TORONTO — A group of men alleged to be part of an al Qaeda-inspired terror cell are winding their way through Canada 's court system in the first true test of Canada 's anti-terror laws.
Zakaria Amara—believed to be one of the leaders of a suspected plot to attack Canadian landmarks—was in court on Monday in the Toronto suburb of Brampton, where fifteen of the 17 suspects have been undergoing bail hearings.
Two were already in custody on weapons charges ahead of the dramatic arrests in early June, which shocked Canadians not used to worrying about attacks on their home soil.
The arrests have reignited oft-heard criticism from the United States about Canada 's border security and immigration policies, and have put pressure on Ottawa to show it can prosecute home-grown cells that might pose a threat to other countries.
"You do not want to be the weak link in an international chain of lawful dealing with terrorism offenses," said Martin Rudner, a terrorism expert at Carleton University.
Rudner said Canada 's reputation has taken a hit from its past record with such issues, including the failure to convict the main suspects in the 1985 bombing of an Air India airliner that killed 329 people during a flight from Canada to India.
The Brampton suspects, who range in age from their mid-teens to early 40s, have been charged with offenses under the Anti-Terrorism Act, largely untested since it was passed in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States.
The act gives authorities the power to make preventive arrests of suspects and limit the amount of evidence shown to the accused. It is now under a three-year mandatory review.
Shackled as Media Fights Ban
The accused have appeared shackled in front of tearful family members, friends and a media presence rarely seen at court hearings.
"This is comparable to a complex murder trial," Michael Block, lawyer for one of the accused, told reporters last week, noting it could be two years before the case gets to trial.
So far, two of the younger suspects have been denied release, while one has been granted bail.
Meanwhile, media lawyers are in the process of trying to knock down a publication ban that prevents reporting on evidence from pre-trial court hearings.
But despite the ban, details have dribbled into the public sphere through a combination of leaked documents, interviews with people connected to the case, and statements by lawyers made outside the court, where the ban does not apply.
The picture that has emerged has been that of a group that allegedly harbored ambitions of launching major attacks on Canadian targets—but was thoroughly infiltrated by police.
Toronto Muslim Mubin Shaikh stepped forward this week and admitted he acted as a government spy to infiltrate the group, whom he referred to as "fruitcakes" who nevertheless could have caused great damage.
The suspects have been largely isolated from other prisoners and lawyers have at times complained of the tight restrictions on their clients, particularly the six teenagers.
"There are 24 hours in the day, and 168 hours in the week, and that's a lot of time to spend sitting alone," said Paul Burstein, who represents one the younger suspects.
"He can only have one book in his cell at a time, so if he wants to have book to read, he can't have the Koran to pray."
According to leaked documents, police say members of the group discussed bomb attacks on various economic and security targets, while at least one talked of storming Parliament and taking legislators hostage to try to force the government to withdraw Canadian troops from Afghanistan.
One report said prosecutors allege one of the group had signed up for flight school as part of a plan to use aircraft in an attack.
Police eventually stepped in and arrested the group after members allegedly attempted to buy three tonnes of ammonium nitrate, a bomb-making ingredient used in the 1995 Oklahoma City blast that killed 168 people.
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