Close X
Monday, November 11, 2024
ADVT 
National

Harper Appears Unmoved Following Omar Khadr's Release On Bail, Public Statements

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 08 May, 2015 01:15 PM
    OTTAWA — Omar Khadr's apologetic tone didn't seem to move Stephen Harper much Friday as the prime minister defended his Conservative government's efforts to keep the former Guantanamo Bay prisoner behind bars.
     
    "Mr. Khadr, as we all know, pled guilty to very grave crimes, including murder," Harper told a news conference as he offered his thoughts and prayers to the family members of U.S. Sgt. Christopher Speer.
     
    "Our government's priority in these matters is always to make sure, first and foremost, we keep in mind the protection and security of the Canadian population."
     
    Harper said little else, citing the fact the matter remains before the courts.
     
     Khadr, now 28, pleaded guilty in October 2010 before a widely discredited military commission to five war crimes — including murder in the death of Speer, a U.S. special forces soldier.
     
    On Thursday, he walked free after an Alberta judge rejected the government's last-ditch attempt to block his release, saying they had failed to prove Khadr posed a risk to the public or could do harm to Canadian interests.
     
    Some hours later, during a remarkable news conference on his lawyer's Edmonton driveway, Khadr apologized for the pain he's caused and urged Canadians to give him a chance to demonstrate his worth.
     
    "I will prove to them that I'm more than what they thought of me, I'll prove to them that I'm a good person," Khadr said.
     
    "Give me a chance — see who I am as a person, not as a name — and then they can make their own judgment after that."
     
     
    Khadr spent almost 13 years behind bars — four of them as a convicted war criminal.
     
    He was captured, badly wounded, by American forces in Afghanistan in July 2002, when he was 15 years old. At one time, he was the youngest prisoner at the American prison compound in Guantanamo Bay.
     
    After his release on bail, he offered a comment on Harper's hard-line stance: "I'm going to have to disappoint him, I'm better than the person he thinks I am."
     
    Justice Minister Peter MacKay sounded a slightly more conciliatory note than his boss Friday, saying Khadr's public declaration that he had renounced violence was a good first step after his release from prison.
     
    MacKay, speaking at an event in Halifax, said people shouldn't lose sight of the fact that Khadr was involved in terrorism.
     
    "What I hope will happen is that Mr. Khadr will abide by Canadian laws, respect people's safety, and he is now is a position where he is going to be given that opportunity to prove that," he said.
     
    "Let's look ahead with optimism, but with caution, when it comes to individuals who have past proven tendencies that have resulted in the loss of human life."
     
    After Khadr's release, a spokesperson for Public Safety Minister Steven Blaney said the minister regretted that a convicted terrorist had been released without having served his full sentence.
     
    Khadr's release came with a list of restrictions, including wearing a tracking bracelet and a curfew.

    MORE National ARTICLES

    B.C. Parents Win Fight For Better French-language School In Vancouver

    B.C. Parents Win Fight For Better French-language School In Vancouver
    In October 2012, the judge declared that parents living west of Vancouver's Main Street who had the right to have their children taught in French were not provided the facilities guaranteed to them under the charter of rights.

    B.C. Parents Win Fight For Better French-language School In Vancouver

    B.C. Man Suspected Of Starting 7 Fires And A Knife Threat To Appear In Court

    B.C. Man Suspected Of Starting 7 Fires And A Knife Threat To Appear In Court
    NANAIMO, B.C. — Mounties on Vancouver Island say they've arrested a 54-year-old man for allegedly starting seven random fires over three hours and threatening store employees with a knife.

    B.C. Man Suspected Of Starting 7 Fires And A Knife Threat To Appear In Court

    Finance Minister Says Asset Sales Good Value Despite Coquitlam, B.C., Land Deal

    The sale of 14 properties in the Burke Mountain area of Coquitlam at $43 million below appraised value to a Liberal party donor sparked an uproar in the legislature for days.

    Finance Minister Says Asset Sales Good Value Despite Coquitlam, B.C., Land Deal

    Federal Government Imposes Urban Speed Limit On Freight Trains

    Federal Government Imposes Urban Speed Limit On Freight Trains
    A government news release says both Canadian National and Canadian Pacific have already imposed a 56 km/h speed limit on their trains.

    Federal Government Imposes Urban Speed Limit On Freight Trains

    Italian Police Foil Attack On Vatican, Arrest 18 Pakistanis And Afghans Terror Suspects

    Italian Police Foil Attack On Vatican, Arrest 18 Pakistanis And Afghans Terror Suspects
    Italian police on Friday arrested 18 people in what they called a "vast" operation against a group allegedly inspired by the Al Qaeda and foiled an attack on the Vatican.

    Italian Police Foil Attack On Vatican, Arrest 18 Pakistanis And Afghans Terror Suspects

    Holt Renfrew Makes Plans To Expand Its Downtown Vancouver Location

    Holt Renfrew Makes Plans To Expand Its Downtown Vancouver Location
    VANCOUVER — Holt Renfrew is stepping up its presence in Vancouver with plans to grow the size of its existing downtown store by 30 per cent.

    Holt Renfrew Makes Plans To Expand Its Downtown Vancouver Location