Liberation Cell
Encyclopedia
The Liberation Cell was a Montreal
-based cell that was part of Front de libération du Québec
(FLQ) terrorist group in Quebec
whose members were responsible for a decade of bombings and armed robberies in the 1960s that led to what became known as the October Crisis
.
As part of a violent attempt to overthrow the elected government and to establish a socialist Quebec state independent of Canada
, on October 5, 1970, the members of the Liberation Cell kidnapped the United Kingdom
Trade Commissioner James Richard Cross from his Montreal home. The kidnappers posed as deliverymen and tricked the house maid into letting them in, after which they pulled out their guns and seized Cross. Five days later, members of the FLQ’s Chénier Cell
kidnapped and then murder
ed the Deputy Premier of Quebec and Labour Minister, Pierre Laporte
. Believing many others would follow in an uprising, the goal of the FLQ was to create an independent state based on the ideals of Fidel Castro's
Cuba
.
After holding the British Trade Commissioner for more than sixty days, the known members of the Liberation Cell negotiated his release in exchange for their safe passage to Cuba. Four weeks later, the known members of the Chénier Cell
were located in a country farmhouse basement.
The known Liberation Cell members:
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
-based cell that was part of Front de libération du Québec
Front de libération du Québec
The Front de libération du Québec was a left-wing Quebecois nationalist and Marxist-Leninist paramilitary group in Quebec, Canada. It was active between 1963 and 1970, and was regarded as a terrorist organization for its violent methods of action...
(FLQ) terrorist group in Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
whose members were responsible for a decade of bombings and armed robberies in the 1960s that led to what became known as the October Crisis
October Crisis
The October Crisis was a series of events triggered by two kidnappings of government officials by members of the Front de libération du Québec during October 1970 in the province of Quebec, mainly in the Montreal metropolitan area.The circumstances ultimately culminated in the only peacetime use...
.
As part of a violent attempt to overthrow the elected government and to establish a socialist Quebec state independent of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, on October 5, 1970, the members of the Liberation Cell kidnapped the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Trade Commissioner James Richard Cross from his Montreal home. The kidnappers posed as deliverymen and tricked the house maid into letting them in, after which they pulled out their guns and seized Cross. Five days later, members of the FLQ’s Chénier Cell
Chenier Cell
The Chénier Cell was a Montreal-based cell of the Front de libération du Québec terrorist group in Quebec whose members were responsible for a decade of bombings and armed robberies in the 1960s that led to what became known as the October Crisis...
kidnapped and then murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
ed the Deputy Premier of Quebec and Labour Minister, Pierre Laporte
Pierre Laporte
Pierre Laporte was a Canadian lawyer, journalist and politician who was the Deputy Premier and Minister of Labour of the province of Quebec before being kidnapped and killed by members of the group Front de libération du Québec during the October Crisis. Mr...
. Believing many others would follow in an uprising, the goal of the FLQ was to create an independent state based on the ideals of Fidel Castro's
Fidel Castro
Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz is a Cuban revolutionary and politician, having held the position of Prime Minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976, and then President from 1976 to 2008. He also served as the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba from the party's foundation in 1961 until 2011...
Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
.
After holding the British Trade Commissioner for more than sixty days, the known members of the Liberation Cell negotiated his release in exchange for their safe passage to Cuba. Four weeks later, the known members of the Chénier Cell
Chenier Cell
The Chénier Cell was a Montreal-based cell of the Front de libération du Québec terrorist group in Quebec whose members were responsible for a decade of bombings and armed robberies in the 1960s that led to what became known as the October Crisis...
were located in a country farmhouse basement.
The known Liberation Cell members:
- Jacques Cossette-TrudelJacques Cossette-TrudelJacques Cossette-Trudel Jacques Cossette-Trudel Jacques Cossette-Trudel (born 1947 in Shawinigan, PQ, convicted kidnapper, Quebec separatist (FLQ), communication counsellor and filmmaker.Jacques Cossette-Trudel was the son of a senior Federal Government official with the Department of Energy during...
- Louise LanctôtLouise LanctôtLouise Lanctôt, born March 24, 1947, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, is a convicted kidnapper and writer.A political activist for the cause of Quebec independence from Canada, Louise Lanctôt was an active member of the Rassemblement pour l'indépendance nationale political party that later merged...
(Louise Cossette-Trudel) - Jacques LanctôtJacques LanctôtJacques Lanctôt is a Canadian writer and publisher, restaurateur, and former militant separatist.Lanctôt is a former member of the FLQ, a violent separatist group.He was one of the FLQ members who kidnapped James Cross, a British diplomat in October 1970....
- Marc Carbonneau
- Yves LangloisYves LangloisYves Langlois a.k.a. Pierre Seguin was a Canadian terrorist and member of the Quebec terrorist group Front de Libération du Quebec , a group most notably known for the 1970 October crisis...
(aka Pierre Seguin) - Nigel Barry Hamer
- Jean Garcon