OTTAWA — A parliamentary committee, including the governing Liberals, voted unanimously on Tuesday to investigate how a terrorism suspect with alleged ties to ISIS was able to enter Canada.
The hearings are set to begin on Aug. 26, with former longtime Liberal cabinet minister and current High Commissioner of Canada to the United Kingdom Ralph Goodale among the names on the witness list.
The Opposition Conservatives and federal New Democrats both requested the public safety committee to launch a probe into how 62-year-old Ahmed Eldidi and his son 26-year-old Mostafa Eldidi entered Canada.
The RCMP arrested the pair in a Richmond Hill hotel room and announced various terrorism charges on July 31, alleging that they were in “the advanced stages of planning a serious, violent attack in Toronto.”
They both remain in custody and their case is subject to a publication ban, according to police.
The RCMP alleges they were in possession of a machete and an axe. The 62-year-old Eldidi was also charged with aggravated assault, which stems from an incident that occurred outside of Canada in 2015 and that was done in the service of ISIS.
Eldidi is a Canadian citizen, according to the RCMP, who confirmed his 26-year-old son is not. Police said last week officers were awaiting more details as to the younger Eldidi’s status, but have since referred all questions to the federal immigration department, which cities privacy legislation.
Further questions emerged following a Global News report, citing unnamed sources, that the 62-year-old immigrated to Canada and gained citizenship after having allegedly been involved in committing violence against an ISIS prisoner, according to a video released by the terrorist group.
Postmedia has not viewed the video.
The Opposition Conservatives and New Democrats each called for the parliamentary committee on public safety to investigate the issue, saying the case raised serious concerns about the country’s screening process.
“Our communities are very concerned,” said Jamil Jivani, the Conservative representative for Durham in the Greater Toronto Area, at the committee meeting.
“We are very grateful that law enforcement has done its work to address the case and to foil the attempted terrorist plot, but ultimately, there (are) a lot of questions remaining.”
He said the government must answer as to whether screening failures have led to any more threats. Liberal MP Jennifer O’Connell also raised cuts by the former Conservative government to border service jobs.
Tuesday’s committee voted to hold six meetings and to hear first from Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc and Immigration Minister Marc Miller.
LeBlanc told reporters last week that the matter is already under internal review.
“I fully agree that Canadians need to have a thorough understanding of what happened,” LeBlanc wrote to committee member Conservative MP Frank Caputo, in a letter dated Monday.
He added officials from Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) and Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada are undertaking the review to gain “a complete understanding and chronology of events around the security screening of these individuals and their arrivals in Canada.”
LeBlanc said he was limited in what he could say and pointed to the police investigation and publication ban, saying he did not want to “prejudice the ability of the police and the prosecutors to conduct a successful criminal trial.”
“A goal I am sure you share,” he wrote to Caputo.
Last week, Opposition House Leader Andrew Scheer rejected suggestions that federal privacy laws prevented government minsters from sharing details about how the Eldidis came to Canada.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s office said in a statement after Tuesday’s meeting the Liberals must disclose the date the 62-year-old Eldidi first arrived in Canada.
“They must also reveal the immigration program through which Eldidi entered, the date he became a permanent resident, as well as the date he became a Canadian citizen.”
A spokeswoman for Miller said that privacy legislation prevents them from discussing individual cases and cannot predict what minsters might have say at committee.
Besides current ministers, the committee also agreed to call on former public safety minister Ralph Goodale to testify, who was requested by the Conservatives. Goodale lost his Regina seat in the 2019 general election.
The head of the RCMP, as well as interim director of CSIS and CBSA president have also been asked to appear, along with department officials.
National Post
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