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A local Muslim spokesman says new WikiLeaks documents that describe a Montreal mosque as a terror hub are defamatory.

They claim a Mauritanian terror suspect being held at Guantanamo Bay was the leader of aMontreal-based al-Qaida cell that planned attacks in the States. They also say that members of al-Qaida were recruited and trained at Montreal’s Al Sunnah Al Nabawiah Mosque, where the suspect served briefly.

The chairman of the Muslim Council of Montreal says the documents serve as an example of how the community’s institutions are unfairly targeted by authorities.

The suspect’s name is Mohamedou Ould Salahi. According to documents, Salahi was linked to the “Millenium Bomber” who planned attacks on the Los Angeles Airport eleven years ago. He has also been accused of facilitating the training of hijackers involved in the terrorist attacks of September eleventh.

Several Montreal mosques have been brought to the attention of authorities since the late nineties. Al-Qods is another one mentioned in the WikiLeaks documents. It made headlines in two thousand and seven when Canadian immigration officials deported its imam, Said Jaziri, for falsifying his refugee application.

Read by Gareth Sloan

Produced by Jacqueline Di Bartolomeo

Stories by Chris Hanna, Sofia Gay and A.J. Cordeiro

With just one week left before the May 2 election, Easter weekend did not slow down Canada’s party leaders on their campaign trails. 

Conservative leader Stephen Harper was in Victoria, B.C., where he participated in an Easter egg hunt with local children. Harper also took questions from the media at the event. He said he would implement a children’s arts tax credit. He also told people that he could be trusted with a majority government. 

In Quebec, Bloc leader Gilles Duceppe is in St. Lambert on Monday. He will be joined by former Parti Quebecois leader Jacques Parizeau. The two will encourage voters to support the Bloc and quash the NDP’s recent surge in support in the province.

NDP leader Jack Layton and Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff crossed paths in Toronto on Sunday. The two spoke at a parade for Khalsa Day, a Sikh tradition. Ignatieff was also on Radio Canada’s program Tout le monde en parle. He defended his decision to bring former prime ministers Jean Chretien and Paul Martin on campaign stops. Ignatieff said people would not associate them with financial scandals. He believes Liberals have paid for all the consequences of past behavior. 

This coming Wednesday is going to be epic on BVST, as Angelica (with special guests) get deep into Norse mythology and other Scandinavian delights (viking metal, anyone?) in anticipation of the feature film Thor. There will be giveaways, there will be fun, and as usual, there will be intentional & unintentional hilarity. Prepare your best story about a) Thor the Norse god, b) Thor, the comic book hero, or c) Thor, the Canadian heavy metal personality, and call in! Remember, the hammer (of the gods) comes down hard this coming Wednesday, April 27th, from 7 to 9 pm, right here on CJLO!