Ottawa Muslims Raided
Charles Johnson
Tue Mar 30, 2004 at 7:48 am PST • Views: 202
More RoP terror raids today in Ottawa; but there are very few details yet on the reason for this raid on the home of a prominent Muslim leader: Ottawa Muslims held in global terror sweep. (Hat tip: Judith.)
A handful of Ottawa Muslims were being questioned last night in what authorities described as an international terror probe that saw heavily-armed Mounties storm the home of one of the city’s most prominent Muslims.
At 1:30 p.m. yesterday, RCMP tactical units, acting on security intelligence briefs, fanned out across the city, arresting one young Muslim man and questioning several others.
The raids followed a month-long RCMP surveillance operation targeting the Orleans home of Mahboob A. Khawaja, who is presently teaching at a university in Saudi Arabia.
Reached there last night, Mr. Khawaja said he was “extremely disturbed” by the raid.
“It’s nothing more than a hoax to create embarrassment,” he said in a telephone interview. “I don’t have the facts about why they would raid my house and take my two children into custody.”
The Mounties forced their way into his home, but their target was nowhere to be found. Instead, they found two of Mr. Khawaja’s adult children.
His wife, Azra, had gone out for some afternoon shopping and was picked up by police at a shopping centre.
Later in the day, RCMP arrested a Muslim man linked to the house.
According to his friends, one of Mr. Khawaja’s four sons was taken away yesterday by RCMP as he walked the hallways of the University of Ottawa, school books in hand.
Frank says: