'I am disgusted as any Canadian': Immigration minister looking into revoking terror suspect's citizenship
Immigration Minister Marc Miller says he plans to look into whether the man accused of plotting a terror attack in Toronto should have his Canadian citizenship revoked.
Ahmed Fouad Mostafa Eldidi, 62, and his son Mostafa Eldidi, 26, were arrested in Richmond Hill, Ont., and face nine terrorism charges including conspiracy to commit murder on behalf of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
When the RCMP announced the charges on July 31 they said the two men were "in the advanced stages of planning a serious, violent attack in Toronto."
The elder Eldidi, who is a Canadian citizen, is also charged with one count of aggravated assault outside the country.
"I think Canadians deserve answers. I'm going to get to the bottom of it. I'm also going to take the next step, which is to start the preliminary work with the evidence at hand to look at whether the individual in question's citizenship should be revoked," Miller said during a news conference in Church Point, N.S., on Wednesday.
According to federal legislation, Canada has the ability to revoke a person's citizenship if they obtained it by providing false information or hiding relevant facts.
Many questions regarding the two men remain unanswered. The government is not commenting on either of their status in the country, citing privacy law concerns.
However, Miller said he's tasked his deputy minister with establishing a timeline of events explaining how the elder Eldidi became a citizen.
Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc said last week that his department and the immigration department have launched an internal review regarding the case.
How much information will be shared by the government following the review is unclear.
"I'm as disgusted as any Canadian, but I have a responsibility to get to the bottom of it, and I will," Miller said.
"The information that I can share in the context of criminal proceedings may be limited, but I want to make sure, first and foremost, that Canadians are safe and that we do not compromise an ongoing court case."
Members of Parliament on the public safety and national security committee voted unanimously on Tuesday to launch a study on the terror suspects arrested in the Toronto area last month.
The committee will also aim to figure out how the father obtained citizenship and will invite the immigration and public safety ministers to testify.
Committee hearings are slated to begin on the week of Aug. 26.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 14, 2024.
IN DEPTH
Jagmeet Singh pulls NDP out of deal with Trudeau Liberals, takes aim at Poilievre Conservatives
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has pulled his party out of the supply-and-confidence agreement that had been helping keep Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's minority Liberals in power.
'Not the result we wanted': Trudeau responds after surprise Conservative byelection win in Liberal stronghold
Conservative candidate Don Stewart winning the closely-watched Toronto-St. Paul's federal byelection, and delivering a stunning upset to Justin Trudeau's candidate Leslie Church in the long-time Liberal riding, has sent political shockwaves through both parties.
'We will go with the majority': Liberals slammed by opposition over proposal to delay next election
The federal Liberal government learned Friday it might have to retreat on a proposal within its electoral reform legislation to delay the next vote by one week, after all opposition parties came out to say they can't support it.
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Affordability crisis could be reaching its peak in Canada, economist says
With Canada's annual inflation rate reaching the central bank's two per cent target, the country's affordability crisis could be peaking, according to an economist.
Record-breaking Lotto Max jackpot tickets sold in Ontario, Quebec
Two lucky people in Ontario and Quebec will split Tuesday’s record-breaking $80-million Lotto Max jackpot.
Catherine, Princess of Wales, goes back to work days after cancer treatment update
Catherine, Princess of Wales has held her first engagement since revealing that she has completed her chemotherapy treatment.
Ukrainian drones strike a large military depot in a Russian town northwest of Moscow
Ukrainian drones struck a large military depot in a town deep inside Russia overnight, causing a huge blaze and prompting the evacuation of some local residents, a Ukrainian official and Russian news reports said Wednesday.
How to prevent lung cancer, regardless of whether you smoke, according to a doctor
More people who have never touched a cigarette are getting lung cancer, but there are ways to prevent it, according to a doctor.
Bride's family speaks as West Vancouver woman sentenced for driving SUV into wedding party
Sixty-five-year-old Hong Xu, who drove her SUV into a crowd of people celebrating a wedding at her next-door neighbour's house in West Vancouver on Aug. 20, 2022, has been sentenced under the Motor Vehicle Act for driving without due care and attention.
This airport landing is so challenging only 50 pilots are qualified to do it
Bhutan's Paro International Airport (PBH) is widely considered one of the most technically difficult plane landings in the world. Maneuvering onto a short runway between two 18,000-foot peaks requires both technical knowledge and nerves of steel.
Exploding Hezbollah pagers in apparent Israeli attack made by Hungarian company, Taiwanese firm says
A company based in Hungary was responsible for manufacturing the pagers that exploded in Lebanon and Syria in an apparent Israeli operation targeting Hezbollah’s communications network, another firm whose brand was used on the devices said Wednesday.
'It's ridiculous': Ontario man told to pay $1,000 to end water heater contract
An Ontario man was surprised to learn he would have to pay a $1,000 penalty to cancel his water heater rental. 'I was shocked that the penalty I had to pay was almost the cost of a brand new water heater,' James Alves, of Etobicoke, told CTV News Toronto.
Local Spotlight
'The gift they gave us was their service': 50 years since first female troop joined the RCMP
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.
Young family from northern Ontario wins $70 million Lotto Max jackpot
It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.
'The right thing to do': Good Samaritan builds new bottle cart for Moncton man who had his stolen
A Good Samaritan in New Brunswick has replaced a man's stolen bottle cart so he can continue to collect cans and bottles in his Moncton neighbourhood.
Oppenheimer star David Krumholtz dishes on his time filming in Winnipeg
David Krumholtz, known for roles like Bernard the Elf in The Santa Clause and physicist Isidor Rabi in Oppenheimer, has spent the latter part of his summer filming horror flick Altar in Winnipeg. He says Winnipeg is the most movie-savvy town he's ever been in.
'Craziest thing I've ever seen': Elusive salamanders make surprising mass appearance in Edmonton area
Edmontonians can count themselves lucky to ever see one tiger salamander, let alone the thousands one local woman says recently descended on her childhood home.
'A nightmare': Nature-goers stranded in B.C. backcountry after bridge washes out
A daytrip to the backcountry turned into a frightening experience for a Vancouver couple this weekend.
B.C. woman reveals greatest life lesson after celebrating 100th birthday
If you take a look to the right of Hilda Duddridge’s 100th birthday cake, you’ll see a sculpture of a smiling girl extending her arms forward.
Sisters finally see the Canadian 'aviation artifact' built by their father nearly 90 years ago
Two sisters have finally been reunited with a plane their father built 90 years ago, that is also considered an important part of Canadian aviation history.
The debate over taking horns off Viking statue in Gimli
A Facebook post has sparked a debate in Gimli about whether to make a cosmetic change to its iconic statue.