Terrorism in Canada: From Recent Cases to ALCCA’s Calls to Action
- Rochelle Direnfeld and Mark Sandler
- Oct 19
- 10 min read
Readers wishing to go directly to ALCCA’s 11 Calls to Action can click here to jump to that section.
Planned Attack in Manhattan with Canada Connection
This week, Muhammed Shahzeb Khan appeared in a Manhattan courtroom to face two terrorism charges relating to an alleged ISIS-inspired plot to open fire on a Brooklyn Jewish centre around the anniversary of the October 7, 2023 Hamas barbarities. It is alleged that:
Khan described the anticipated attack on an encrypted chat platform as “the largest attack on U.S. soil since 9/11, if successful”
Khan asked the anticipated participants to acquire hunting knives, camouflage shirts, tactical vests, AR-style rifles and 900 rounds of ammunition and 10 magazines each
Khan wrote, “Brothers – we are going to slaughter them.”
His trial is scheduled to commence on May 26, 2026.
The case is closely connected to Canada. It was reported that Khan, a Pakistani citizen, had been granted a study permit in April 2023 and arrived in Toronto several months later. No risk indicators had been identified by immigration authorities at the time. As a result, as reported in the media, his file was not sent to CSIS or the Canada Border Services Agency for additional screening.
CBC News reported that Khan’s social media activity – under an alias – caught the attention of an FBI informant only four months after Khan’s arrival in Toronto. An immigration consultant claimed that Khan was in the process of claiming refugee status in Canada, based on his claimed sexual orientation.
He was apprehended last year by the RCMP in Ormstown, Quebec, about 20 minutes north of New York State, while attempting to cross the U.S. border with the assistance of a paid human trafficker. The allegations publicly surfaced during an extradition hearing in the Quebec Superior Court.
Thunder Bay Murder Plot
A 13-year-old Thunder Bay youth was charged this week with conspiracy to commit murder and counselling the commission of an offence, not committed. The latter charge is laid in circumstances where it is alleged that the accused counselled another person to commit a crime that never took place – for example, because police thwarted the plot in time.
Police allege that the young person conspired online with an individual in another country to carry out a potential violent school attack, targeting the public in Thunder Bay and abroad. The Thunder Bay Police Service Hate Crimes Unit acted on information about a potential online threat, leading to an investigation involving the RCMP, FBI, and Interpol.
Mississauga Thwarted Kidnapping
Waleed Khan, 26, Osman Azizov, 18 and Fahad Sadaat, 19, all of Toronto, were arrested in relation to events on June 24, 2025. Peel Regional Police reported that two young women were walking near Britannia Rd. W and Queen St. S. in Streetsville, Mississauga when three masked suspects approached them and tried to lure them to a light-coloured Audi SUV. The young women ran but the suspects chased them and attempted to grab them. It was reported that one may have had a gun and another a knife. A passerby intervened, and the suspects fled the scene. Khan was arrested on August 18, 2025 and Azizov and Sadaat were arrested on August 26-28, 2025.
Subsequent to Khan’s arrest, a search of his residence led to the seizure of two loaded prohibited firearms: an AR-style rifle capable of automatic fire and a pistol, both equipped with prohibited high-capacity magazines, along with over 110 rounds of ammunition. At the time of his arrest, Khan was on probation for prior violent offences and prohibited from possessing firearms. Peel Police charged him with 33 charges including firearms offences, kidnapping, failing to comply with a probation order and failing to comply with a firearms prohibition order. Notwithstanding these very serious charges, Khan was released, following a contested bail hearing on Aug. 21, 2025, with an ankle monitor.
Further investigation by INSET (the Integrated National Security Enforcement Team) has now led to new charges against the three accused including conspiracy to commit the indictable offences of sexual assault, hostage taking, kidnapping and impersonation of a peace officer. INSET’s involvement in the investigation suggests that there is likely a terrorism element to the charges, although terrorism charges must await the consent of he Attorney General. Khan was re-arrested on the new charges and brought before the court for a new bail hearing. He was ordered detained in custody on October 3, 2025. Azizov and Sadaat are still before the court awaiting their bail hearings.
In addition to these legal updates, in the last few weeks, ALCCA has reported on multiple terror plots originating in Canada that were thwarted through the efforts led by law enforcement. Just last week, we also reported that Matthew Althorpe pleaded guilty in Toronto to multiple terrorism offences associated with white supremacist/Neo-Nazi ideology. Althorpe was involved in recruiting a small group of Neo-Nazis to be trained as a militia, and in creating three influential publications or manifestos promoted through social media that incited attacks against Jews, LGBTQ+ individuals and people of colour. Those manifestos were cited by at least five people who committed acts of terrorism in locations around the world.
In a September 14 editorial entitled, “Domestic Terrorism in Canada: Who’s Listening,” ALCCA highlighted what the RCMP reported to the federal Ministry of Public Safety on how significant the problem of domestic terrorism is in Canada:
6 foiled terrorist plots in the past 12 months alone
25 suspects accused of 83 terrorism-related charges in a single year, a 488% increase
7 of those charged were young people fueled by online platforms promoting violent extremist ideologies
Overall, the RCMP has seen a 766% growth in charges relating to national security since 2018.
Make no mistake, ALCCA’s report today demonstrates that allegations of terror plots hatched in Canada and often targeting Canadians appear to be continuing unabated. These terror plots should concern all Canadians but undoubtedly are of particular concern to the Jewish community, too frequently targeted by extremists representing a wide spectrum of ideologically, political, and religious hatred. It is important that the Jewish community align with all targeted vulnerable groups in advocating for robust intervention.
The RCMP sounded the alarm in May, 2025 about the inadequacy of existing law enforcement resources to combat violent extremism, foreign interference and hate crimes.
In ALCCA’s September 14 editorial, we listed 11 calls to action to address terrorism and extremism. For convenience, they are reproduced here, with appropriate modifications to reflect recent events:
ALCCA’s Updated Calls to Action
Resources – Ensure that robust human and financial resources are provided to the RCMP, CSIS and their partner agencies that prioritize the investigation, disruption, and prosecution of domestic terrorism, as well as money laundering and financing for the benefit of terrorist groups here and abroad.
National Strategy – The federal government must develop a robust national strategy to combat the domestic terrorism, money laundering and financing described in this opinion piece.
Muslim Brotherhood – The federal government must address, unimpeded by political considerations, the evidence relating to the proliferation of Muslim Brotherhood networks in Canada and its implications for national security. It is also important to protect the mainstream Muslim community from those who seek to radicalize its community members or shun those who fail to adhere to their extremist agendas. Governments should listen to those Muslim voices (including our coalition members) who are courageously speaking out about extremism and antisemitism as antithetical to their faith or values.¹
Funding – The federal and provincial governments must more effectively identify, track and freeze governmental and non-governmental funding to entities with ties to political, ideological or religious violent extremists, including designated terrorist groups under the Criminal Code.
Follow the Money – The federal and provincial governments must review the currently inadequate financial disclosure requirements associated with sources of funding for various institutions as they relate to each government’s jurisdiction.
Parliamentary Priorities – House of Commons and Senate committees must identify as a priority the issues around terrorism, money laundering, and terror financing, highlighted above. They, together with law enforcement, must also conduct a robust investigation into the role of non-democratic foreign entities, such as Qatar, in promoting extremists and extremist organizations in Canada. They must take a holistic approach to extremism that also includes border security and immigration, terrorist and hate propaganda online, and abuse of charitable status.
Senate Committee – On December 2, 2024, the Standing Senate Committee on Human Rights commenced its study on antisemitism in Canada, including the adequacy of laws, policies, education, digital platforms, and law enforcement. This Committee has now resumed its work. It is imperative that this Committee examine the sources of antisemitic violent extremism in Canada, including Islamism and white supremacist/Neo-Nazi ideology.²
Hate Speech is a Crime – There is a direct connection between the dissemination of antisemitic hate propaganda, whether online or in person, and domestic terrorism. Hate propaganda both radicalizes others and motivates them to commit hate crimes or acts of terror. Local police must understand the profound impact that hate speech has not only on the targeted community, but as the stimulant for serious criminality. In some jurisdictions, police largely ignore the content of speech, particularly at protests, regarding their work as successful if no one is hurt or attacked on their watch. We must continue to train and educate police, prosecutors and governments across the country about the manifestations of contemporary antisemitism and the distinction between protected speech and hate speech.
Wilful Promotion of Terror – The Criminal Code contains a myriad of terrorism offences. They are complicated and difficult to read or understand. The extent to which they extend to those who express material support for or glorify designated terrorist groups is unclear.³ Parliament should create a new offence: wilful promotion of terrorism. It would criminalize the conduct of those who, by communicating statements wilfully promote terrorist activities or the activities of a terrorist group.
Such a provision would be a permissible infringement on speech, the Supreme Court having already determined that wilful promotion of hatred against an identifiable group (containing precisely much of the same core language) is a constitutionally valid offence. This offence would focus on promotion of and support for terror, rather than requiring a determination of whether that promotion or support was based upon hatred directed against an identifiable group, such as Jews.
Possession of Terrorist Symbols – Parliament should create a new offence, mirroring offences that already exist in other countries, that prohibits anyone from wearing, carrying or displaying an article, or that exhibits a name, word, symbol or other representation that identifies, or is directly associated with, a terrorist group designated as such under the Criminal Code. There should be zero tolerance for the use and display of paraphernalia associated with a designated terrorist group prohibited in Canada.
Deradicalization of Young People – In the RCMP’s briefing to the Minister of Public Safety, it reported that online platforms were contributing to substantial youth engagement with violent extremist ideologies. Indeed, last year, the RCMP and CSIS, in collaboration with other Five-Eyes law enforcement and security agencies, took the extraordinary measure of issuing a call for collective action to address the radicalization of young people and their involvement in violent extremism. Government must heed law enforcement's call for action and devote human and financial resources to deradicalization strategies.
The call for collective action emphasizes that young people are particularly vulnerable to, and conversant with, online violent extremism.
Not only are more young people being radicalized than ever before, but they are being radicalized more rapidly than ever before. This is explained by the pervasiveness of violent extremism online, which is “more accessible, more digestible and more impactful” than it ever has been in the past.
This week, the Prime Minister announced that the federal government will invest $1.8 billion over four years to increase federal policing capacity across Canada to combat crime – including money laundering and organized criminal networks that threaten Canada’s economic and national security. He indicated that 1,000 new RCMP personnel would be hired, and 150 new RCMP personnel will be designated to address financial crimes.
This is a welcome development especially if priority is given to addressing the existing threats to the community and national security represented by extremism, terror activities and financing that law enforcement has been inadequately resourced to deal with. CSIS also appears to be under resourced despite the formidable challenges it faces.
As well, Bill C-9 provides an opportunity for the government to address several of the items identified above.
The federal government, law enforcement and where applicable, provincial governments must be pressed to address the items identified in the 11 calls to action. It is imperative that all Canadians let their MPs know that they regard this as a priority. It is time for Canadians – Jews and non-Jews – to be heard on what the federal government must do to address domestic terrorism, and extremism in our midst.
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Endnotes
Recommendations 3,4 and 5 are similar to, or drawn from recommendations ISGAP has made in its recent report on Canada.
Islamism is distinguished from the Islam faith. Islamism refers to a political ideology that derives its claims from a radical interpretation of Islam, characterized as “often illiberal and extremist.”
In some circumstances, expression of such support may constitute counselling another person to commit a terrorism offence under s. 83.221(1) although the scope of this provision, in practice, is unclear.
About the Authors
Rochelle Direnfeld is ALCCA's Senior Criminal Counsel. She was called to the Ontario bar in 1990 and has served in the Ontario Public Service for over 32 years as an assistant crown attorney, deputy crown attorney, crown counsel, and finally as a deputy director for Toronto Crown Attorneys in the Criminal Law Division of the Ministry of the Attorney General. Rochelle retired from public service at the end of 2023. During her career, Rochelle prosecuted a wide variety of Criminal Code cases in the Ontario Court of Justice, Superior Court of Justice, and the Ontario Court of Appeal.
Rochelle focused a large part of her career on youth criminal justice, developing policy as well as training and lecturing crowns, the defence bar, the judiciary, and the police. Since 2018, Rochelle has been committed to battling hate-motivated offences and has sat on the Attorney General’s Hate Crime Working Group, providing legal advice to crown counsel and police on hate crimes. In the aftermath of October 7, Rochelle returned to work with the Hate Crime Working Group at Crown Law Office - Criminal until November 2024. Rochelle also serves as vice-chair of the Board of Directors of BOOST Child and Youth Advocacy Centre, a wrap-around agency serving children and youth who have been victims of abuse, as well as their families.
Mark Sandler, LL.B., LL.D. (honoris causa), ALCCA’s Chair, is widely recognized as one of Canada’s leading criminal lawyers and pro bono advocates. He has been involved in combatting antisemitism for over 40 years. He has lectured extensively on legal remedies to combat hate and has promoted respectful Muslim-Jewish, Sikh-Jewish and Black-Jewish dialogues. He has appeared before Parliamentary committees and in the Supreme Court of Canada on multiple occasions on issues relating to antisemitism and hate activities. He is a former member of the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal, a three-time elected Bencher of the Law Society of Ontario, and recipient of the criminal profession’s highest honour, the G. Arthur Martin Medal, for his contributions to the administration of criminal justice.