An emergency committee hearing is being held in Ottawa today on whether where MPs will discuss calling ministers to testify about the immigration and security screening of a father and son recently charged in connection to an alleged foiled Toronto terror plot.
The House of Commons Public Safety and National Security Committee is meeting to vote on having the Minister of Public Safety, the Minister of Immigration, and relevant federal officials come answer questions about the case.
In July, the RCMP arrested Ahmed Fouad Mostafa Eldidi, 62, and Mostafa Eldidi, 26, in Richmond Hill, Ont. who police accused of being “in the advanced stages of planning a serious, violent attack in Toronto.”
The pair are facing a series of terrorism-related charges, including conspiracy to commit murder for the benefit of, at the direction of, or in association with the Islamic State. The men are scheduled to appear back in court later today.
Most of the charges stem from alleged activities undertaken in Canada. But the father was also charged with committing an aggravated assault outside the country in June 2015 for the benefit of the terror group.
Citing unnamed sources, Global News has reported that the father immigrated to Canada after allegedly being filmed taking part in ISIS violence overseas, and that his son does not hold Canadian citizenship. CTV News has not independently verified this reporting.
Earlier this month, the Conservatives led a call for hearings into the matter, stating Canadians deserved answers and assurances that potential screening shortcomings were being addressed.
The NDP backed the proposal — expressing an interest in expanding the scope to include examining other instances of “criminals and individuals associated with oppressive political regimes” being permitted entry — setting the stage for today’s hearing.
Facing scrutiny over how the pair were permitted to come to Canada, Public Safety Minister Dominic Leblanc confirmed last week that key federal agencies are conducting an internal examination of the chronology and circumstances of this case.
He accused the opposition of politicizing an active criminal matter, and — facing the prospect of being called to testify — said he would have more to say publicly, when appropriate.
While seeming to cast doubt on some of the information circulating, the minister also came to the defence of the federal security apparatus.
“The fact that these two people are currently in jail facing serious criminal charges, should give Canadians confidence that the RCMP and their partners did good work in this case,” LeBlanc said last week.
On Monday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters the federal government is taking the internal review of the situation “extremely seriously.”
When pressed on whether the federal government knows more about how the father and son immigrated to Canada, Trudeau said he wouldn’t comment further as the government’s investigation is ongoing.
With files from CTV News’ Stephanie Ha and CTV News Toronto’s Jon Woodward