By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday, April 25, 2013
Muslims Helped Foil Terror Plot In Canada
Members of Canada’s Muslim community helped tip off authorities to a terrorist plan to attack a train, allegedly devised by two men working with al Qaeda.
Royal Canadian Mounted Police announced Monday that Raed Jaser and suspected accomplice Chiheb Esseghaier were arrested in connection with a terror plot to derail a Via Rail Canada train within the country, according to the New York Times. Police did not identify which train the suspects planned to attack nor how they planned to derail it.
Muhammad Robert Heft, a Muslim community leader in Ontario, told the Toronto Sun that the imam of a local Muslim community helped foil the terror plot by alerting authorities.
“At the end of the day, it’s not how you dress, it’s how you think,” he said. “In our community we may look a little different, but in our hearts we love Canada. It’s our country. It’s our tribe. We want safety for all Canadians regardless of their religion.”
Heft made sure to push back against misconceptions that Canadian Muslims do not share information with authorities. “We have to be on the front lines,” he told the Sun. “To either nip it in the bud in the very beginning or cooperate with authorities so they can be brought to justice.”
Heft told CNN that Canadian police revealed the imam’s help in thwarting the incident during a Monday briefing with members of the Islamic community.
“We are supportive and thankful that the RCMP did the investigation and was able to apprehend the individuals before anything happened,” he said. “We are pleased that they took us in and explained what was going on.” (Source: Huffington Post)