How does he know that? What kind of actions will he be led to take by that assumption? “Police chief pleads for calm,” from the Canadian Press, with thanks to Ray:
Toronto police Chief Bill Blair called on Muslims and non-Muslims alike to let cooler heads prevail Sunday after 17 people were arrested in connection with what authorities say was a plan to stage a massive terrorist attack.
The 17 suspects who were arrested Friday, men and youths alike, were allegedly “motivated by an ideology based on politics, hatred and terrorism, and not on faith,” Blair told a gathering of Muslim leaders and concerned community members.
The suspects will be considered innocent until proven guilty, Blair said, who noted that any anger or fear spawned by allegations of a home-grown terrorist ring should not be directed at the Muslim community.
“In the interim, I hope that we can all work together to maintain the respect and trust and peace of our communities together.”…
The charges allege that the men knowingly participated in a terrorist group and either received or provided terrorist training in Toronto, nearby Mississauga, Fort Erie “” a border town across from Buffalo, N.Y. “” and Ramara Township, located on the shores of Lake Simcoe in central Ontario’s cottage country.
A federal official said he expects some serious reflection in government and security circles about how young people raised in Canada could allegedly conspire to commit such crimes.
“Most of them went through the school system here. They”re not just off the plane. So there will be some questioning going on,” the official said.
“The big issue is going to be societal, that’s clear.”…
Farhad Oryakhim, 17, an employee at an east-end shop, said he’s concerned about how Muslims in Canada are going to be treated in the wake of the arrests.
“It’s going to be a pretty hard time now,” Oryakhim said. “After this incident, people are going to look at the Muslims from a dangerous view.”
Oryakhim said he fears that non-Muslim customers will stop patronizing businesses in the area that are run by Muslims.
“It’s going to hurt our businesses,” he said. “Our life.”
Oryakhim and others might have been able to head this off by moving more energetically against the jihadists in the ranks of Canadian Muslims.