Canadian man killed moments before committing terror attack

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A screenshot from a video of Aaron Driver, a Canadian man killed by police on Wednesday who had indicated he planned to carry out an imminent rush-hour attack on a major Canadian city. Photo: Reuters
A screenshot from a video of Aaron Driver, a Canadian man killed by police on Wednesday who had indicated he planned to carry out an imminent rush-hour attack on a major Canadian city. Photo: Reuters

TORONTO โ€” A tip from the FBI triggered what Canadian police on Thursday called a โ€œrace against timeโ€ as police scrambled to identify and locate a balaclava-wearing would-be suicide bomber they feared was on the verge of committing a terror attack in Canada.

Aaron Driver, a Canadian man previously banned from associating with Islamic State extremists, prepared a martyrdom video and was about to commit a terrorist attack but was killed Wednesday after he detonated his explosive device in a taxi and was shot at by officers who say they thwarted the plot. Police say they were tipped off by the American authorities, who provided a screenshot of the masked suspect threatening a terror attack early Wednesday, police said.

The suspect planned to carry out a suicide bombing in a public area in an urban center during rush hour, Royal Canadian Mounted Police Deputy Commander Mike Cabana said. He identified the suspect as Driver, 24, originally from Winnipeg, Manitoba.

RCMP Commander Jennifer Strachan said Driver was intercepted by police as he entered a taxi with a backpack and said Driver detonated an explosive device, injuring himself and the taxi driver, before police shot at him. It was unclear whether Driver died as a result of the shrapnel or a police bullet.

After being tipped off by the FBI, Canadian police worked furiously to find out who it was. Police said Driver was quickly identified as the person in the so-called martyrdom video and that he planned an attack within 72 hours.

โ€œIt was a race against time,โ€ Cabana said.

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In the video, aired during a news conference in Ottawa, a masked Driver is seen railing against Western โ€œenemies of Islamโ€ and warning that the only solution would be the โ€œspilling of your blood.โ€ He pledges allegiance to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the Islamic State leader, and threatens an attack against Canada.

Driver had been under the spotlight for at least a year, as authorities believed he was a threat because he could help terror groups. He gave a media interview in which he expressed support for prior terror attacks in Canada and expressed interest in traveling to join the Islamic State. But Driver, who was living with his sister, was not under surveillance at the time.

The police operation involving Driver took place Wednesday night in the southern Ontario town of Strathroy, 140 miles (225 kilometers) southwest of Toronto.

โ€œIf he had gotten out of that residence before we got there, the scenario would have ended a lot differently. Iโ€™m positive of that,โ€ Strachan said.

Transit agencies in Toronto, Canadaโ€™s largest city, were warned of a security threat before police confronted the suspect. Brad Ross, spokesman for the Toronto Transit Commission, said the agency was made aware of a terror threat investigation early the previous day, but noted that it had no specifics attached.

He said that as a precaution, a โ€œvigilance noticeโ€ was issued to all staff, encouraging them to speak up if they saw something of concern. Regional transit lines were also advised of a security threat.

โ€œThis case is an example of the strong cross-border law enforcement cooperation that exists between Canada and the United States. Our partnership reflects our joint commitment to protecting the safety of our citizens,โ€ US Ambassador to Canada Bruce Heyman said in a statement.

Driver was under a court order from earlier this year to not associate with any terrorist organization, including the Islamic State group. In February, Driverโ€™s lawyer and the prosecutor agreed to a peace bond stating there are โ€œreasonable grounds to fear that he may participate, contribute directly or indirectly in the activity of a terrorist group.โ€

Driver was first picked up in Winnipeg in June 2015.

Amarnath Amarasingam, a post-doctoral fellow at Dalhousie University who studies radicalization and terrorism, maintained in 2015 that Driver had posted for several months on social media about disliking Canada and about a desire to move overseas.

Canadian police applied for the peace bond, which can impose limits on a personโ€™s activities, alleging in provincial court documents that investigators believed Driver might help with terrorist group activities.

When Driver was released later that month, he was ordered to wear a GPS tracking device and banned from going on the internet or having any communication with the Islamic State group, including wearing or carrying anything with an IS logo.

His bail conditions drew criticism from the Manitoba Association of Rights and Liberties. Later, the government announced that some of his strict bail conditions had been lifted and that he would not be going to trial.

Driver was allowed to remove his monitoring bracelet but continued to be prohibited from using a computer or cellphone โ€” rules that were to be in place until the end of August.

Canadian Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale said he had spoken to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau about the police operation Wednesday night โ€œto confirm that public safety has been and continues to be properly protected.โ€

He said the RCMP, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service and other police and security agencies were involved in the operation. He also said the national terrorism threat level for Canada remains at โ€œmedium,โ€ where it has stood since the fall of 2014.

NY POST/ AP

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67 responses to “Canadian man killed moments before committing terror attack”

  1. 5thDrawer Avatar
    5thDrawer

    Gotta be the Mosquitos … Winnipeg is the Mosquito Capital .. makes everyone a little crazy there.
    Which is why there’s an “Association of Rights and Liberties” … which apparently thinks just any wing-nut should be on a street.

    1. Hind Abyad Avatar
      Hind Abyad

      The Holocaust Museum wades into Syria debate with calls to Help Allepo,
      in anti Assad propaganda paper.

      http://foreignpolicy.com/2016/08/11/holocaust-museum-wades-into-syria-debate-with-calls-to-help-aleppo/

      1. This has a lot to do with the article. Why not a link to the price of tea in China?

        1. Hind Abyad Avatar
          Hind Abyad

          Sorry but we’re in Wars that destroyed Libya, Iraq, Syria, they won’t not stop till they balkanise Syria and Lebanon, then Wars will last forever.
          Your hasbara won’ stop me.

          1. Rudy1947 Avatar

            Is there a war going on in Canada? Still waiting for the price of tea.

          2. 5thDrawer Avatar
            5thDrawer

            It’s the one between Native Tribes in that ‘Association of Rights and Liberties’ …
            Wild Rice only grows in some of their lands oil is only found in others.
            Not much different than ‘world-think’, of course.

          3. Rudy1947 Avatar

            Was Aaron Driver a member of one of the Native Tribes?

          4. 5thDrawer Avatar
            5thDrawer

            No-one here notes those insignificant facts, but I’d say not with that name.

          5. Rudy1947 Avatar

            Then it would be safe to say that Native Tribes and growing wild rice are totally unrelated to Aaron and to this article.

          6. 5thDrawer Avatar
            5thDrawer

            So was asking if there was a war going on here … but you got an answer.

          7. Rudy1947 Avatar

            There’s no answer, there’s no war going on in Canada.

          8. 5thDrawer Avatar
            5thDrawer

            Well, there my friend, you are dead wrong. And itโ€™s not simply โ€˜wars of wordsโ€™ filled with everyday nonsense.
            There is a constant war going on, and itโ€™s between โ€˜the peopleโ€™ who attempt to make a life better for themselves and all a countryโ€™s citizens, and those who want to degrade it to the simplistic level of a โ€˜gunโ€™, or as this Arron guy attempted, a โ€˜voiceโ€™ of a bomb. An abomination of humanity.
            Itโ€™s between โ€˜the peopleโ€™ who strive to have their children educated well enough to sustain them in an ever-evolving world, and those who care not if the children understand little, beyond the โ€˜thought-pushesโ€™ that they must only consume.
            Itโ€™s between the seemingly ever-fewer percentages of an increasingly over-populated planet who understand well the relationship of nature to โ€™Lifeโ€™, and those who never considered their own mortality. Between those who know what love and sacrifice are given, and those who only take with greed, to perform a consummation for their own time, and often perform it on their own progeny.
            Itโ€™s โ€˜The Warโ€™ between those wishing a gain of knowledge, with the freedom to think on what it showed them about reality, and those wanting humans to be brainwashed into immutable self-consummation.
            Itโ€™s โ€˜The Warโ€™ of the Humanoid Species, the only species which creates wars in a vain attempt to live larger than itself, and fails miserably so hellishly often, in that it continues to repeat itโ€™s past.
            When it has finally grown in size to succeed in confounding itself, it will go, and Nature will continue.
            And Canada IS indeed in it.

          9. Rudy1947 Avatar

            So YaLibnan is just a platform for you cause of choice. Have you ever heard of the Georgia Guidestones?

          10. Did they ever identify the creator of the Guidestones? It has been awhile since I have heard it mentioned. It was a well thought out concept, except for the decleration of the future world population. It will take an armageddon to ever reach those limits again.
            OOooo NWO, I feel a conspiracy theory coming on.

          11. 5thDrawer Avatar
            5thDrawer

            One-man concept … I agree the numbers were a little low …who would serve the drinks on a nude beach, after all? ๐Ÿ˜‰

          12. Rudy1947 Avatar

            Don’t believe anyone knows who created it. The “world population” reference always reminds me of this monument and how almost 7B people are to be displaced or removed.

          13. Oh Yeah Avatar

            In 2008, the stones defaced with polyurethane paint and graffiti….

          14. 5thDrawer Avatar
            5thDrawer

            Someone had to really go out of their way to do that. Although it’s not the only piece of craftsmanship which has had to endure such vandalism, at the hands of brain-dead idiots. But then, some burn books too.

          15. Hind Abyad Avatar
            Hind Abyad

            AusLeb โ€ข 8 months ago

            “What the F….. Is going on with these comments????? Man this site used to be fun to read and comments were an exchange of ideas and some funny comments but now it’s the same crap on every story and nothing to do with the news articles…. Sometimes I have to check that I am still on YaLibnan and not been transfered to an insane asylum where I am the only one who didn’t understand what the hell people are on about! And yes, to the very smart and original people out there who are tempted to use the fact that I said “insane asylum” as a joke or a come back, I say think twice…. Or actually keep thinking until you reach a root of 10,000… Yes I said “root” too, something a few people on here need to do more of to get rid of some steam…..

            MekensehParty AusLeb โ€ข 8 months ago

            I agree, the level has fallen to a new low with new insult contestant popping up every day.

            But hey the current level of the Lebanese society is very similar to this… insulting is the way of life.

            I don’t encourage having a moderator, but I think it’s time to start banning some hot heads who are bringing nothing to the conversation”.

          16. 5thDrawer Avatar
            5thDrawer

            Yup … it changed … twice … maybe we had too many good ideas.

          17. Hind Abyad Avatar
            Hind Abyad

            Magnum opus..

          18. Hind Abyad Avatar
            Hind Abyad

            Magnum opus…

          19. 5thDrawer Avatar
            5thDrawer

            Join me in Magnum of Don Quixote, and we can slip-slide away. ๐Ÿ˜‰

          20. Hind Abyad Avatar
            Hind Abyad

            Disconnected sociopath, you don’t merit an answer..spam along

          21. Rudy1947 Avatar

            Already have one. You’re not necessary.

          22. Hind Abyad Avatar
            Hind Abyad

            You have nothing ..zero+0

          23. Hind Abyad Avatar
            Hind Abyad

            Very diplomatic Canuck

          24. Rudy1947 Avatar

            The answer is no.

          25. Hind Abyad Avatar
            Hind Abyad

            Explain how Aaron is in “this” article.

          26. Rudy1947 Avatar

            Read the article. He’s the main topic.

          27. Hind Abyad Avatar
            Hind Abyad

            I read it. His face is masked.

          28. He is a rebellious and lost youth. You have but one short life and someone is stupid enough to waste it with self-destruction. What kind of ideology did he follow? Oh…that explains it. Islamic extremism, I was wondering how long it would take before muslims in Canada would start behaving like they do in Europe.
            Fvcking knuckleheads. Keep bringing Islamic influence into your country is cultural and financial suicide for any country.

          29. Hind Abyad Avatar
            Hind Abyad

            5th is entertaining you cause your shark balloon is about to explode in the building. Fuhrer.

          30. That is an A-10, not a shark balloon.
            ……..Well maybe if I look at in abstract, I could see that.

          31. Hind Abyad Avatar
            Hind Abyad

            I don’t know what it is it’s hideous..

          32. 5thDrawer Avatar
            5thDrawer

            Whatever it is, it’s cross-eyed …. :-))))

          33. Oh Yeah Avatar

            What name?

          34. Hind Abyad Avatar
            Hind Abyad

            Jewish tribe, but Canadians are polite they won’t mention it because it’s classified as an act of ISIS terrorism.

          35. Rudy1947 Avatar

            Are all Canadians as racist as you?

          36. Hind Abyad Avatar
            Hind Abyad

            You’e irrational

          37. Hind Abyad Avatar
            Hind Abyad

            Why you insist? Is it racist to call all Moslem terrorists?

          38. Mooselums (if they are Canadian) are not a race. Muslims follow a ideology. Not one that I recommend unless someone is socially retarded.
            There are just, way too many negatives, to see any positives of submitting to any death cult like Islam.
            Sorry, but I am not alone in that assessment. Lets say, the vast majority, will do.

          39. Hind Abyad Avatar
            Hind Abyad

            Huh?

          40. Rudy1947 Avatar

            Now Driver is a Jew? That didn’t take long.

          41. Oh Yeah Avatar

            Blame it on the Jews and Zionista……

          42. 5thDrawer Avatar
            5thDrawer

            Hohohohoho … Simplest explanation is in the ‘New Georgia Encyclopedia’.
            (All other’s in a search add ‘revisions’.)

          43. Rudy1947 Avatar

            Which tribe in Canada is Jewish?

          44. It is one of the original ten lost tribes. Blackfoot Jews.

          45. Hind Abyad Avatar
            Hind Abyad

            Pieds noires are Algerian French

          46. 5thDrawer Avatar
            5thDrawer

            LOLOLOL ….

          47. Hind Abyad Avatar
            Hind Abyad

            Didn’t you know?

          48. 5thDrawer Avatar
            5thDrawer

            A French Foreign Legion guy told me … yup yup … ๐Ÿ˜‰

          49. 5thDrawer Avatar
            5thDrawer

            LOLOL ….

          50. We? I think you are sitting in a nice Western condo, not Sirte. Nice to know yr loyalties lay with people thousands of miles away who would gladly enslave you, if given the chance.

          51. Hind Abyad Avatar
            Hind Abyad

            Did you read my replie to Rascal..i don’t want to repeat myself.

      2. 5thDrawer Avatar
        5thDrawer

        Perhaps the ones who ‘Create’ Foreign Policies had not assumed this particular one would lead to such a humanitarian disaster … or be spread about so far. ‘Containment’ has not been possible.
        Interesting site … One Story in there is a Headline Bit that says “There Are No Successful Black Nations.” One can see that the only thing considered for ‘success’ is money, of course.
        Problem with this ISISie thing is, it’s not easy to send one idiot in Winnipeg a cheque …. especially when the oil profits are going down in Syrian. ๐Ÿ˜‰

  2. 5thDrawer Avatar
    5thDrawer

    I wonder how well the wonderfully warm and stylish ‘Bomber Jackets’ are selling these days. ??

  3. Why do muslim come to western countries if they hate it here? Please leave the secular world. At least they dropped this fvcker.

    1. Hind Abyad Avatar
      Hind Abyad

      West created ISIS & CO for transfer of population out of Middle East.

    2. Hind Abyad Avatar
      Hind Abyad

      He’s not Moslem.

    3. man-o-war Avatar
      man-o-war

      “Aaron Driver, a Canadian man”

      He’s obviously not a Muslim who came to a Western country they hate. Your religious bigotry has blinded you again.

  4. what a moron. jihadis attract all the winners.

  5. Oh Yeah Avatar

    Sometimes I dont understand why our society still engaging for a lost case, and get just contempt for commitment.
    #SaveSyria – Dramatic appeal from the United States
    Holocaust Museum warns for Assad extermination war.

    https://twitter.com/HolocaustMuseum/status/763777886142640128

    In Aleppo bombs are thrown daily by Russian and Syrian jets

    1. Hind Abyad Avatar
      Hind Abyad

      Your Holocaust video is Opposition and AIPAC propaganda.
      Western media don’t give news directly from the war zone.

      https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/supplies-enter-west-aleppo-castello-highway/

      1. 5thDrawer Avatar
        5thDrawer

        Question is, will supplies reach non-combatant citizens on both sides … or whatever is left of the doctors and staff of hospitals.
        And I’m sure there will be more ’empty cities’ finally cleared of the worst of the worst.
        https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/sdf-captures-isiss-largest-stronghold-aleppo/

        1. Hind Abyad Avatar
          Hind Abyad

          I gave a link to end of this story on “Airstrikes on Syria”.
          Kurds totally liberated Manbij from IS.;-)

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