Canadian Intelligence Resource Centre Archives

Evidence Prompts Extension of Arar Terror Probe, Official Says
The Department of Homeland Security's top investigator, citing new evidence, is extending his probe into the Bush administration's handling of a Canadian who said he was tortured after U.S. officials turned him over to his native Syria in 2002.
HTML | Published: 2008-06-05 | Added: 2008-07-03

Homegrown intelligence gap
It says much about the sorry state of Canada's security intelligence infrastructure and the sometimes incestuous relationship between that powerful and largely anonymous apparatus and some compliant members of the media.
HTML | Published: 2008-04-17 | Added: 2008-05-17

Rendition to Torture: The Case of Maher Arar
The facts of Mr. Arar's case are profoundly disturbing. Rather than kidnapping someone off the streets in one country and bringing him to another for interrogation, our Government took Mr. Arar into custody at JFK Airport, while on his way home to  [...]
PDF | Published: 2007-10-18 | Added: 2008-02-07

Ottawa's invisible inquiry
Copeland has called for the inquiry to look
HTML | Published: 2007-11-06 | Added: 2007-11-08

CSIS suspected U.S. would ship Arar to third country for torture: documents
Canada's spy agency suspected, within two days of Maher Arar's deportation from the United States, that the CIA had shipped him somewhere to face possible torture, newly released documents show.
HTML | Published: 2007-08-09 | Added: 2007-08-14

In intelligence work, foreign spies are kept under cover
The RCMP admitted for the first time that it worked with the CIA during the Maher Arar affair.
HTML | Published: 2007-08-10 | Added: 2007-08-14

Judge orders release of Maher Arar information
A Federal Court judge has ordered the government to release portions of the Maher Arar report that were censored to the public.
HTML | Published: 2007-07-25 | Added: 2007-08-12

CSIS suspected U.S. would deport Arar to be tortured: documents
"I think the U.S. would like to get Arar to Jordan where they can have their way with him," a CSIS officer based in Washington wrote in a report dated Oct. 10, 2002, according to CSIS documents.
HTML | Published: 2007-08-09 | Added: 2007-08-11

RCMP confirms complaint about leak
The RCMP confirmed it "has received a complaint" from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service "relating to the disclosure of protected information" in the case of Adil Charkaoui of Montreal.
HTML | Published: 2007-07-06 | Added: 2007-07-16

RCMP tightens intelligence standard
The RCMP is assuring Parliament that it has officially entered a post-Arar world. Senators asked a top Mountie whether dubious intelligence from Canada could ever again be used by the United States to deport a suspect to a third country to face  [...]
HTML | Published: 2007-06-20 | Added: 2007-06-21

Fmr CIA official wants to give Arar case higher profile in U.S.
A former top CIA official wants to raise the profile of Maher Arar in the United States, where he hopes the story of Arar's deportation and torture will help end the American practice of extraordinary rendition.
HTML | Published: 2007-01-29 | Added: 2007-02-06

Canada to pay Arar $10.5 million
Canada apologized on Friday to software engineer Maher Arar, who was deported to Syria by U.S. agents after Canadian police mistakenly labeled him an Islamic extremist, and paid him $10.5 million in compensation.
HTML | Published: 2007-01-28 | Added: 2007-01-28

O'Connor recommends more oversight of RCMP, CSIS
The report stopped short of recommending a review super agency, as some experts expected, instead opting for a pair of bodies that will monitor the RCMP, CSIS and five other agencies involved with national security.
HTML | Published: 2006-12-13 | Added: 2007-01-03

Démission du chef de la police fédérale canadienne suite à l'affaire Arar
Le chef de la police fédérale canadienne Giuliano Zaccardelli a été contraint à démissionner mercredi à cause de son rôle dans l'affaire d'un Canadien expulsé en Syrie par les Etats-Unis après avoir été suspecté à tort de liens avec le terrorisme.
HTML | Published: 2006-12-06 | Added: 2006-12-10

Mending the Mounties
Thirty years after the McDonald Commission, the RCMP finds itself at another crossroads. O'Connor points to a need for a more coherent connection between Canadian agencies when dealing with terrorism investigations.
HTML | Published: 2006-12-08 | Added: 2006-12-10

Mounties' top cop resigns
Zaccardelli testified he knew the RCMP was trying to correct the record with their US counterparts while Arar was being detained in Syria. But at a speech on Monday and at his second appearance at the committee Tuesday, he told a different version.
HTML | Published: 2006-12-06 | Added: 2006-12-10

RCMP head faces MPs' grilling over Arar affair
RCMP Commissioner Giuliano Zaccardelli, already under fire for the force's handling of the Maher Arar affair, will have more explaining to do when he faces yet another grilling by MPs.
HTML | Published: 2006-12-03 | Added: 2006-12-10

Super-watchdog over Mounties could emerge from bungled Arar case
A super-watchdog to help keep tabs on the RCMP and other players in the intelligence world could emerge from the bungling that marked the Maher Arar affair.
HTML | Published: 2006-12-08 | Added: 2006-12-10

Watchdog: RCMP failed to give CSIS key Arar info
It's obvious something went awry when the RCMP failed to share key information about the Maher Arar affair with the rest of the Canadian intelligence establishment, says the head of a federal watchdog group.
HTML | Published: 2006-11-01 | Added: 2006-11-05

Reopen probe, Arar asks CSIS watchdog
Maher Arar wants CSIS's watchdog to reopen its investigation into the intelligence agency's failure to recognize that he was being tortured in Syria.
HTML | Published: 2006-10-11 | Added: 2006-10-13

Arar demands apology, wants disciplinary action
Maher Arar said he wants to see disciplinary steps taken against the RCMP agents who played a role in his deportation to a Syrian torture chamber.
HTML | Published: 2006-10-05 | Added: 2006-10-05

Case casts shadow on Canadian intelligence, US
The Canadian Security and Intelligence Service (CSIS) and the RCMP were dragging their feet on the matter, while the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade pursued his release more actively.
HTML | Published: 2006-09-20 | Added: 2006-10-05

Arar inquiry blasts RCMP for triggering deportation, torture
False information given to American authorities by an inexperienced RCMP anti-terrorism team, which tagged Maher Arar as an Islamic extremist, very likely set off a chain of events that led to his deportation and torture in Syria.
HTML | Published: 2006-09-18 | Added: 2006-10-02

CSIS didn't want Arar returned to Canada
Liberal Public Safety critic Irwin Cotler said he has concerns about Justice Dennis O'Connor's report on Maher Arar which documents CSIS' resistance to bringing Mr. Arar home in 2003, when the government intended to pressure Syria to release him.
HTML | Published: 2006-10-02 | Added: 2006-10-02

RCMP faulted; Arar cleared
In the first of two reports, O'Connor loads the RCMP with almost all blame for Arar's misery. It wrongly identified him as an Islamic extremist, fingered him to the U.S., and then slowed Foreign Affairs efforts to rescue him from a filthy Syrian  [...]
HTML | Published: 2006-09-19 | Added: 2006-10-02

Report of the Events Relating to Maher Arar: Analysis and Recommendations
Official report of the Commission of Inquiry into the Actions of Canadian Officials in Relation to Maher Arar.
PDF | Published: 2006-09-18 | Added: 2006-10-02

Arar inquiry moves closer to report, but some evidence may stay secret
RCMP investigators acknowledged they had Arar under surveillance and shared information about him with U.S. officials. But the Mounties denied any role in the decision to send him to Syria. So did CSIS, although they discussed the case with the  [...]
HTML | Published: 2006-06-27 | Added: 2006-07-06

CSIS to be investigated
The watchdog over CSIS has been asked to probe the prickly question of whether the spy agency relies on information extracted through torture.
HTML | Published: 2006-05-28 | Added: 2006-05-30

Plane that ferried Arar to Middle East prison touches down in Canada
The mysterious American jet that set Maher Arar en route to a grim Syrian prison visited Canada this week, prompting new questions about landings by aircraft linked to U.S. intelligence.
HTML | Published: 2006-03-15 | Added: 2006-03-17

The Story of Maher Arar: Unfolding US-Canada Police State
The following is a chronology of events as told by Maher Arar, beginning with his arrival at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York on September 26, 2002, and ending with his October 5, 2003 release from Syrian prison.
HTML | Published: 2005-12-29 | Added: 2006-01-14

RCMP open to idea of police watchdog
RCMP Commissioner Giuliano Zaccardelli told the Maher Arar inquiry he is now
HTML | Published: 2005-11-18 | Added: 2005-11-22

Canada urged to investigate its alleged role in torture
The United Nations Human Rights Committee noted that Canada is holding a public inquiry into the case of Maher Arar to determine whether the RCMP or any other federal agencies were involved in his deportation from the US to Syria, where he was  [...]
HTML | Published: 2005-11-03 | Added: 2005-11-06

CSIS promises on torture baseless, watchdog says
CSIS has been giving false assurances to the government that it can guarantee the intelligence it receives from foreign agencies is not obtained by torture, SIRC said in its report to Parliament.
HTML | Published: 2005-11-01 | Added: 2005-11-02

Who is Abdullah Almalki?
Syrian-born Canadian Abdullah Almalki, of Ottawa, was at the centre of an RCMP national security investigation that cast suspicion on Maher Arar. Like Mr. Arar, Mr. Almalki was tortured in a Syrian jail. He believes Canadian officials were  [...]
HTML | Published: 2005-10-30 | Added: 2005-11-01

Affaire Arar: la Syrie sommée d'enquêter
Le ministre des Affaires étrangères du Canada demande à la Syrie d'enquêter sur l'affaire Maher Arar. L'enquêteur Stephen Toope estime que le citoyen canadien y a bel et bien été torturé pendant une longue période.
HTML | Published: 2005-10-27 | Added: 2005-10-28

Fact-finder concludes Arar was tortured in Syria
In a report released Thursday, a fact-finder appointed by the Arar Commission concludes that Ottawa engineer Maher Arar was tortured while detained in Syrian custody three years ago.
HTML | Published: 2005-10-27 | Added: 2005-10-28

McLellan contradicts CSIS on torture policy
CSIS does not want intelligence from foreign agencies if the information may have been obtained by torture, Deputy Prime Minister Anne McLellan says, contradicting testimony from senior CSIS officials last year at the Arar inquiry.
HTML | Published: 2005-09-16 | Added: 2005-10-26

Arar report to be delayed until next March
A public report on the Maher Arar affair will be delayed until next March, largely because of haggling over how much of the evidence ought to remain secret on national security grounds.
HTML | Published: 2005-09-15 | Added: 2005-09-19

CSIS didn't suggest Arar stay in Syria: official
The No. 2 man at Canada's spy service is vigorously denying claims that his agency wanted Maher Arar to remain in Syria rather than be freed from prison and return home.
HTML | Published: 2005-08-25 | Added: 2005-08-31

Ottawa aware of torture in Syria, probe told
Franco Pillarella opened the door for RCMP officers to meet with a Syrian intelligence officer, believed to be General Hassan Khalil, to help them in their investigation of Mr. El-Maati.
HTML | Published: 2005-07-30 | Added: 2005-07-31

RCMP shared intelligence with Syria, Arar inquiry told
RCMP Supt. Mike Cabana who headed up the investigation in the Ottawa area said Canadian officials were concerned Arar was being abused early in his captivity in Syria, but they exchanged intelligence anyway.
HTML | Published: 2005-06-30 | Added: 2005-07-02

Syrians offered to allow CSIS to attend Maher Arar interrogation
A top diplomat says Syria offered to let a Canadian security officer attend the interrogation of Maher Arar to see that everything was being done above board. In the end nobody from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service sat in on the  [...]
HTML | Published: 2005-06-15 | Added: 2005-06-19

How CSIS botched Arar file
CSIS was not in the Middle East to extract information from Arar or even sift through the results of the interrogation but to strike a secret deal to exchange information related to Sept. 11, the Iraq war and the Afghanistan Al Qaeda camps.
HTML | Published: 2005-06-09 | Added: 2005-06-10

CSIS wanted gov't to leave Arar in Syria: memo
A draft Foreign Affairs memo says the Canadian Security Intelligence Service "made it clear to the department that they would prefer to have him remain in Syria, rather than return to Canada."
HTML | Published: 2005-06-03 | Added: 2005-06-05

Graham denies knowing of Arar torture
The RCMP and CSIS balked at efforts by Foreign Affairs to draft a letter to the Syrian government saying Arar had been cleared of any suspicion of terrorist activity in Canada.
HTML | Published: 2005-05-31 | Added: 2005-06-03

CSIS visited Syria during Arar's detention
Canada's spy agency paid a mysterious visit to Syria in the fall of 2002 while Maher Arar was in detention there on suspicion of terrorist activity.
HTML | Published: 2005-05-25 | Added: 2005-05-26

CSIS visited Syria during Arar's imprisonment
A government official at the inquiry into the imprisonment of Maher Arar in Syria has revealed that Canadian intelligence agents paid a visit to that country while Arar was detained there.
HTML | Published: 2005-05-25 | Added: 2005-05-26

Expert warns 'culture of secrecy' may block truth about Arar case
A government-sponsored "culture of secrecy" surrounding the Arar inquiry has become so pervasive that it may block the truth about Maher Arar's yearlong detention in Syria from ever becoming public.
HTML | Published: 2005-05-04 | Added: 2005-05-05

New York Times Confirms Maher Arar's Account of Rendition from the United States
A front page story in the New York Times today reported the discovery of flight records which corroborate the story of Canadian citizen Maher Arar.
HTML | Published: 2005-03-30 | Added: 2005-04-24

RCMP: Scrutiny could put them at risk
In a submission to the Maher Arar inquiry, the RCMP expresses serious reservations about the federal government's plan to more closely monitor security and intelligence activities of the force.
HTML | Published: 2005-03-02 | Added: 2005-03-04

Mountie secrets hinder rights monitor
Canada needs a brand-new watchdog powerful enough to make the Mounties and spy agencies answerable to the public. In the wake of the Maher Arar affair, action must be taken to compel co-operation from investigators in national security cases.
HTML | Published: 2005-03-02 | Added: 2005-03-03

Arar Inquiry To Cost $23-million
Investigating the Maher Arar affair is costing Canadian taxpayers more than $23-million. That's the price tag government officials are attaching to the public inquiry into the case.
HTML | Published: 2005-03-01 | Added: 2005-03-01

Very private aspects of the Arar public inquiry
Last month when O'Connor attempted to release his first summary, of evidence given privately by CSIS witnesses, government lawyers demanded the document be censored first.
HTML | Published: 2005-01-29 | Added: 2005-01-31

Arar lawsuit threatens national security: U.S.
The U.S. government filed a motion to dismiss a lawsuit brought by Maher Arar, claiming information released on his deportation would threaten national security.
HTML | Published: 2005-01-23 | Added: 2005-01-26

Ottawa lashed over Arar secrets
The federal government was slammed Monday for blocking the release of new details on the role of Canada's spy service in the deportation of Maher Arar, including information that could help to clear the name of the Ottawa-based engineer.
HTML | Published: 2004-12-21 | Added: 2004-12-23

Officials frustratedby secrecy in Arar probe
Officials at the Arar commission spoke out about their growing disappointment and frustration with the federal government, which has moved to block the release of intelligence information that could shed light on how Maher Arar ended up jailed in  [...]
HTML | Published: 2004-12-15 | Added: 2004-12-15

Canada May Seal Details of Arar Torture
The circumstances surrounding the treatment of Maher Arar is the subject of a federal commission of inquiry that since the summer has been held in closed-door hearings, where Canadian security and intelligence officials have been secretly  [...]
HTML | Published: 2004-12-02 | Added: 2004-12-09

Mounties left in dark by U.S. on deportation of Syrian-born Canadian
The Mounties provided information on Maher Arar to American authorities but were left in the dark when the U.S. deported the Canadian citizen to Syria.
HTML | Published: 2004-11-28 | Added: 2004-12-04

Arar freed after appeal from Chrétien
Newly obtained documents shed light on how Maher Arar was freed from Syria only after direct communications between former prime minister Jean Chrétien and the President of Syria.
HTML | Published: 2004-11-10 | Added: 2004-11-11

A gaffe waiting to happen
Less than a year after Ottawa responded to the attacks on New York and Washington with omnibus legislation, the RCMP improperly leaked information about a Canadian citizen to U.S. officials who shipped him to a country known to use torture to get  [...]
HTML | Published: 2004-09-28 | Added: 2004-09-29

Canadian intelligence used by U.S. officials in Arar's deportation hearing
Information the RCMP passed to U.S. officials in sloppy fashion was used in a hearing that resulted in Ottawa engineer Maher Arar's deportation to Syria, where he was imprisoned for months as a terrorism suspect.
HTML | Published: 2004-09-25 | Added: 2004-09-27

RCMP admits rules broken in Arar case
A censored report, tabled during in-camera proceedings inquiry examining the case of Mr. Arar, acknowledges that the force broke its own rules by giving information to U.S. intelligence officials without always insisting on strict conditions for its  [...]
HTML | Published: 2004-09-24 | Added: 2004-09-25

Les confessions forcées de Maher Arar ont été transmises par l'ambassadeur
Le Service canadien du renseignement de sécurité (SCRS) a pu obtenir la transcription des confessions qu'a faites l'ingénieur d'Ottawa Maher Arar pendant sa détention en Syrie grâce à l'ambassadeur du Canada à Damas.
HTML | Published: 2004-09-13 | Added: 2004-09-20

Arar inquiry set to hear secret evidence; family has concerns about witnesses
The Maher Arar inquiry is set to go behind closed doors to examine the role Canada's spy service may have played in the Ottawa man's deportation and imprisonment.
HTML | Published: 2004-09-08 | Added: 2004-09-17

Canadian ambassador passed Syrian intelligence report on Arar to CSIS
During a verbal briefing by Syrian military intelligence officials, Pillarella requested "a written report" on the Arar investigation, a copy of which was translated to English from Arabic and subsequently forwarded to CSIS.
HTML | Published: 2004-09-17 | Added: 2004-09-17

Report clears CSIS in Arar deportation
But in a heavily censored report, the watchdog also criticizes CSIS for not being careful enough about how it passes intelligence on to the Mounties, especially ones chatting with U.S. law-enforcement agencies.
HTML | Published: 2004-09-14 | Added: 2004-09-17

The Arar Commission releases a new version of the Security Intelligence Review Committee (SIRC) report on the Arar case
At the public hearing held in Ottawa on June 23, 2004, Lead Commission Counsel Paul Cavalluzzo showed the report which had all 89 pages blacked-out. The version released today is still 70% redacted.
HTML | Published: 2004-09-13 | Added: 2004-09-17

Suspicion of CSIS and RCMP evidence
In an opening submission to the Maher Arar inquiry, the Law Union of Ontario has asked that all material offered by CSIS and the RCMP be viewed with “...a healthy dose of suspicion”.
HTML | Published: 2004-09-15 | Added: 2004-09-15

Mounties, CSIS agents grilled over Arar leak
In the internal probes, questions were put to members of the RCMP, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, Foreign Affairs and the Solicitor General's Department (since renamed Public Safety) in response to Privy Council Office requests.
HTML | Published: 2004-08-01 | Added: 2004-08-03

Arar probe evidence to be screened
After O'Connor has privately heard the testimony from RCMP and CSIS and reviewed the government's claims for confidentiality in private hearings slated to begin Sept. 13, he will rule on what can be released.
HTML | Published: 2004-07-30 | Added: 2004-07-31

Opening statement of the Attorney General of Canada to the Commission of Inquiry Into the Actions of Canadian Officials in Relation to Maher Arar
The statement addresses the nature of Commissioner O'Connor's inquiry, offer some general observations on the actions of Canadian officials in relation to Maher Arar, and identify some of the unique challenges the Commissioner will face.
LINK | Published: 2004-07-23 | Added: 2004-07-26

Mounties cast wide security net
RCMP Deputy Commissioner Garry Loeppky testified how officers with the Integrated National Security Enforcement Teams are able to share information without approval from supervising authorities, but do so only after careful consideration.
TEXT | Published: 2004-07-01 | Added: 2004-07-22

Syria rejects request to assist Arar inquiry
McIsaac admitted yesterday the government had made a mistake in blacking out every page of a Security Intelligence Review Committee report on the actions of CSIS officials in the Arar case. A new public report is being prepared.
TEXT | Published: 2004-07-06 | Added: 2004-07-22

RCMP broke own rule in passing Arar intelligence to U.S., says internal probe
The RCMP broke one of its own policies when passing some information to U.S. officials about Ottawa resident Maher Arar, an internal probe by the Mounties reveals.
HTML | Published: 2004-07-08 | Added: 2004-07-14

National security is on trial in the Arar inquiry
On trial is Canadian national security in a post-Sept. 11 world. We haven't had such a scene for a quarter of a century, not since the McDonald Commission raised the lid on the RCMP Security Service's secret practices.
HTML | Published: 2004-07-05 | Added: 2004-07-12

Ottawa pressed to make Arar files public
Leaks and media reports have established that RCMP officers were investigating the possibility of an al-Qaeda cell in Ottawa, that these Mounties became suspicious of Mr. Arar before the U.S. sent him to Syria.
HTML | Published: 2004-07-05 | Added: 2004-07-12

Canada's role in Arar's ordeal
As Ward Elcock, who recently completed 10 years at the helm of CSIS, the civilian spy agency, explained, he was obliged to check out any tips about threats to Canada, whether received directly from countries that use torture or from intermediaries.
HTML | Published: 2004-06-26 | Added: 2004-06-27

Arar inquiry told Canada may deal with nations that use torture
The former director of Canada's intelligence agency admitted Monday that Canada might have information-sharing relationships with other agencies in countries that engage in torture.
HTML | Published: 2004-06-22 | Added: 2004-06-25

Canadian spies deal with countries suspected of torture: former CSIS chief
The former head of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service says the agency deals with foreign spy services suspected of using torture.
HTML | Published: 2004-06-21 | Added: 2004-06-25

Harper could be called before Arar inquiry
Conservative Party Leader Stephen Harper could be called as a witness at the inquiry into the deportation of Maher Arar to Syria. Harper revealed Tuesday evening that he had received a secret briefing on Arar's case.
HTML | Published: 2004-06-23 | Added: 2004-06-25

Security watchdog censors Arar report
A report with all 89 pages blacked out is what the federal government has released to the public concerning the involvement of Canadian intelligence officials in the deportation and detention of a Canadian citizen.
HTML | Published: 2004-06-24 | Added: 2004-06-25

L'ex-chef savait que les États-Unis extradaient des suspects
L'ancien directeur du Service canadien du renseignement de sécurité a admis qu'il était au courant de la pratique controversée des Américains consistant à envoyer des suspects d'actes terroristes à l'étranger, pour interrogatoire.
HTML | Published: 2004-06-22 | Added: 2004-06-22

Arar for dummies
The Maher Arar controversy has raised many troubling questions, and a federal public inquiry led by Ontario's associate chief justice will begin to root out answers.
HTML | Published: 2004-06-19 | Added: 2004-06-21

Arar inquiry asks for Syrian, U.S. co-operation
Syria, Jordan and the United States are being asked by the Maher Arar inquiry to help determine what happened to the Ottawa man.
HTML | Published: 2004-06-18 | Added: 2004-06-21

Arar inquiry hears from former CSIS boss
The former head of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service said in testimony on the inquiry's first day that the spy agency is subject to stringent reviews, perhaps the toughest of any such organization in the world.
HTML | Published: 2004-06-21 | Added: 2004-06-21

CSIS went to Syria for confession: Arar rep
Agents from Canadian Security Intelligence Service, Canada's spy agency, secretly visited Syria in late 2002 and obtained copies of Maher Arar's confessions under torture, according to Arar's lawyers.
HTML | Published: 2004-06-12 | Added: 2004-06-12

Arar lambastes federal moves to limit disclosure of documents at inquiry
Government lawyers argued late last month that disclosure of investigative methods used by the RCMP and CSIS could make them pariahs of the global intelligence community or even provide terrorists with valuable information.
HTML | Published: 2004-06-04 | Added: 2004-06-05

Arar inquiry called 'whitewash' by El-Maati
Next month's inquiry into the detention of Maher Arar is shaping up to be a "whitewash" and "cover-up," according to Ahmad Abou-El-Maati, another Arab Canadian formerly jailed in Syria.
HTML | Published: 2004-05-22 | Added: 2004-05-25

Atkey to help Arar inquiry fight secrecy
A former spy-agency watchdog has been given the job of fighting Ottawa's attempts to shield its secrets from public view once the Arar commission begins its fact-finding mission next month.
HTML | Published: 2004-05-20 | Added: 2004-05-21

Commission of Inquiry into the Actions of Canadian Officials in Relation to Maher Arar
The Inquiry was established to investigate and report on the actions of Canadian officials in relation to Maher Arar and to recommend an arm's length review mechanism for the activities of the RCMP with respect to national security.
LINK | Published: 2004-05-10 | Added: 2004-05-11

Ruling on standing and funding at the Arar Inquiry
Mr. Justice Dennis R. O'Connor released his decision concerning the requests for standing presented to him in the course of public hearings held on the 29th and 30th of April last.
HTML | Published: 2004-05-10 | Added: 2004-05-11

Government trying to hold back documents from Arar inquiry
Lawyers for the federal government are objecting to Arar's involvement in hearings to decide whether some documents remain secret.
HTML | Published: 2004-04-30 | Added: 2004-05-02

The Dirty Work of Canadian Intelligence
Former solicitor general Wayne Easter acknowledged the possibility that "rogue" elements of the RCMP may have played a role in Arar's rendition to Syria ­ essentially torture by proxy.
HTML | Published: 2004-04-28 | Added: 2004-05-02

Untangling tale of tortured Canadian
It's here, through the gates of military intelligence's Far Falasteen (Palestine Branch), that Arar was brought on Oct. 9, 2002. He was interrogated there, at the request of Canadian and U.S. intelligence agencies.
HTML | Published: 2004-05-01 | Added: 2004-05-02

Libération de deux canadiens des prisons syriennes
Abdullah Almalki et Ahmad Abou El-Maati avaient été arrêtés en 2001 et 2002, et l'enquête portait sur l'existence possible d'une cellule terroriste, à laquelle aurait aussi appartenu Maher Arar, ce résidant d'Ottawa libéré récemment d'une prison  [...]
TEXT | Published: 2004-03-21 | Added: 2004-04-27

Feds tighten reins on RCMP's security probes
In a bid to keep a tighter rein on the RCMP's national security probes, the federal government has quietly ordered the Mounties to obtain ministerial approval before co-operating with a foreign spy service.
HTML | Published: 2004-04-23 | Added: 2004-04-26

Maher Arar suing Canadian officials
The Canadian who was deported from the U.S. to Syria, where he says he was tortured as a suspected terrorist, is looking for compensation. Maher Arar and his family have filed a lawsuit against the Canadian government, CSIS, and the RCMP, claiming they  [...]
HTML | Published: 2004-04-22 | Added: 2004-04-26

The Invisible Men
A public inquiry set to begin in Canada may reveal long-hidden secrets about the abuses of America's war on terror. It will investigate why Maher Arar was detained and then escorted through Jordan to Syria, where he said he was tortured.
HTML | Published: 2004-03-30 | Added: 2004-04-14

Muslim group concerned over Arar case
A group representing Canadian Muslims expressed "grave concern" Tuesday about word the Ottawa police teamed up with the RCMP and other security officials to investigate Maher Arar.
HTML | Published: 2004-03-09 | Added: 2004-03-11

U.S. wanted Arar to be tortured, lawyer says
U.S. authorities "contracted out" the torture of Maher Arar, a Canadian citizen deported to Syria for a year of interrogation and torture, says a New York civil rights lawyer representing him in a lawsuit against the United States government.
HTML | Published: 2004-02-28 | Added: 2004-02-28

La Couronne révèle l'existence d'un autre document
Les avocats de la journaliste du Ottawa Citizen chez qui la GRC a effectué des saisies relativement à l'affaire Arar ont été consternés d'apprendre lundi l'existence d'un document crucial dont on ne leur avait pas parlé.
HTML | Published: 2004-02-16 | Added: 2004-02-16

Arar inquiry a problem for government
A few days after announcing that Justice Dennis O'Connor will probe how and why U.S. authorities detained and then deported a Canadian to Syria, the federal government announced terms of reference that suggest the answers the inquiry makes public will  [...]
HTML | Published: 2004-02-07 | Added: 2004-02-07

RCMP still playing I spy
New powers vested in the RCMP, as well as the renewed emphasis on information-gathering by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service and other government spy agencies, doesn't affect just villains. Anyone can get caught in the net.
HTML | Published: 2004-02-07 | Added: 2004-02-07

Deputy Prime Minister Issues Terms of Reference for the Public Inquiry into the Maher Arar Matter
The Honourable Anne McLellan today announced that the Government of Canada has issued Terms of Reference for the Commission of Inquiry into the Actions of Canadian Officials in Relation to Maher Arar.
LINK | Published: 2004-02-05 | Added: 2004-02-06

RCMP to face scrutiny at Arar probe
Justice Dennis O'Connor has been given a clear mandate to design a new independent watchdog agency for RCMP spying activities as part of his inquiry into the Maher Arar affair.
HTML | Published: 2004-02-06 | Added: 2004-02-06

O'Connor given wide discretion in Arar inquiry
The federal government is giving Justice Dennis O'Connor wide discretion in his public inquiry into the Maher Arar affair under terms of reference released today.
HTML | Published: 2004-02-05 | Added: 2004-02-05

Privacy watchdog seeks information from journalists in Arar probe
At least two journalists, including the Ottawa Citizen reporter whose home was searched by the RCMP, could soon face a grilling from the federal privacy watchdog about the Maher Arar affair.
HTML | Published: 2004-02-04 | Added: 2004-02-05

I want to be able to clear my name
Maher Arar is now focused on the public inquiry that Justice Dennis O'Connor will conduct into his deportation and detention. "I think we should be consulted on the terms of reference," he said, sitting in the living room in his apartment in Ottawa.
HTML | Published: 2004-02-01 | Added: 2004-02-02

Further Information on Maher Arar, 7 October 2003
On 5 October 2003, Maher Arar was released by the Syrian authorities, after being held in detention without charge for a year. He was handed over to the Canadian Consulate in Damascus, before being flown home to Canada on 6 October.
LINK | Published: 2003-10-07 | Added: 2004-01-31

Further Information on Maher Arar, 8 August 2003
Amnesty International has received reports that Maher Arar, a dual Canadian/Syrian citizen, is being tortured and ill-treated in Syrian detention.
LINK | Published: 2003-08-08 | Added: 2004-01-31

Justice must replace injustice for Maher Arar
The only way to get to the bottom of the role played by the RCMP, CSIS and other Canadian officials in Maher's tragedy is by conducting a full public inquiry.
LINK | Published: 2004-01-22 | Added: 2004-01-31

Possible disappearance of Maher Arar, 21 October 2002
Amnesty International is concerned by the possible "disappearance" of Canadian citizen Maher Arar. Although recent reports state that he was deported to Syria, neither the Canadian authorities nor his family have been able to confirm his  [...]
LINK | Published: 2002-10-21 | Added: 2004-01-31

Suit alleges RCMP stonewalling probes
Canada's RCMP watchdog has launched a court action alleging the force's commissioner and its officers are breaking laws intended to make them accountable.
HTML | Published: 2004-01-30 | Added: 2004-01-31

MaherArar.ca: Public Inquiry Now
Official site of the Maher Arar Support Committee.
LINK | Published: 2003-12-16 | Added: 2004-01-30

Ottawa to Probe Agencies' Role in Arar Deportation
The government has ordered a public inquiry into the role of Canadian intelligence agents in the arrest and deportation of a man who was seized by U.S. authorities while he changed planes in New York City and sent to a Syrian prison.
HTML | Published: 2004-01-28 | Added: 2004-01-30

Deputy Prime Minister Announces Public Inquiry in the Maher Arar Matter
Anne McLellan announced that Mr. Justice Dennis R. O'Connor will undertake a public inquiry into the Maher Arar matter. Mr. Justice O'Connor will assess the actions of Canadian officials in dealing with the deportation and detention of Mr. Arar.
LINK | Published: 2004-01-28 | Added: 2004-01-28

RCMP watchdog wants expanded role of monitoring Mountie security operations
The watchdog that probes complaints about the RCMP says it - not a new agency - should be given the job of keeping an eye on the Mounties' security and intelligence activities.
HTML | Published: 2004-01-27 | Added: 2004-01-28

Mounties crossed line with reporter, Manley insists
The RCMP went too far when it searched the home and office of an Ottawa journalist looking for information about the Maher Arar case, says former deputy prime minister John Manley.
HTML | Published: 2004-01-26 | Added: 2004-01-27

Road to RCMP raid began in Guantanamo
The genesis of the RCMP raid on Ottawa Citizen reporter Juliet O'Neill lies in 9/11, of course, but more precisely in the panicked response of the American and Canadian governments.
HTML | Published: 2004-01-25 | Added: 2004-01-26

Arar inquiry possible, Martin suggests
Prime Minister Paul Martin opened the door on Thursday to a public inquiry in to the Maher Arar affair even as the government denied a U.S. media report that Canadian intelligence sanctioned Arar's deportation to Syria.
HTML | Published: 2004-01-23 | Added: 2004-01-24

U.S. cited acquaintances in deporting Arar
The only stated reason the United States deported Maher Arar to Syria is that he admitted he knew two Ontario men who were also under RCMP investigation and later jailed as terrorism suspects in Syria.
HTML | Published: 2004-01-23 | Added: 2004-01-24

Canada Reporter's Home Raided Over Al Qaeda Story
Police raided the home and office of an Ottawa journalist on Wednesday to investigate possible leaks of classified information about a Syrian-born Canadian who was deported to Syria by the United States, suspected of ties to al Qaeda.
HTML | Published: 2004-01-21 | Added: 2004-01-23

Arar sues U.S. government
Refused the public inquiry that could explain why U.S. intelligence officials insisted on deporting him to Syria, Ottawa resident Maher Arar on Thursday filed suit against the United States government.
HTML | Published: 2004-01-22 | Added: 2004-01-22

Canada's dossier on Maher Arar
It is the existence of a now-disbanded alleged group, most if not all of whose members, are now in prison abroad, that a security source cites as the root of why the Canadian government is so fiercely opposed to a public inquiry into the case of Mr.  [...]
HTML | Published: 2003-11-08 | Added: 2004-01-22

Canadian spies OK'd deportation
Canadian intelligence quietly approved of the United States decision to arrest and deport Syrian-born Canadian Maher Arar to Syria.
HTML | Published: 2004-01-22 | Added: 2004-01-22

Canadian sues US over deportation
A Canadian man who says he was tortured in Syria after being deported by the American authorities has launched a lawsuit against top US officials.
HTML | Published: 2004-01-22 | Added: 2004-01-22

His Year In Hell
U.S. government officials we spoke to say they told Canadian intelligence that they were sending Arar to Syria - and the Canadians signed off on the decision.
HTML | Published: 2004-01-21 | Added: 2004-01-22

RCMP raids reporter's offices over Arar case
Searching for evidence in connection with an alleged leak of confidential information in the Arar case, the RCMP turned its attention to a veteran journalist in Ottawa on Wednesday. Ten Mounties searched Ottawa Citizen reporter Juliet O'Neill's  [...]
HTML | Published: 2004-01-22 | Added: 2004-01-22

Arar case began amid fear of attack on Ottawa
Canadian counterterrorism agents were investigating the possibility of an al-Qaeda plot to blow up targets in Ottawa when they began a probe that would lead to the detentions of Maher Arar and several other Canadian Muslims half a world away.
HTML | Published: 2004-01-16 | Added: 2004-01-16

Bon Voyage, Chretien
Chretien's ignorance on matters relating to the security of not only Canadians, but also all North Americans, was mind-boggling for a head of state in the post-9/11 world.
HTML | Published: 2004-01-12 | Added: 2004-01-13

Canada, U.S. strike Arar deal
Prime Minister Paul Martin is expected to announce today that Canada and the United States have agreed on new rules aimed to ensure that the Maher Arar scandal is never repeated.
HTML | Published: 2004-01-13 | Added: 2004-01-13

The Arar insinuations
If Maher Arar is known beyond a doubt to be an alumnus of the notorious Khalden al-Qaeda training camp in eastern Afghanistan, as anonymous parties within the federal government seem hell-bent on insinuating, why won't they come out of the shadows and  [...]
HTML | Published: 2004-01-03 | Added: 2004-01-12

Arar trained at al-Qaida camp: Canadian official
Canadian and U.S. intelligence officials are "100-per-cent sure" that a Syrian-born Canadian who was imprisoned for a year in Damascus trained at the same al-Qaida camp in Afghanistan as a former Montrealer convicted of planning a terrorist attack.
HTML | Published: 2003-12-30 | Added: 2004-01-11

Chrétien was kept in the dark about Arar
Former prime minister Jean Chrétien was kept in the dark about the RCMP's involvement in the case of Maher Arar even as Canada was loudly protesting against the U.S. decision to deport the Ottawa man to Syria, federal documents show.
HTML | Published: 2004-01-09 | Added: 2004-01-11

Experts say Arar inquiry is feasible
An inquiry into the Maher Arar case could be held without compromising Canadian security, according to experts on previous inquiries.
HTML | Published: 2003-12-26 | Added: 2004-01-11

Maher Arar and wife renew call for full inquiry
It's been almost two months since Maher Arar returned to Canada, yet Canadians are no closer to knowing why the Americans deported Arar to a Syrian prison. Arar and his wife, Monia Mazigh, say that only a full public inquiry can answer that  [...]
HTML | Published: 2003-12-29 | Added: 2004-01-11

Only a public inquiry can settle Arar affair
CSIS and RCMP involvement is under scrutiny by internal watchdogs, but they are under no obligation to make a public report. That's not good enough. The Arar case is now as public as the weather, and as hard to predict. An inquiry can't hurt.
HTML | Published: 2003-12-31 | Added: 2004-01-11

PM to press Arar issue in talks with Bush
Prime Minister Paul Martin intends to make the Arar case a key test for better Canada-U.S. relations when he meets President Bush, arguing that the two countries can co-ordinate more closely only if Ottawa is assured the Arar case will not be  [...]
HTML | Published: 2004-01-10 | Added: 2004-01-11

The Week in Words
"This guy is not a virgin. There is more than meets the eye here.": An anonymous source in Canada's intelligence service commenting on Arar, the Syrian-born Canadian who was imprisoned for a year in Damascus after U.S. authorities deported him to  [...]
HTML | Published: 2004-01-04 | Added: 2004-01-11

CSIS watchdog to probe Arar case
The Security Intelligence Review Committee on Monday announced an investigation of CSIS's involvement in the Maher Arar case.
HTML | Published: 2003-12-22 | Added: 2003-12-24

CSIS, RCMP shared info about Arar
The RCMP and Canadian Security Intelligence Service exchanged a considerable amount of information about Maher Arar, but it is unclear whether CSIS directly sent material to U.S. authorities.
HTML | Published: 2003-12-22 | Added: 2003-12-24

Maher Arar: Timeline
Maher Arar, a Canadian citizen born in Syria in 1970, came to Canada in 1987. After earning bachelor's and master's degrees in computer engineering, Arar worked in Ottawa as a telecommunications engineer. His wife Monia Mazigh has a PhD in mathematics.  [...]
LINK | Published: 2002-09-26 | Added: 2003-12-24

SIRC to examine CSIS's role in Arar case
SIRC today announced that it is conducting an in-depth review into the case of Maher Arar. Its report, to be prepared pursuant to Section 54 of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service Act, will investigate all aspects of CSIS's involvement in this  [...]
LINK | Published: 2003-12-22 | Added: 2003-12-24

Watchdog to probe CSIS role in Arar case
An independent committee will investigate all aspects of how the Canadian Security Intelligence Service handled the case of Maher Arar.
HTML | Published: 2003-12-23 | Added: 2003-12-24

Canadians' Culture of Tolerance Is Tested by Cases Against Arabs
The cases of Almrei and other Canadian immigrants of Arab descent underscore the tensions in a larger debate in Canada about how to deal with immigrants accused of involvement in terrorism. Canadians pride themselves on ideals of tolerance, inclusion  [...]
HTML | Published: 2003-12-17 | Added: 2003-12-17

Arar lawyer urges new rules with U.S.
The Maher Arar case has made it essential for Canada to reach a new consensus on how Canadians should be treated abroad, Toronto lawyer Lorne Waldman said.
HTML | Published: 2003-12-06 | Added: 2003-12-12

CPC Initiates Complaint into RCMP Conduct in Relation to Maher Arar
The Chair of the Commission for Public Complaints Against the RCMP, Ms. Shirley Heafey, today announced that she is initiating a complaint into the RCMP conduct in relation to the deportation and detention of Mr. Maher Arar.
LINK | Published: 2003-10-23 | Added: 2003-12-11

Former terror suspect's lawyer near tears, quits cases over death threats
The Toronto lawyer representing former terror suspect Abdurahman Khadr was close to tears Thursday as he announced he would no longer handle such cases because he had received a death threat he's taking seriously.
HTML | Published: 2003-12-04 | Added: 2003-12-04

Lawyer quits terror cases after death threat
Fighting for his composure, lawyer Rocco Galati said Thursday that he will drop all of his terrorism-related cases after a death threat that he said he believes came from an intelligence agency.
HTML | Published: 2003-12-04 | Added: 2003-12-04

Arar to sue Syria, Jordan
Maher Arar has launched a suit against the governments of Syria and Jordan, and is seeking $25 million in punitive damages.
HTML | Published: 2003-11-25 | Added: 2003-11-26

What's a little torture between trading partners?
As the ever-practical Wayne Easter, Canada's solicitor-general, pointed out, if we're not willing to co-operate with the Americans on "national security issues" we're going to mess up our economic relationship, and our livelihood is at stake.
HTML | Published: 2003-11-25 | Added: 2003-11-26

Le SCRS n'aurait joué aucun rôle dans l'affaire Arar
L'organisme responsable de la surveillance des activités du Service canadien de renseignement de sécurité (SCRS) affirme avoir obtenu l'assurance que l'agence n'avait pas été impliquée dans la détention de Maher Arar par les autorités américaines et  [...]
HTML | Published: 2003-11-23 | Added: 2003-11-24

CSIS had no role in Arar's detention, says spy watchdog
The watchdog that oversees the Canadian Security Intelligence Service has received personal assurances from the head of the spy agency that it had no role in the detention of Maher Arar by U.S. authorities or his deportation to Syria.
HTML | Published: 2003-11-23 | Added: 2003-11-23

U.S. trusted Syria's assurances on Arar: Ashcroft
U.S. Attorney-General John Ashcroft says the Bush administration received — and believed — assurances from Syria that it would not torture Maher Arar before deporting the Ottawa man to that Middle Eastern country.
HTML | Published: 2003-11-21 | Added: 2003-11-21

The Arar Case: Canadian Hyprocrisy
The rush of politicians to embrace the cause of Maher Arar, the Canadian who was imprisoned and tortured in Syria, is a wondrous display of Canadian hypocrisy. According to U.S. sources, Arar's name was passed to American law enforcement agencies by the  [...]
HTML | Published: 2003-11-19 | Added: 2003-11-19

Arar case 'embarrassment' to U.S.
Maher Arar's treatment was described here yesterday as a symbol of post-9/11 excess in this country by a human rights group seeking the ouster of U.S. Attorney-General John Ashcroft.
HTML | Published: 2003-11-18 | Added: 2003-11-18

Canada says deportation case could hurt U.S. ties
A Canadian cabinet minister said on Tuesday that Ottawa may limit its intelligence sharing with Washington because of widespread concerns over the case of a man who was deported to Syria by U.S. agents.
HTML | Published: 2003-11-18 | Added: 2003-11-18

Arar story brews up a storm in Canada
The case of Maher Arar, the Syrian-born Canadian citizen, who was arrested in New York, bundled off to Syria to be jailed and tortured for a year for no apparent reason, is turning out to be a real political humdinger for Prime Minister Jean Chretien,  [...]
HTML | Published: 2003-11-17 | Added: 2003-11-17

Canadian 'torture victim' highlights US-Syrian cooperation
The Canadian government's discomfort over the case of a man deported to Syria by US agents deepened on Wednesday when legislators and major newspapers demanded an inquiry into what role Canada's police may have played in the affair. Maher Arar said on  [...]
TEXT | Published: 2003-11-11 | Added: 2003-11-12

Foreign spies may have stolen Arar document
Solicitor General Wayne Easter raised the prospect yesterday that foreign intelligence agencies operating in Canada obtained a rental lease for the former Ottawa home of Maher Arar through illegal means, which led to his deportation to a Syrian prison  [...]
HTML | Published: 2003-11-08 | Added: 2003-11-08

'Now, let me tell you who I am'
Statement of Maher Arar, Wednesday, November 05, 2003.
HTML | Published: 2003-11-06 | Added: 2003-11-08

Man says CIA sent him to Syria for torture
Canadian says the CIA detained him last year in New York as a suspected terrorist and then sent him to Syria, where he was tortured for 10 months.
HTML | Published: 2003-11-05 | Added: 2003-11-07

U.S. consulted RCMP on Arar arrest
The federal government has acknowledged for the first time in heavily edited documents that the United States consulted the RCMP before Maher Arar was arrested and deported to Syria where he spent a year in jail without charges.
HTML | Published: 2003-10-18 | Added: 2003-10-20

Wesley Wark
Two years after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, momentum is building for a public inquiry into the work of our security and intelligence agencies. It took the case of Maher Arar, a Canadian citizen detained by U.S. authorities and deported to Syria,  [...]
HTML | Published: 2003-10-10 | Added: 2003-10-11

Solicitor general refuses inquiry
Solicitor-General Wayne Easter has ruled out a public inquiry to determine how Maher Arar, a Syrian-born Canadian, was deported from the United States and jailed for 374 days in a Damascus prison without charges.
HTML | Published: 2003-10-07 | Added: 2003-10-08

Why the U.S. sent Canadian suspect to Syria may never be known: spy expert
A leading expert on international espionage says Canadians are unlikely to ever learn the full story of how Maher Arar wound up languishing in a Syrian military prison for more than year.
HTML | Published: 2003-10-06 | Added: 2003-10-06

CIA foiled al-Qaeda plot to attack Ottawa
A network of al-Qaeda agents was rounded up before it could carry out a plot to attack the American Embassy in Ottawa, U.S. intelligence sources say. The Central Intelligence Agency was alerted to the al-Qaeda conspiracy by Syria's intelligence service,  [...]
HTML | Published: 2003-07-25 | Added: 2003-07-25