That could be accomplished by police agency such as the Border Patrol- -IF they're allowed to do their jobs.
If the job isn't done one way or the other, the future you envision could become all too real.
Speaking of Quebec, welcome to the war, Canada.
================================================= 17 arrested in alleged terror plot in Canada
2 hours, 6 minutes ago
TORONTO (AFP) - Canada foiled a homegrown terrorist plot and arrested 17 Canadians who were allegedly planning major attacks inspired by Al-Qaeda in the province of Ontario, officials said. ADVERTISEMENT [0] [0]
Those arrested late Friday and early Saturday in the Toronto area, across Lake Ontario from the US state of New York, "were planning to commit a series of terrorist attacks against solely Canadian targets in southern Ontario," said Mike McDonnell, assistant commissioner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
The group acquired three tonnes of ammonium nitrate, a common fertilizer ingredient, and "components necessary to create explosive devices," he said.
The amount is three times what was used in the 1995 bombing of a US federal building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma that killed 168 people.
"It was their intent to use it for a terrorist attack," McDonnell said, but police raids on what local media said were a dozen locations prevented them from assembling any bombs, he said.
"This group posed a real and serious threat. It had the capacity and intent to carry out these acts," he said.
Luc Portelance, assistant director of operations for the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), said they were "Canadian residents from a variety of backgrounds. For various reasons they appeared to have become adherents of a violent ideology inspired by Al-Qaeda."
The group -- all younger than 25, except Shareef Abdelhaleen, 30, and Qayyum Abdul Jamal, 43 -- had no formal links to Osama bin Laden's Al-Qaeda network, he added.
In Washington, DC, FBI Special Agent Richard Kolko said there was "preliminary indication that some of the Canadian subjects may have had limited contact" with two US terror suspects, Syed Haris Ahmed and Ehsanul Islam Sadequee, who traveled to Toronto in March 2005.
Canada has been named by Al-Qaeda leaders on several occasions as one of six Western countries which could face their wrath, and Canadian intelligence officials have repeatedly warned that an attack in Canada was inevitable.
CAIR-CAN, an organization of Canadian Muslims, expressed relief that the potential attacks had been averted and applauded Canadian authorities' anti-terrorism efforts.
"As Canadian Muslims, we unequivocally condemn terrorism in all of its forms," said CAIR-CAN executive director Karl Nickner. "Canada is our home and we are deeply concerned about the safety of our country."
Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Canada was a target of extremists because of its liberal, democratic values and pledged to strengthen Canadian security laws, as well as provide further resources "to combat terrorism here and abroad."
"It's a dangerous world. We cannot walk away from it," he told 250 new military recruits at a ceremony at Canada's War Museum in Ottawa.
The 17 men arrested have been charged with participating in a terrorist group's activities; training and recruitment for the group; firearms and explosives offences; and contributing money or property for terrorist purposes.
Local reports suggested the group had videotaped the CN Tower, one of the world's tallest structures, and the Toronto subway, which carries some 800,000 commuters each day, but officials refused to specify the intended targets.
Officials said the investigation was ongoing and more arrests were expected.
According to reports, CSIS had monitored the group since 2004 and police launched an investigation last year.
The accused men appeared in court late Saturday as snipers on rooftops and heavily armed police in armored vehicles kept watch. They are expected to return for a bail hearing on Tuesday, officials said.
On Monday, Canada's spy agency warned the country faced a growing threat from "homegrown terrorists", particularly youth upset about the oppression of Muslims worldwide and Canada's combat role in Afghanistan against the Taliban.
Jack Hooper, deputy director of operations at CSIS, told a Senate defence committee it was tracking 350 "high-level targets" as well as 50 to 60 organizations with possible links to groups such as Al-Qaeda.
"There are residents in Canada that are graduates of terrorist training camps and campaigns, including experienced combatants from conflicts in Afghanistan, Bosnia, Chechnya and elsewhere," he said. news.yahoo.com |