A convention supporting a return to “caliphate” rule within the Center East was cancelled inside hours of a scorching condemnation from federal public security ministers.
The assertion was posted Jan. 13 by Rachel Bendayan, the Montreal MP just lately named to the affiliate minister function within the public security ministry. It was attributed to her and David McGuinty, the general public security minister. The message referred to as the deliberate Jan. 18 occasion “deeply concerning.”
Assertion on behalf of the Authorities of Canada concerning the upcoming Hizb ut-Tahrir convention. pic.twitter.com/7r4v86L1Wn
— Rachel Bendayan (@RachelBendayan) January 13, 2025
Islamist group Hizb ut Tahrir has been banned within the U.Ok. and Germany, and a earlier try and host the convention within the Toronto space in January 2024 was cancelled after the U.Ok. declared the group a terrorist entity, in line with stories from the Related Press.
“Hizb ut-Tahrir has a documented history of glorifying violence and promoting antisemitism and extremist ideology,” learn the assertion from Bendayan and McGuinty, naming the group’s “celebration of attacks on innocent civilians, including Oct. 7, and its support for banned terrorist groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah” and condemning its actions and the convention happening, calling on organizers to cancel.
“We have been assured that law enforcement agencies, including the RCMP, are monitoring the event closely and that all appropriate Canadian laws, including those pertaining to hate speech, will be enforced. Further, we can confirm that our security and intelligence agencies are currently assessing Hizb ut Tahrir for listing as a terrorist entity under Canadian law,” learn the general public security ministers’ joint assertion.
“Our government is resolute in its efforts to fight antisemitism and extremism in all its forms. We will continue to work with law enforcement and community partners to ensure the safety and security of all Canadians.”
The Hizb ut Tahrir Canada group had beforehand issued a uncommon media assertion defending its reputable political objectives and insisting the occasion was peaceable. Nevertheless, the cancellation discover, posted “with regret” Jan. 14, stated the choice to cancel “was necessitated by circumstances that were beyond our reasonable control.”
Iddo Moed, the Israeli ambassador to Canada, confirmed in an interview with The CJN on Jan. 14 that his workplace raised issues in regards to the group, and warned of a have to “keep vigilant” to behave towards what he referred to as “hateful” and “dangerous” messages spreading in Canada.
“Whatever events are happening, when we think that they are dangerous, they’re inciteful, they are about to spread more hate and intimidation, of course we raise a flag, and we use our channels of communication with the highest levels in the provincial or federal level, to address and to reach out to the leaders and to draw to the attention that this is taking place. We also provide information. It’s extremely important.”
Moed confirmed to The CJN that this was the case with the Hizb ut Tahrir convention.
“We have to respect the fact that others have different opinions. So there is a very thin line that we are actually around. We are around that all the time, that is, between what is acceptable and not acceptable in society, and actually we have to be very vigilant these days, and we have to be very well aware of where we stand and what do we stand for, and what we will not tolerate.”
Moed echoed calls from teams just like the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA), whose petition to McGuinty to listing the group as a terror entity has obtained 13,000 signatures on-line.
“Yes, I think that Canada should designate this organization as a terrorist entity under the criminal law, as it has done with Samidoun and many others,” Moed instructed The CJN. “It is called for other countries. I’ve done that. So this is also a call for Canada to do [the] same, absolutely.”
Moed stated federal authorities had been “very well aware of” the group, although he says extra must be executed “to prevent such people even to come in and to spread [these kinds] of hateful messages.”
CIJA stated in an announcement from Michelle Inventory, Ontario vice-president in response to the announcement that the convention was cancelled, that “our community and allies have made our voices heard—and we’ve made an impact.
“This is important progress in keeping Canadians safe. We are relieved that this conference isn’t happening, but we also know that the fight against extremism cannot stop. We will continue to urge the Government of Canada to ban Hizb ut-Tahrir as an illegal terrorist organization, as is the case in the UK and Germany.”
Their hate-fest could also be cancelled however, for the sake and safety of all Canadians, Hizb ut-Tahrir should be banned as an unlawful terrorist group.
Share this video with your folks and invite them to hitch the 13,000+ Canadians who’ve taken a stand towards hate. pic.twitter.com/tcT0Hy90XN
— CIJA (@CIJAinfo) January 14, 2025
Mates of Simon Wiesenthal Middle (FSWC) and B’nai Brith Canada, together with CIJA, had pushed for federal authorities so as to add the group to the listing of acknowledged terror entities below the Legal Code, for antisemitic, extremist, “anti-Western ideology,” and glorification of terrorism.
FSWC referred to as the cancellation “an important victory in the fight against extremism and hate in Canada,” shutting down the “controversial conference planned by an Islamist group notorious for antisemitic, extremist rhetoric.”
However the president and CEO of FSWC wrote in an announcement that “it’s not enough.”
“The Canadian government must take the necessary measures to list this organization as a terror group under Canadian law, ensuring that it will never again have the opportunity to propagate its vile, extremist ideology in our country,” wrote Michael Levitt.
“Hizb ut Tahrir Canada, the Canadian branch of Hizb ut-Tahrir—an organization that advocates for the re-establishment of an Islamic caliphate governed by Sharia law… is banned in the UK, Germany and several other countries.”
The convention location was reported by some information shops as being in Hamilton, Ont., apparently transferring the occasion from Mississauga, Ont., simply west of Toronto.
Mississauga Mayor Carolyn Parrish had posted on-line Jan. 5, calling Hizb ut Tahrir a “very extreme group,” later saying Mississauga residents had been glad it wouldn’t be held there anymore after the stories it could be moved to Hamilton.
The convention web site had beforehand stated it was to happen in Mississauga, and would come with lunch and childcare on Jan. 18. The discover was modified and the situation was not offered to registrants. Eventbrite, a web-based ticketing platform, had dropped the occasion from its web site.
Hamilton mayor Andrea Horwath stated the town would “unequivocally refuse access to any group that engages in or promotes hatred or any form of divisive behaviour.”
#HamOnt STATEMENT FROM MAYOR HORWATH – January 6, 2025
It has come to my consideration that there’s a deliberate occasion in Hamilton, which has raised important issues for me and our neighborhood.
Since studying of this occasion, I’ve been in direct communication with Hamilton Police… pic.twitter.com/BLRDBkh7rl
— Andrea Horwath (@AndreaHorwath) January 6, 2025
In an interview with The CJN on Jan. 13, earlier than the cancellation announcement, Howard Fremeth, CIJA’s vice-president of communications, stated that the occasion was regarding whether or not it was to happen in Mississauga, Hamilton, or elsewhere in Ontario or Canada.
“This week it might be Mississauga or Hamilton, but in two weeks it might be in Edmonton or it might be in Halifax or it might be in my hometown of Ottawa. I think that means that we as a Jewish community, first off, we need to rally together nationally behind this, and we also have to work with our friends and allies across Canada.”
Muslim neighborhood members publicly denounced the convention together with an announcement from the International Imams Council (GIC), whose Western headquarters are in Toronto. The group referred to as the convention a “blatant attempt to spread extremism under the guise of free speech” in a letter to McGuinty urging federal intervention and to stop the occasion from happening.
“Allowing such an event to proceed in Canada risks undermining years of effort by Muslims who seek to build bridges of mutual respect and understanding,” learn the assertion issued on Jan. 10.
“Hizb ut-Tahrir is known globally for its radical ideology, rejection of democratic principles, and open advocacy for a global Islamist caliphate, a stance that directly contradicts Canadian values of democracy, peace, and coexistence.
“This event, if allowed to proceed, poses a significant threat to social cohesion. The very notion of a conference promoting the establishment of a caliphate within Canada is deeply alarming and offensive, not only to the broader Canadian public but also to the overwhelming majority of Muslims in the country who uphold democratic values and actively contribute to Canada’s multicultural society.”
The letter warned that Hizb ut-Tahrir’s said agenda and “extremist rhetoric” divide and “isolate Muslims from the rest of society. Muslim youth have proven to be particularly vulnerable to their ideology and tactics. It is for these reasons that over 17 countries, including Germany, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Turkey, and the United Kingdom, have taken decisive legal action against the group.
“Allowing such an event to proceed in Canada risks undermining years of effort by Muslims who seek to build bridges of mutual respect and understanding,” the GIC letter learn. It additionally requested a federal evaluate resulting in a doable formal ban of the group in Canada.
“As an organization with a well-documented history of spreading divisive and extremist rhetoric, Hizb ut-Tahrir has been banned in over 17 countries worldwide. Its ideology not only threatens national unity but also isolates Muslim communities and endangers vulnerable youth,” learn the letter from GIC to McGuinty.
The International Imams Council welcomes the information that Hizb-ut-Tahrir Canada has cancelled its deliberate ‘Caliphate Convention 2025.’ We recognize the eye given to our issues and the accountable actions taken by the Canadian authorities. Our dedication stays steadfast in… https://t.co/wLaYZAKa9p pic.twitter.com/IxI9jbQ5dM
— International Imams Council (GIC) (@ImamsOrg) January 14, 2025
In a media assertion launched Jan. 6, Hizb ut Tahrir Canada wrote that it “categorically rejects the use of violence,” and stated “the accusations linking the party to terrorism, extremism and violent activities are fabrications aimed at tarnishing its reputation and distracting from its call to establish Islam as a comprehensive system of governance and mercy for humanity.”
The group referred to as itself “an ideological and political party that works exclusively through intellectual and political struggle” and stated its “sole objective is the resumption of the Islamic way of life through the re-establishment of the Khilafah (Caliphate) in the Muslim world on the method of the Prophethood, as obligated by the Quran and Sunnah.”
The assertion stated “baseless allegations” towards the group had been “part of a wider effort to distort” Hizb ut Tahrir’s picture and “suppress its legitimate political call.”
With recordsdata from Ellin Bessner.
