Loyal and Patriotic Canadians

"His need to attempt terrorist acts may have included his determined need to follow through on commitments of Muslim loyalty."
"[The Toronto 18 scheme was] spine-chilling. The potential for loss of life existed on a scale never before seen in Canada. Had the plan been implemented it would have changed the lives of many, if not all Canadians forever."
Justice Bruce Durno

CTV National News: Citizenship of Toronto 18 mastermind revoked

"He expressed violent disloyalty for this country -- hatred for Canada -- and in so doing, through that conviction, he effectively renounced his own Canadian citizenship."
(former) Conservative Minister Jason Kenney

When Canada's new Liberal prime minster, Justin Trudeau chortled on the world stage that "Canada is back", he raised eyebrows both within Canada and abroad. What he meant was his delight that the Liberal Party of Canada was back in power, with him at its helm. A man with no political experience other than a short stint as an elected Member of Parliament, whose past experience was that of a drama coach at a private boys' school in Vancouver, and a snowboarding instructor.

But he had a particular cachet; a famous name, reflecting a previous Prime Minister of Canada, Pierre Elliott Trudeau. His father was an intellectual, and doubtless considered himself a philosopher, since he was given the sobriquet of "philosopher-king", but his eldest son is a glad-handing socio-lite, heavy on social engineering and fond of spending other people's money, so he has as far as he must be concerned, landed in the perfect place.

In line with returning Canada to a Liberal government, their focus has unremittingly been on reversing as much legislation as they can manage that was brought in by the previous Conservative government. The Liberal re-engineering of the Canadian ship of state has proceeded full blast. The latest legislation to fall is the Strengthening Canadian Citizenship Act brought in by the Conservative government and made law in 2015.

This was a law that made certain any dual citizens who were convicted of terrorism, of high treason, or of spying stood the risk of having their citizenship revoked, the natural consequence of which would be that they would also be returned to the country of their alternate citizenship. "If you take up arms against  your country or plan to do so, and you are convicted in a Canadian court, or an equivalent foreign court, through your violent disloyalty, you are forfeiting  your own citizenship", stated then Foreign Minister Jason Kenney.

Toronto police arresting Zakaria Amara, a Jordanian-Canadian member of the Toronto 18, in 2006. Amara was the first person to have Canadian citizenship revoked under Bill C-24. CTV News

The very first dual-national to receive notice that his citizenship would be revoked was the leader of the infamous "Toronto 18", 30-year-old Zakaria Amara, who plotted with others to storm Parliament Hill, to behead the prime minister and to set off bombs in downtown Toronto's financial district and security establishment. Now, under the Liberals this terrorist criminal who was sentenced to life imprisonment will no longer face deportation with the revocation of his citizenship. And his lawsuit contesting that intent can be set aside.

Bill C-6, tabled in the House of Commons, has a provision restoring citizenship of convicted terrorists. Nine other terrorists who similarly received notices to inform them of the revocation of their citizenship need no longer concern themselves. An Iranian-Canadian and a Pakistani-Canadian whose 2010 plan to bomb military bases in Canada are included in this citizenship-saving Liberal rescue mission.

A Pakistani-Canadian, Tahawwur Hussain Rana who plotted to decapitate employees of a Danish newspaper and who is now imprisoned in California will similarly retain his Canadian citizenship.

This new Prime Minister mellifluously mouths "A Canadian is a Canadian is a Canadian", happily rejecting the very dreadful thought that loyalty should be expected of any Canadian holding the privilege of Canadian citizenship. This man chafes at the very suggestion that the law he has now altered created "two classes of Canadians". A dreadful thought, applied exclusively to convicted terrorists with dual nationality.

Incriminating bomb-making evidence recovered by police in the Toronto 18 terrorist case

So this ringleader of an al-Qaeda-styled terrorist attack on Canadian soil, born in Jordan, who also lived in Saudi Arabia before his 1997 emigration to Canada was so dedicated to the welfare of his new adopted home that he saw fit to establish a group mirroring al-Qaeda in Canada, training for terrorist attacks on Canadians. His citizenship restored, he can resume his life as a Canadian in about a year's time; so much for life imprisonment; ten years for this sterling Canadian citizen who planned to destroy numerous lives in the name of jihad.