Paris standoff raises terror fears

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(Updated)

In the wake of last week’s deadly terror attack in Paris, counter-terror raids have been carried out across Europe to prevent more attacks by militants with links to extremist groups like ISIS and Al-Qaeda. We are now seeing counter-terrorist raids in several European countries. Last week’s killings in France a definite wake-up call for security officials over there.

German and French police have arrested at least 14 people suspected of links to ISIS. Thirteen others were detained in Belgium in raids there where authorities believe they stopped another Paris-style attack from happening by just hours. In many of these cases, the suspects were already under surveillance and have been for months. But now, European security officials have decided it’s no longer safe to leave them on the streets. And the U.S. government is giving its full support to its European counterparts.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry: “We will turn this moment of profound loss into lasting commitment.”

President Obama: “Today we continue to stand, unequivocally, not only with our French friends and allies, but with also all of our partners who are dealing with this scourge.”

And here in Canada, our federal government is expected to table a new counter-terrorism bill later this month, giving more authority to national security agencies.

Peter MacKay, Justice Minister: “What they can expect is a further refining of our laws to ensure that we’re giving our security forces every ability to deter and interrupt. Including some of the provisions of the criminal code that we’ve been looking at for some time now that pertain to the ability to put in place restrictions on those individuals that have exhibited a propensity towards terrorist acts.”

The anti-terror bill is expected to focus on preventive arrests and lowering the threshold for getting a peace bond against individuals not found guilty of an offence, but deemed a risk to others. Justice Minister Peter MacKay says the federal government will ensure a balance between personal freedoms and the public’s.