Wahid Khalil Baroud
Encyclopedia
An alleged member of the Palestine Liberation Organization
(PLO), Wahid Khalil Baroud (وحيد خليل بارود) was arrested in Mississauga, Ontario
in 1994 after it was claimed that he served as a bodyguard to Yasser Arafat
.
, noting that he had never been involved in any terrorism. He claimed to be defecting because he refused to follow an order to travel to Saudi Arabia's border with Iraqi-controlled Kuwait, where some allege he had been ordered to be killed by the PLO authorities. He stated that, as a Palestinian, he refused to be a party to another occupying power like Saddam Hussein
.
He was held in detention for 41 days before it was determined he was not a threat, and he was subsequently released.
as a bodyguard to Arafat, and was stationed in Syria, Lebanon, Libya and Greece and engaged in terrorism. He was arrested on a security certificate
signed by Immigration Minister Sergio Marchi
and Solicitor General Herb Gray
on June 6, 1994, but Federal Court of Canada
judge Pierre Denault ruled that the government was wrong in suggesting it had evidence Baroud was involved in terrorism. Baroud argued that Section 40.1 of the Immigration Act
was unconstitutional and breached the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
.
When the courts nevertheless upheld his deportation, he sought leave to appeal to the Supreme Court
claiming that the Canadian Security Intelligence Service
(CSIS) had tried to convince him to become an informant
and turned against him when he refused, but was denied on June 15.
"Depressed and discouraged" at his long time spent in the Don Jail
, Baroud agreed to voluntarily drop his appeals and allow himself to be removed from Canada and was subsequently moved to Toronto West Detention Centre
.
Palestinian, there was no country to which he could be safely deported, and his wife ended up acquiring an entry visa
for him to Algeria, and he was put on a plane towards Algeria through Switzerland on July 5, but returned to Canada a week later after Algerian authorities refused to let him enter. It was later revealed that his Canadian escorts had taken him to Casablanca
hoping to leave him in Morocco; but while they were themselves "mistakenly left behind" in the North African country, Baroud had simply booked himself a plane back to Canada. In December 1995, his wife secured a 9-month visa for him to the Sudan, and Canada put him on a plane towards the country - however, Sudan refused to accept him when they learned of the case.
He was forced to live in airports for eight months, shuttling between countries.
Some sources suggest he ended up in Syria
. Baroud later flew to Romania where he lived in the airport for a number of months before finding his way to Switzerland where he appealed to the Supreme Court for the right to remain. He finally settled in Belgium and he is welcomed as a Belgian citizen.
Palestine Liberation Organization
The Palestine Liberation Organization is a political and paramilitary organization which was created in 1964. It is recognized as the "sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people" by the United Nations and over 100 states with which it holds diplomatic relations, and has enjoyed...
(PLO), Wahid Khalil Baroud (وحيد خليل بارود) was arrested in Mississauga, Ontario
Mississauga, Ontario
Mississauga is a city in Southern Ontario located in the Regional Municipality of Peel, and in the western part of the Greater Toronto Area. With an estimated population of 734,000, it is Canada's sixth-most populous municipality, and has almost doubled in population in each of the last two decades...
in 1994 after it was claimed that he served as a bodyguard to Yasser Arafat
Yasser Arafat
Mohammed Yasser Abdel Rahman Abdel Raouf Arafat al-Qudwa al-Husseini , popularly known as Yasser Arafat or by his kunya Abu Ammar , was a Palestinian leader and a Laureate of the Nobel Prize. He was Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization , President of the Palestinian National Authority...
.
Immigration to Canada
In 1991, Baroud took his wife and three children to Greece, before flying into Pearson International Airport with forged Egyptian passports, and applying for Canadian residency. The family, which would grow with the births in Canada of two more children, claimed to be Israeli, but Baroud acknowledged his time in FatahFatah
Fataḥ is a major Palestinian political party and the largest faction of the Palestine Liberation Organization , a multi-party confederation. In Palestinian politics it is on the left-wing of the spectrum; it is mainly nationalist, although not predominantly socialist. Its official goals are found...
, noting that he had never been involved in any terrorism. He claimed to be defecting because he refused to follow an order to travel to Saudi Arabia's border with Iraqi-controlled Kuwait, where some allege he had been ordered to be killed by the PLO authorities. He stated that, as a Palestinian, he refused to be a party to another occupying power like Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
.
He was held in detention for 41 days before it was determined he was not a threat, and he was subsequently released.
Arrest
Three years later, after he ostensibly missed two immigration hearings which he claims to have never received notice of, a warrant was issued and he was declared a threat to national security under the auspice that he had served in Force 17Force 17
Force 17 was a commando and special operations terror unit of the Palestinian Fatah movement and later of the Office of the Chairman of the Palestinian Authority. It was formed in the early 1970s by Ali Hassan Salameh ....
as a bodyguard to Arafat, and was stationed in Syria, Lebanon, Libya and Greece and engaged in terrorism. He was arrested on a security certificate
Security certificate
In Canadian law, a security certificate is a mechanism by which the Government of Canada can detain and deport foreign nationals and all other non-citizens living in Canada...
signed by Immigration Minister Sergio Marchi
Sergio Marchi
Sergio Marchi, PC is a Canadian diplomat and former politician.Marchi was born in Argentina to an Italian family who subsequently emigrated to Canada...
and Solicitor General Herb Gray
Herb Gray
Herbert Eser Gray, is a retired Canadian politician. He was Canada's first Jewish federal cabinet minister, and is one of only a few Canadians ever granted the title The Right Honourable who was not so entitled by virtue of a position held.-Early life:Born in Windsor, Ontario, the son of Harry...
on June 6, 1994, but Federal Court of Canada
Federal Court of Canada
The Federal Court of Canada was a national court of Canada that heard some types of disputes arising under the central government's legislative jurisdiction...
judge Pierre Denault ruled that the government was wrong in suggesting it had evidence Baroud was involved in terrorism. Baroud argued that Section 40.1 of the Immigration Act
Immigration Act
An Immigration Act is a law regulating immigration. A number of countries have had Immigration Acts including:*Canada**The Immigration Act, 1906**The Chinese Immigration Act of 1923**The Immigration Act, 1952**The Immigration Act, 1978...
was unconstitutional and breached the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is a bill of rights entrenched in the Constitution of Canada. It forms the first part of the Constitution Act, 1982...
.
When the courts nevertheless upheld his deportation, he sought leave to appeal to the Supreme Court
Supreme court
A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of many legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, instance court, judgment court, high court, or apex court...
claiming that the Canadian Security Intelligence Service
Canadian Security Intelligence Service
The Canadian Security Intelligence Service is Canada's national intelligence service. It is responsible for collecting, analyzing, reporting and disseminating intelligence on threats to Canada's national security, and conducting operations, covert and overt, within Canada and abroad.Its...
(CSIS) had tried to convince him to become an informant
Informant
An informant is a person who provides privileged information about a person or organization to an agency. The term is usually used within the law enforcement world, where they are officially known as confidential or criminal informants , and can often refer pejoratively to the supply of information...
and turned against him when he refused, but was denied on June 15.
"Depressed and discouraged" at his long time spent in the Don Jail
Don Jail
The Toronto Jail is a provincial jail for remanded offenders in the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located in the Riverdale neighbourhood on Gerrard Street East near its intersection with Broadview Avenue. It gets its nickname from the nearby Don River...
, Baroud agreed to voluntarily drop his appeals and allow himself to be removed from Canada and was subsequently moved to Toronto West Detention Centre
Toronto West Detention Centre
The Toronto West Detention Centre, often referred to as simply The West, is a maximum security remand facility located in Rexdale, a community located in the north-west corner of Toronto, Ontario, Canada...
.
Unsuccessful deportation
His wife and three eldest children were granted refugee status in Canada. Since he was a statelessStatelessness
Statelessness is a legal concept describing the lack of any nationality. It is the absence of a recognized link between an individual and any state....
Palestinian, there was no country to which he could be safely deported, and his wife ended up acquiring an entry visa
Visa (document)
A visa is a document showing that a person is authorized to enter the territory for which it was issued, subject to permission of an immigration official at the time of actual entry. The authorization may be a document, but more commonly it is a stamp endorsed in the applicant's passport...
for him to Algeria, and he was put on a plane towards Algeria through Switzerland on July 5, but returned to Canada a week later after Algerian authorities refused to let him enter. It was later revealed that his Canadian escorts had taken him to Casablanca
Casablanca
Casablanca is a city in western Morocco, located on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Grand Casablanca region.Casablanca is Morocco's largest city as well as its chief port. It is also the biggest city in the Maghreb. The 2004 census recorded a population of 2,949,805 in the prefecture...
hoping to leave him in Morocco; but while they were themselves "mistakenly left behind" in the North African country, Baroud had simply booked himself a plane back to Canada. In December 1995, his wife secured a 9-month visa for him to the Sudan, and Canada put him on a plane towards the country - however, Sudan refused to accept him when they learned of the case.
He was forced to live in airports for eight months, shuttling between countries.
Some sources suggest he ended up in Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
. Baroud later flew to Romania where he lived in the airport for a number of months before finding his way to Switzerland where he appealed to the Supreme Court for the right to remain. He finally settled in Belgium and he is welcomed as a Belgian citizen.