. Charges include conspiring to carry out an attack and conspiring with a terrorist group.
Police said the duo planned “to derail a passenger train,” though they wouldn’t specify on which route.
“We are alleging these individuals took steps and conducted activities to initiate a terrorist attack. They watched trains and railways in the Greater Toronto area.”
However, authorities said an attack was not imminent.