Al Qaeda Terror Plot' To Attack Train Foiled

Canadian police say they have foiled an al Qaeda-backed "major terrorist plot" to attack a passenger train on a railway line between New York and Toronto.

Two people have been arrested and charged with conspiring to carry out the attack and murder people in association with a terrorist group, police revealed at a news conference in Toronto.

The suspects - Chiheb Esseghaier, 30, and Raed Jaser, 35 - had been under surveillance since August 2012 after authorities were tipped off about one of the men.

They will attend a bail hearing in Toronto today.

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Muslim leaders say advance briefings on terror arrests important for community

OTTAWA - The first e-mail went out around 11:30 a.m. on Monday, catching some 22 leaders in Canada's Muslim community by surprise.

The RCMP, they were informed, would like them to clear their schedules for an afternoon meeting.
It wasn't a cold call; many of the groups had long-standing ties with Canadian security agencies as part of ongoing outreach on the part of police with Muslim organizations.

Still, those who received the e-mail said it was a bit unnerving, more so when a second message came in an hour later giving the time and location of the sit-down meeting: 2:30 p.m. at RCMP offices in Toronto.
A public press conference had been scheduled for an hour later.

"I was pretty certain it was something big," said Muhammad Robert Heft, who runs an organization that provides outreach to Islamic converts.

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