Canadians jailed in Syria receive CAN$31.3M from govt

By Barry Ellsworth

TRENTON, Canada

A lawyer representing three men who were imprisoned and tortured in Syria told Anadolu Agency on Thursday neither he nor his clients would comment on reports the trio received CAN$31.3 million in compensation from the Canadian government.

Abdullah Almalki, Ahmad El Maati and Muayyed Nureddin received an apology in March for the Canadian government’s culpability in their detainment and torture in Syria about 15 years ago.

The government also awarded a cash settlement at that time but declined to make the amount public.

But the figure was discovered in public accounts quietly released this month, Canadian media reported.

Philip Tunley, who represents the trio, had nothing to say concerning the reports of the settlement amount.

“I am not the source of this story, and I have no comment whatsoever on what is being reported by some media,” Tunley told Anadolu Agency. “My clients have no interest in commenting either.”

It is not known if the three men received equal portions of the CAN$31.3 million.

Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale's office issued a statement Thursday that said the award was "consistent" with the 2008 federal inquiry findings.

The three men had filed $100 million lawsuits against the Canadian government following their ordeals in Syria.

El Maati, a Toronto resident, was arrested in 2001 after arriving in Syria to celebrate his wedding, and he spent 26 months in prison there.

Almalki of Ottawa was held for 22 months, and Toronto geologist Nureddin was seized in 2003 when he entered Syria from Iraq, where he spent time with his family. He was held for 34 days.

A 2008 federal inquiry found members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) and the Foreign Affairs department were partly responsible for the men’s detainment and torture. The agencies shared information that included the possibility of ties to al-Qaeda and caused the men to be held longer and subjected to torture in a bid to gain confessions.

Goodale and Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland apologized on behalf of the government “for any role Canadian officials may have played in relation to their detention and mistreatment abroad and any resulting harm”.

Almalki was detained after the RCMP and CSIS put out an international alert. It said Almalki was on their watch list. Nureddin was named in a bulletin sent to the CIA from Canada. El Maati was named by the RCMP as suspected of planning an attack on nuclear facilities in Canada.

None were ever charged with any terrorist offense.

This is the second time the Canadian government has reached a cash settlement with a person detained and tortured in Syria.

In 2007, Maher Arar received CAN$10.5 million and an apology from the federal government.