Abdellah Ouzghar is a joint citizen of

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

and

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...

, who was arrested in Canada shortly after the September 11, 2001 attacks, on suspicion of ties to terrorist organizations. A man in

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

had been found to be using Ouzghar's passport, which had been doctored. France charged Ouzghar with ''"forgery, uttering a forged document and two related conspiracy charges"''.

Life

truck driver A truck driver (commonly referred to as a trucker, teamster, or driver in the United States and Canada; a truckie in Australia and New Zealand; a HGV driver in the United Kingdom, Ireland and the European Union, a lorry driver, or driver in ...

by trade,Judge rejects terror claim against man: Ottawa must decide whether to allow Canadian's extradition to France after court rules he didn't belong to terrorist group
''

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part ...

'', January 13, 2007 Ouzghar claims that he was initially approached at his Montreal home in 1996, and asked to work as a spy for

Canadian Security Intelligence Service The Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS, ; french: Service canadien du renseignement de sécurité, ''SCRS'') is Canada's primary national intelligence agency. It is responsible for collecting, analysing, reporting and disseminating int ...

(CSIS), but refused on religious grounds - leading to an attempt to "set him up" by the intelligence service. CSIS admits having interviewed him at the time, but denies that they were trying to recruit him. CSIS claims he maintained suspicious connections to

Fateh Kamel Fateh Kamel is an Algerian who was arrested in 1999 on charges of supporting a terrorist plot against attacks against French targets in Paris, and was sentenced to eight years' imprisonment. He was released early for good behaviour, and returned ...

, and agent Mike Pavlovic questioned him again on September 20, 2001.Bell, Stewart. "The Martyr's Oath", 2005.

Arrest and release

John Norris, Ouzghar's lawyer, argues that even if Ouzghar was involved in forging a passport, that crime would have occurred in Canada, and should be prosecuted in Canada. His extradition hearing was told how Zoheir Choulah's conviction in France showed a number of phone calls between Choulah and Ouzghar while the latter was living in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

.CNews, "Phone records link Hamilton man to Muslims convicted of terrorist links", January 15, 2003 While facing extradition, Ouzghar became a computer technician. During the raid on his house, a videotape was seized which was later said to "sing the praises of jihad". Justice Susan Himel, who took up responsibility for Ouzghar's case when an earlier judge bowed out due to ill-health, made a ruling on January 12, 2007, stating that "...there was insufficient evidence to show Ouzghar was a member of a terrorist group." However, the extradition battle with France continued, and in June 2009, Ouzghar was handed over to French authorities to begin his prison term for passport forgery."Ouzghar loses extradition fight" Hamilton Spectator, June 12, 2009

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ouzghar, Abdellah Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Canadian prisoners and detainees Canadian truck drivers Moroccan people imprisoned abroad Prisoners and detainees of Canada Canadian people of Moroccan descent