In a sensational domestic terrorism case, late last month, the RCMP arrested an ISIS-inspired father-son duo who were allegedly plotting to carry out a mass casualty attack in Toronto. It was later revealed that Canadian authorities had inexplicably permitted the father to immigrate to Canada and granted him citizenship, despite allegedly appearing in an ISIS propaganda video in which he is seen dismembering a prisoner.
While this grave lapse in our immigration system has understandably raised serious questions about Ottawa’s security screening process, it should come as no surprise that Canada has traditionally been a “safe haven” for terrorists and criminals who exploit the shortcomings of our country’s liberal immigration policies and go on to become citizens.
Immigration officials have generally struggled to locate and deport individuals accused of serious criminal offences, let alone adequately vet them before they arrive in the country.
In 1994, Ahmed Ressam, an Algerian-born al-Qaida terrorist, entered Canada under false pretext and claimed refugee status. He went on to commit numerous crimes, draw welfare benefits and easily evade deportation by creating a false identity as a Canadian citizen with a Canadian passport. Ressam was later arrested by U.S. authorities in 1999, on his way to bomb the Los Angeles International Airport.
Last year, a government audit found that Ottawa allowed nearly half of more than 7,000 foreign nationals who were flagged for serious security concerns to take up residency in this country between 2014 and 2019.
With Canada under siege from soaring antisemitism and Islamist radicalization, the Trudeau government’s decision to offer temporary residence, for up to three years, to 5,000 Palestinians has many Canadians worried.
There are concerns that the new arrivals may join the hate-filled mass rallies and aggravate an already toxic situation created by months of unabated violence and threats against the Jewish community by Hamas supporters.
Concerned about the Trudeau government’s Gaza initiative, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio and a few of his fellow senators sent a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, urging him to enhance safeguards along the world’s longest unsecured international border, to prevent Palestinians with potential terrorist ties from entering the United States.
Immigration Minister Marc Miller countered Sen. Rubio’s claims, calling them “categorically false” and maintaining that approved Gazans would be ineligible for citizenship.
While Rubio did mischaracterize the special measures being offered to Gazans, falsely suggesting they would be issued refugee travel documents to replace their foreign passports, his concerns are still justified given the ubiquitous nature of Hamas in Gaza.
In addition to expressing widespread support for Hamas and the atrocities of October 7, the deep-rooted antisemitic and anti-western views among the Gazan population are well-documented.
Moreover, Miller’s claim about their citizenship ineligibility is inaccurate, as the Gazans who immigrate under this program are able to apply for open work permits, which could make them eligible for permanent residency under the Express Entry program.
Although the governments of Israel and Egypt are assisting Ottawa with this initiative, an Israeli government official, who requested anonymity, admitted to me that they had “obvious security concerns about Canada taking people out of Gaza.”
A Canadian MP familiar with the Gaza program told me that even though the Palestinians may have cleared the security process, there is no way of really knowing “what is in their hearts,” and whether they will end up being potential threats to Canada or its allies.
It is worth pointing out that, following the October 7 attacks, Canada has taken in the most Palestinians — 987 are presumed to have travelled to Canada as of April 30, according to Miller — while the wealthy Middle Eastern states continue to refuse Palestinians entry.
The warning signs are flashing. Terrorist organizations such as al-Qaida and the Islamic State are capitalizing on the Israel-Hamas war to propagate attacks against the West. It should be clear by now that Ottawa’s security screening process is unreliable and a broken immigration system poses a serious threat to public safety and the national security of Canada and its allies.
Policy decisions on critical files like immigration and national security should not be based on diaspora politics. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau would be wise to learn from the failed immigration policies of Europe and the United Kingdom, and prevent Canada from going down a similar path.
National Post
Joe Adam George is a national security analyst on Middle East and South Asia affairs and has written for the Macdonald-Laurier Institute.