Amer el-Maati

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Amer el-Maati[1]
BornMay 25, 1963 (1963-05-25)[1]
Kuwait

Amro Badr Eldin Abou el-Maati (born May 25, 1963 in Kuwait; also known as Amer el-Maati) is a

flight school and having discussed hijacking a Canadian plane to fly into American buildings.[2] He has been referred to as "Canada's most wanted terrorist".[3]

El-Maati's brother was one of a number of Canadians illegally renditioned to

better source needed
]

The case against el-Maati appears to consist of documents addressed to him being found in an office used by al-Qaeda, although the reporter who found them insisted it was possible they had been stolen by the militant group to commit identity theft.[citation needed] Since then, his brother has questioned whether the false confessions he gave under torture played any role in Amer's continued branding as a "terrorist", despite the fact neither Canada nor the United States seem to have even issued an arrest warrant for him.[5]

El-Maati's father has protested the vilification of both his sons, claiming they were being used by the

Department of Homeland Security to keep fear and suspicion high in the United States, particularly against Canadian-Arabs.[6] His opinions were echoed by Toronto cleric, Aly Hindy, who has known the family for years and claimed that the FBI's announcement was "laughable".[7]

Early life

The el-Maati family moved to

high school, before returning to Montreal for university.[5][8]

According to the interrogation of Abdullah Khadr in Pakistan, el-Maati had worked as a carpet salesman[when?] after the Mujahideen had denied him a pension due to his 1992 brain injury following a car accident which prevented him from participating in long treks.[9]

In 1996, el-Maati travelled to

NGO Health and Education Projects International, created by Ahmed Khadr.[5]

In 1998, he obtained a Canadian passport while living in Pakistan.

Idriss.[10]

His family claims to have last seen him in 1999, and to have received only a single email from him the following year,[7] showing photographs of the school where he was working for the Canadian Relief Foundation.[5]

After 9/11

Listed among 345 people wanted "for questioning" following 9/11,

the US-led invasion.[9]

On November 17, 2001,

FBI Seeking Information - War on Terrorism list, "being sought in connection with possible terrorist threats against the United States."[1][5]

That month, his younger brother

Embassy of the United States in Ottawa but that he personally wanted to bomb Parliament Hill. He refused to make any written statement, wishing to avoid bringing harm to his family, but was beaten and forced to put a thumbprint on a confession they drafted for him.[7] He was then asked to work for his captors, and go find Amer in Afghanistan.[7]

In December 2001, CSIS agents Adrian White and Rob Cassolato turned up at the el-Maati home in Toronto, asking the family patriarch to reveal his sons' locations.

sleeper cells.[7]

Mr. Williams' allegations about McMaster [are] on par a par with

UFO reports and JFK conspiracy theories...that notion that because there are people on faculty from Egypt that McMaster is then a haven for terrorism is not only logically offensive, it smack of racism.

— Lawyer Peter Downard[5]

In October, FBI consultant

libel, as there was no evidence to support these allegations. The publisher later apologized for allowing Williams to print statements which "were without basis in fact".[5][7]

Around this time,[when?] the FBI had received a tip that a couple resembling el-Maati and Aafia Siddiqui had been seen filming tourist sites around Niagara Falls.[3]

In January 2004, State Security officials in

Giza, Egypt again interrogated his brother Ahmad, demanding to know where Amer was hiding. On January 12, 2004, State Security offered to release Ahmad to his family if they would give up the location of Amer. Their mother protested that she didn't know where Amer was, and Ahmad was released the following day.[5]

On May 26, 2004,

Department of Homeland Security that there were no current risks.[5]

On August 21, 2004, The Inquirer and Mirror newspaper reported a "possible sighting" of Amer at the Nantucket Memorial Airport, and his photo was distributed to local security and transit workers.[7][16]

That year, his family reported hearing rumors that Amer had been killed in the opening months of the Afghanistan War three years earlier.[7]

In May 2005, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service again visited the el-Maati family, demanding to know where Amer was hiding and suggesting that his family should persuade him to turn himself into Canadian authorities rather than risk worse treatment at the hands of Afghan, Pakistani or American captors, to which they protested that they had not heard from him in five years.[7]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c FBI Seeking Information Alert for Amer El-Maati Archived 2016-12-22 at the Wayback Machine, FBI, May 26, 2004
  2. ^ a b Logan, Marty. Antiwar.com, Latest US Terror Warning Raises Questions, May 28, 2004
  3. ^ a b The Most Wanted Woman in the World
  4. ^ Edmonton Journal, "FBI won't explain sudden interest in terrorism suspect", November 13, 2002
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Pither, Kerry. "Dark Days: The Story of Four Canadians Tortured in the Name of Fighting Terror", 2008.
  6. ^ CTV News, Father claims his son is innocent
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l el-Maati, Ahmed Barbara Jackman. Chronology of events,
  8. ^ a b c d e CBC, Wanted again; Canadians on an FBI terror list, May 27, 2004
  9. ^ a b Freeze, Colin. The Globe and Mail, "I only buy and sell weapons for al-Qaeda", November 3, 2006
  10. ^ Freeze, Colin, The Globe and Mail, "Canadians' ties with Chechen insurgents probed", October 16, 2004
  11. ^ National Post, "FBI seeks terror suspect with Toronto ID", November 14, 2002
  12. ^ a b Salopek, Paul. Chicago Tribune, "A chilling look into terror's lair", November 18, 2001
  13. ^ Sallot, Jeff, Freeze, Colin, The Globe and Mail, It was hyped as a TERRORIST map It was cited by Egyptian TORTURERS It is a VISITOR'S GUIDE to Ottawa, September 6, 2005
  14. ^ Trudeau: Canadians rightfully angry after Ottawa pays $31.25M to men falsely imprisoned in Syria
  15. ^ Transcript: Ashcroft, Mueller news conference, CNN.com, Wednesday, May 26, 2004, Posted: 8:19 PM EDT (0019 GMT)
  16. Boston Globe, Possible terrorist sighting roils
    , August 21, 2004
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