CANADIAN PRESS REPORTS OF TERROR PROBE HIGHLY

S E C R E T OTTAWA 002468

SIPDIS

STATE ALSO FOR DS/IP/WHA, DS/PII, AND DS/ITA

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/29/2013
TAGS: PTER ASEC CA
SUBJECT: CANADIAN PRESS REPORTS OF TERROR PROBE HIGHLY
SPECULATIVE


Classified By: BRIAN FLORA, MINISTER-COUNSELOR FOR POLITICAL AFFAIRS FO
R REASONS 1.5(B) AND (D).


1. (S) Persistent Canadian press reports which surfaced over
the weekend and have since been picked up in the U.S. allege
that at least some of the 19 foreign "students" arrested
recently in Canada (18 Pakistanis and one Indian) have links
to al Qaeda and may have been plotting terrorist operations
in Canada and the U.S. Contacts of Embassy law enforcement
offices have been told that the reports are sensationalist
and appear to have little basis in fact. The nineteen
detainees, one of whom has since been released, are being
held on suspicion of immigration violations. No evidence of
terrorist intentions or threats to national security have yet
surfaced, though the investigation into their activities is
ongoing. Our contacts have assured us that they will share
any significant findings with us.


2. (S) Last February, several in the group came to the
attention of Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) fraud
investigators, who then initiated an investigation. Most had
bogus documents and many claimed to be attending a defunct
business school in Toronto. The press alleged that they
engaged in a pattern of suspicious behavior (some were seen
at a lake near an Ontario nuclear power plant at 4:00 am,
another took an extended flying course, few had a visible
means of support, several had apparently traveled to the
U.S., etc.),but Embassy sources in both the Royal Canadian
Mounted Police (RCMP) and the Canadian Security and
Intelligence Service (CSIS) have questioned the accuracy and
significance of the press reports, describing them as highly
speculative and thus far unproven. Something more serious
could turn up for one or more of the detainees as CSIS and
the RCMP sift through the evidence, but the most likely
explanation for the roundup is immigration fraud.


3. (S) Our CSIS and RCMP contacts claim that they were not
informed regarding the specifics of the CIC immigration fraud
investigation. Once the story broke, they were belatedly
given the names and personal data of the nineteen detainees,
which they have since shared with us. Until proven
otherwise, they see the nineteen as economic migrants who,
typically, used fraudulent methods to gain access to Canada.
Both organizations have promised to keep us informed as the
investigation continues. The RCMP also claims to have
drafted a press report to downplay the terrorism angle and
reassure the public, but the papers have declined to use the
release, preferring instead to continue to speculate on the
group's possible terrorist link.


4. (S) Comment: It's a slow news period and the Canadian
press has decided to take a sexy story and run with it. We
assume the press blowup came as the result of a leak from one
or more of the CIC investigators, who may have been trying to
promote their own reputations. Responsible journalism it is
not, but it attracts attention and seems to sell newspapers.

Visit Canada's Classified Web Site at
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/wha/ottawa

KELLY