Syrian Christian Activist Hadeel Kouki's Speaks on the Assad Regime

Harkat: I'm no terrorist

Harkat : I'm no terrorist, just a victim of chaos Terror suspect takes stand to deny connection to al- Qaeda Andrew Duffy The Ottawa Citizen online October 28, 2004
To hear him tell it, Mohamed Harkat has been the innocent victim of turbulent forces the world over: a student whose university ambitions were dashed by a political crackdown in Algeria ; an aid worker who lost his job in Pakistan as Afghan refugees returned home; an asylum seeker in Canada falsely accused of being a terrorist.
Mr. Harkat took to the witness stand yesterday to defend himself for the first time against government allegations that he's an al- Qaeda terrorist. He flatly denied any connection to the terrorist network. Asked by his lawyer, Matt Webber, whether he'd ever been to Afghanistan , the one-time base for al- Qaeda and the home of its training camps, Mr. Harkat said: "Never, ever." Asked if he had ever associated with senior al- Qaeda lieutenant Abu Zubaydah , as alleged by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, Mr. Harkat told his lawyer: "I never did, sir." Mr. Harkat repeatedly insisted there's no truth to any of the terrorist-related allegations that underpin the security certificate issued against him. That certificate, signed by two federal ministers in December 2002, has kept him locked in the Ottawa Detention Centre for almost two years. He will be deported to his native Algeria if Federal Court Justice Eleanor Dawson finds the certificate reasonable. Testifying in English in a calm, soft voice – a microphone had to be set up so that Judge Dawson could hear him -- Mr. Harkat told the court the story of a man wronged. Mr. Harkat testified he grew up in a small Algerian town where he studied hard to succeed in school. He did so well on his high school final exams, he said, that he was admitted into the university of his choice : Wahran University , a school about 400 kilometres from his home town. He began classes there in September, 1989 in pursuit of an electrical engineering degree. But by March, political events in Algeria put an end to his studies. Mr. Harkat said he left university and went into hiding after a military crackdown on a political party to which he belonged, the Front Islamique du Salut (FIS). The FIS promoted free markets, lower taxes, cuts to military spending and an end to government corruption. "I was so happy to change the situation in Algeria ," Mr. Harkat said of his political involvement, "so happy something new is coming to Algeria ." Mr. Harkat said he was introduced to the party by his high school math tutor who convinced him to allow the FIS to use a family-owned property as an office. That office was raided by the police who arrested local FIS leaders, he said. His uncle later warned him by telephone not to come home, that the police were looking for him. "I was scared and I went to hide out," said Mr. Harkat . "In Algeria if the army caught you, they can do anything. Or the police." He obtained a visitor's visa to Saudi Arabia and flew to that country with the names and phone numbers of contacts gleaned from his fellow students. He said he was hoping to resume his university studies. But he quickly realized it was impossible to enter a Saudi university since applications had to be made from outside the country. What's more, he found the $250 he came with -- it was enough money for a year in Algeria -- was fast disappearing. Harkat : I'm no terrorist, just a victim of chaos He slept in a mosque and ate only two meals a day while trying desperately to find a job. One of his contacts arranged a position for him with the Muslim World League, an Islamic charity, in Pakistan . (The Muslim World League is a Saudi-based charity suspected by some western security agencies of financing terrorists.) "I was so happy," he testified. "It like opened the door for me. There was nothing left for me except begging people on the street." It turned out the job in Pakistan involved managing a warehouse in what's known as the migrant's district, between Karachi and Peshawar , said Mr. Harkat . The warehouse was part of a makeshift city established for about 100,000 Afghan refugees who had fled the fighting in their homeland. Mr. Harkat said he worked for the league for four years in the early 1990s, sleeping in the warehouse, and supervising the delivery of supplies for the refugees. The time is crucial in the case against Mr. Harkat . CSIS claims that Mr. Harkat , during his years in Pakistan, travelled to Afghanistan and formed an association with Mr. Zubayda , who is now in U.S. custody. According to CSIS, Mr. Zubayda has identified Mr. Harkat by "description and activity" as operating a guest house in Peshawar , Pakistan for mujahedeen travelling to Chechnya . Mr. Harkat , however, flatly denied those charges, saying he never set foot in Afghanistan, has never met Mr. Zubayda and has never knowingly assisted any Islamic extremists. Rather, Mr. Harkat told court, he lost his job in 1994 as Afghan refugees began to return to their shattered country. Unable to renew his work papers and visa in Pakistan , he began to explore options for leaving. He considered claiming refugee status in England or Canada , and decided on the latter because he was convinced he would receive justice. He bought a false Saudi passport since he would be unable to get to Canada on his own passport – Canada required Algerians to obtain visas -- and made his way to Toronto in September 1995, claiming refugee status and turning over his phoney documents. He was allowed to leave the airport on the understanding that he return within three weeks with a translator. Mr. Harkat immediately took a bus to Ottawa , convinced the capital was the best place from which to make a refugee claim. He went to the Ottawa Mosque on Northwestern Avenue where he met an Egyptian-Canadian, Mohamed El Barseigy , who was looking to share an apartment. Mr. El Barseigy agreed to drive Mr. Harkat to Toronto for his appointment with immigration officials. Also in the van was Ahmed Said Khadr , the man believed to be the highest-ranking Canadian in al- Qaeda . Mr. Harkat testified yesterday he had never met Mr. Khadr before and did not speak to him anytime after their shared ride. (Mr. Khadr was killed in an October 2003 shootout with Pakistani security forces.) In Ottawa , Mr. Harkat worked up to 90 hours a week while holding down three jobs: two at local gas stations and one at Pizza Pizza . He was married on Jan. 2, 2001 , to a woman from Northern Ontario , Sophie, and continued to try to secure a better job. He trained to drive trucks, but couldn't find work. CSIS was a fixture in his life. He was interviewed by the security agency at least five times between 1997 and 2001. He was arrested in the lobby of his Ottawa apartment building on Dec. 10, 2002 on the strength of the security certificate that alleges he is a member of an al- Qaeda sleeper cell. "Do you have any idea why CSIS thinks you are an Islamic extremist?" Mr. Webber asked at the end of Mr. Harkat's day on the witness stand. "No," said Mr. Harkat , fighting tears. He will be cross-examined today by government lawyer James Mathieson .

Refugee's in Lebanon

Refugee's in Lebanon
Living conditions for Palestinian refugees in Lebanon 'worse than Occupied Territories' By Nayla Assaf Daily Star staff October 14,2004
Intervtew BEIRUT: Living conditions in Palestinian refugee camps here are even worse than that of camps inside the Occupied Territories, said Palestinian Authority Labor Minister Ghassan Khatib, upon a visit to Beirut on Wednesday.
In an interview with The Daily Star on the sidelines of the three-day Arab International Forum on Rehabilitation and Development in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, Khatib said that the situation for Palestinians in Lebanon is, in many ways, the worst he's ever seen. "I was stunned by the refugee camps in Lebanon," he said. "Even in camps in Gaza and Nablus in the Occupied Territories, the situation is better than that of the camps in Lebanon." During his visit to Beirut this week, Khatib, with a delegation of Palestinian officials, visited President Emile Lahoud to plead for "easing the living and working conditions for Palestinians here." Most of the estimated 400,000 Palestinian refugees living in Lebanon are scattered in refugee camps throughout the country. In order to preserve the delicate religious balance of Lebanese society and to assert the right of return, Palestinians are not allowed basic civic rights; they are barred from erecting permanent constructions and from performing several professions. Khatib, a journalist, university lecturer and long-time advocate of Israeli-Palestinian dialogue, was among the fresh faces to be introduced to the current reformative Palestinian Cabinet formed in June 2002. He spoke of the Palestinian refugees here, of his distrust of the Israeli government led by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's Likud party and allegations of corruption within the Palestinian Authority (PA). "Upon visiting the camps, I was also struck by the high morale of the Palestinians here. Despite their irregular and harsh situation, they still identify to the same goals and same political agenda as we do," he said. "The PA did not give up on the Palestinian refugees" in Lebanon as some imply. "It is an issue of utmost importance to us, and the PA's insistence on finding a solution to the refugee problem was the main reason behind the failure of the Camp David peace talks," he said. "We are 100 percent sure that their right to return will be met. There is no doubt about that, regardless of how much time it might take," he said. Khatib described Tuesday's symbolic vote in the Knesset against Sharon's disengagement plan, as an indication that "the government, in its current makeup, does not intend to perform any withdrawals or provide any concessions." A further indication of that, according to the labor minister, are recent comments by Sharon's aid, Dov Weisglass "that the real purpose of the disengagement plan is to divert the attention of the international community while they are burying the 'road map.'" "The Israeli government should be judged upon its actions and not upon its pledges," Khatib added. As long as the current government is in place, he said, there is no room for dialogue or for reaching an understanding. "But I believe that the Israeli society is bound to realize that this government will not bring about a solution; that violence is not the answer and that dialogue is needed." In matters of reform - another issue often criticized by the media - Khatib said the reform program which started two years ago is alive and doing well. "I entered this government in June 2002 on the basis that it would hold a reformative program, and a huge amount of reforms have been completed since then, especially in the financial sector," which saw the centralization of all public funds under the wing of the Finance Ministry, he said. According to Khatib, the World Bank, in its most recent report, has announced that the level of transparency in the PA's administration of public funds is among the best in the region. "We have achieved a great, great deal in financial reforms and in other areas as well," he said, acknowledging, however, that "manyh more reforms remain to be made," especially regarding the judiciary and security services. However, he added that the PA's reformative measures, and measures to combat corruption, are not being judged fairly in Arab media. "I have never seen any Arab journalist criticize corruption and the lack of reform in any other Arab country - with the exception of Lebanon. This gives the impression that the PA is the worst in matters of corruption - which is absolutely wrong," he said. "I would frankly like to see journalists become more objective in the matter." Khatib believes that Arab states can do more to further the Palestinian cause. "On the political level, we hope to see more support. Following the last Israeli onslaught, we did not see any official Arab mobilization," he said. "We call on Arab states to do more; to take advantage of their strategic weight, in order to give Israel the impression that it cannot continue taking advantage of the Palestinian people's isolation," he said. Khatib, who is also the acting planning minister, says that in many cases, planning in the Palestinian territories consists of taking emergency measures because of the incessant Israeli assaults on the Occupied Territories. "We have acquired experience in dealing with emergencies," he said. He explained that in the face of Israel's recent onslaught of Gaza - now in its 14th day - the PA, for example, was able to take matters in hand by forming an emergency committee and giving it full support. "But for any long-term or large-scale projects, we rely very heavily on outside aid," he added.