Mohamed Harkat facing deportation to Algeria

[Al-khiyal]

Suspected Al-Qaida collaborator fights deportation

TORONTO, January 21, 2011 -- An Algerian immigrant who has been accused of being an al-Qaida sleeper agent continues is fighting deportation to his homeland, his lawyer said Friday. Mohamed Harkat, who has lived in Ontario since 1995, was arrested in December 2002 on suspicion of being a member of Osama bin Laden's terrorist network. He has denied the allegations. Harkat, 42, has never been charged but spent 3 1/2 years in an Ontario jail under controversial anti-terrorism legislation. The measure allows authorities to issue a national security certificate under which non-citizens can be held indefinitely without being charged and be deported, with the government allowed to keep any evidence secret. Harkat has been under house arrest since his release on bail in 2006. Lawyer Matthew Webber said Harkat was formally served deportation papers on Friday. In December, a federal judge ruled him a security threat who maintained ties to al-Qaida. Harkat's lawyers want the government to stay the deportation order so he can continue his legal challenge to the anti-terrorist security measures being used to deport him. "While they may be serving the paperwork, we fully expect and are confident the Canadian government respects due process," said Webber. "He's not going anywhere or being deported until we finish appealing the matter."

Harkat's lawyers are asking the Federal Court of Appeal to rule on whether the security certificate being used to deport him violates Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The certificate process, a seldom-used tool for removing non-citizens suspected of terrorism or espionage, was revamped in 2007 after the Supreme Court of Canada declared it unconstitutional. A key change was the addition of special advocates - lawyers who serve as watchdogs and test federal evidence against the person facing deportation. However, the special advocates do their work behind closed doors due to the sensitive nature of the classified information before the court in such cases. Harkat's lawyers argue that much of the evidence federal Judge Simon Noel consulted in weighing the validity of the certificate against Harkat remains secret and has never been tested under cross-examination. Harkat insists he is a refugee who fled strife-torn Algeria and worked with an aid agency in Pakistan before coming to Canada. He also claims he will be tortured if he is returned to Algeria.

[Al-khiyal]

Terror suspect ordered to leave :
Lawyer vows to fight for Harkat all the way to Supreme Court

January 22, 2011 -- Saying his client is innocent, Ottawa lawyer Matt Webber vowed yesterday to fight a deportation order against Mohamed Harkat all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada, if necessary. Harkat, 42, the former pizza delivery man branded a terrorist by a Federal Court judge, was served with a formal notice of deportation yesterday that could see him returned to his native Algeria, and potential torture. But Webber said his client is not going anywhere, adding that he has been given permission to file an appeal against the judgment of Justice Simon Noel, and will do so in "short order." The presiding judge has to "certify" the issues being appealed, and Noel agreed to some of the issues, including the constitutionality of the security certificate system under which Harkat was declared a danger to Canada. The breadth of the appeal is to be revealed when it is filed in a "couple of weeks." Webber said he hasn't been given any assurances by the federal government that Harkat won't be removed from Canada. "I have not received any assurances from the Canadian Border Services Agency, but in a country that embraces due process and has a charter of rights, you don't remove people from the country to potential danger when they have an ongoing appeal," he said. "We have a long road of litigation ahead of us. We are talking years. If we do not prevail in the Federal Court of Appeal, we will make every effort to get this matter put before the Supreme Court."

Harkat, who has maintained his innocence, said he is a wreck but is looking forward to clearing his name. "I never thought that I would be accused of an allegation of terrorism and find myself facing deportation to torture. I never in my mind thought a day like this will happen," he said. "I never do it. I was never involved in terrorism. I'm scared; I'm worried; I can't sleep." His wife, Sophie, said the deportation order is just the latest in a long list of difficulties the family has faced since Harkat's arrest in 2002. "We've been through hell for eight years, and we might go through hell for another eight years, but I know ... justice will prevail," she said. Harkat, who came to Canada in 1995, was arrested on suspicion of being a sleeper agent for Osama bin Laden's terrorist network. Last month, Noel upheld Harkat's security certificate, which allows the government to confine people who ordinarily would be deported but can't be because of fears they'd be tortured.