A Canadian citizen who helped plan an attack in 2009 has been sentenced to 26 years in an American prison.
A Brooklyn federal court sentenced Faruq Khalil Muhammad ‘Isa, an Iraqi-Canadian dual-citizen, for his role aiding the attackers in a suicide bombing that killed five American soldiers in Iraq.
“These five families will never be whole again,” said Becky Johnson, whose son was killed in the attack.
The judge had no sympathy for ‘Isa, hoping that the sentence will act as a deterrent to those looking to take part in planning attacks.
“There’s no excuse for even trying to kill American soldiers,” she said.
The judge noted that while she believes ‘Isa deserves a life sentence, she was forced to give only 26 years under federal guidelines.
The judge spoke at length about the difficulty of successfully building cases against those who commit terrorism abroad. Locating witnesses and procuring evidence can be nearly impossible and stopped ‘Isa from facing more serious terrorism charges.
Their concerns echo concerns made by members of Canada’s law-enforcement community as the Trudeau government appears to be looking for ways to repatriate ISIS fighters who are imprisoned in Iraq and Syria.
After ‘Isa’s sentence is completed in the United States, he will be deported to Canada.
Under the Harper government, dual-citizens sentenced for terrorist acts have had their Canadian citizenship revoked, thus protecting Canada from extremists after their release.
In 2016, however, the Trudeau government enacted Bill C-6, which protects terrorists from losing their Canadian citizenship.
Another man with a similar situation, Tahawwur Hussain Rana, worked with the terrorist group that committed the 2009 Mumbai attacks, killing 166.
Rana could be back on Canadian soil as early as 2021.
