Harper: “Islamicism” biggest threat to Canada

Ten years after 9/11, Prime Minister Stephen Harper says Canada is a safer place, but that “Islamicism” remains the greatest threat to national security. In an interview with the CBC’s Peter Mansbridge, Harper said “there are other threats out there, but that is the one I can tell you occupies the security apparatus most regularly in terms of terrorist threats.” He added that the authorities keep a close eye out for domestic extremists as well as those operating in foreign countries. The Conservative government will re-introduce two clauses of Canada’s post-9/11 anti-terrorism laws that were struck down by the opposition parties in the House of Commons in 2007, after their pre-ordained five-year lifespan expired in 2006. One allowed police to detain a terrorist suspect without charges for three days, while the other gave judges the power to interrogate a witness in secret to obtain critical information. The judge also had the ability to send the witness to jail for refusal to comply. Neither clause was ever used. Harper told Mansbridge his government plans to reintroduce these laws, saying that despite being rarely used, they’re sometimes necessary.

CBC News