Thus for myself and perhaps millions of Canadians, in fact, and
reality, his home was never truly Canada even though he was physically born in Canada.
Thanks to the
Canadian Press and Star here is a
look at the long odyssey of this Canadian born individual:
Sept. 19, 1986: Omar
Khadr is born in Toronto but lives with family
in Pakistan
until 1995.
1995: Khadr’s
father is arrested in connection with the bombing of the Egyptian embassy in Islamabad but is freed
after then-prime minister, Jean Chrétien raises the arrest with Pakistani
counterpart Benazir Bhutto.
1996: After
briefly returning to Canada,
the family moves to Jalalabad in Taliban-controlled eastern Afghanistan,
where they live in Osama bin Laden’s compound.
1996: The
Khadr brothers begin attending weapons training camps affiliated with the
Taliban and bin Laden. The family makes annual trips to Canada to raise
money and collect supplies.
1999: The family moves to Kabul.
October 2001: The U.S. begins military operations in Afghanistan in response to Sept. 11, 2001
terrorist attacks in New York and Washington.
November 2001: The U.S.-backed Northern Alliance rebels chase the Taliban
out of Kabul.
Omar Khadr flees to his father in Logar,
Afghanistan.
June 2002: After
training on AK-47s, Soviet PKs and rocket-propelled grenades, Khadr, 15, works
as a translator for Al Qaeda and conducts a surveillance mission.
July 27, 2002: Two Afghan government soldiers are killed and several U.S. troops
sustain injuries as coalition forces move in on Khadr’s compound. Khadr throws
a grenade that kills U.S. Sgt. 1st Class, Christopher Speer. Khadr is injured in
the melee.
October 2002: Khadr is transferred to Guantanamo Bay.
February 2003: Investigators from the RCMP and the Canadian Security
Intelligence Service (CSIS) interview Khadr at Guantanamo.
March 2004: Khadr’s
grandmother, Fatmah Elsamnah, launches a lawsuit against the Department of
Foreign Affairs, alleging Ottawa
failed to protect her grandson’s rights as a Canadian. Elsamnah later launches
a similar suit against the U.S.
authorities.
Aug. 10, 2005: A Federal Court judge says Canadian agencies, including
CSIS, are violating Khadr’s Charter rights by turning information gleaned in
interviews over to the U.S.
investigators.
Nov. 7, 2005: The U.S. military charges Khadr with conspiracy, attempted
murder and aiding the enemy in connection with the deadly 2002 skirmish that
killed Speer.
Dec. 17, 2005: Khadr’s eldest brother, Abdullah, is arrested in Toronto for allegedly
acting as an Al Qaeda go-between and supplying explosives.
February 2006: A U.S.
civil court orders the Khadr family to pay $102 million to Speer’s widow and a
second soldier injured in the 2002 attack.
March 17, 2008: Khadr alleges that he was threatened with rape and
violence by interrogators seeking to extract a confession.
May 23, 2008: The Supreme Court of Canada concludes that Canadian
officials illegally shared information about Khadr with the U.S.
July 15, 2008: Khadr’s defence counsel releases video of Khadr being
interrogated by CSIS officials in 2003.
Aug. 14, 2009: Canada’s Federal Court of Appeal upholds a ruling that requires
the Canadian government to press for Omar Khadr’s return from Guantanamo Bay.
Oct. 7, 2009: Lt.-Cmdr. Bill Kuebler is officially dismissed from
Khadr’s legal defence team.
Jan. 29, 2010: Canada’s Supreme Court overturns court orders requiring The Canadian government must try to repatriate Khadr, despite agreeing that Khadr’s
human rights are being violated.
April 29, 2010: Khadr’s defence team rejects a plea-bargain offer from U.S. military prosecutors that would have forced
him to serve his sentence in a U.S.
prison.
July 7, 2010: Khadr tries to fire his three American lawyers, including
a military court-appointed military lawyer, saying he has no chance at a fair
trial. A judge later refuses to allow it.
July 12, 2010: Ottawa pledges to fight the ruling ordering it to remedy the
breach of Khadr’s constitutional rights.
Aug. 9, 2010: Khadr officially pleads not guilty to five war crimes
charges, including murder, at a pre-trial hearing. Judge Col. Patrick Parrish
rules Khadr’s confessions will be admissible as evidence.
Oct. 25, 2010: Amid talk of an agreement, Khadr changes his plea to
guilty on all five counts; gets opportunity to apply for a transfer to a
Canadian prison after one year in a U.S. facility.
Oct. 26, 2010: Jurors scheduled to attend start of Khadr sentencing
hearing.
Oct. 31, 2010: Jurors sentence Khadr to 40 years in prison for war crimes
but a pre-trial deal limits the actual sentenced to eight years.
May 26, 2011: The Convening Authority for Military Commissions rejects a
clemency appeal filed by Khadr. The prisoner had appealed to have his sentence
cut in half, arguing that improper testimony swayed the jury at his sentencing
hearing.
Aug. 4, 2011: Khadr fires his long-time lawyers Dennis Edney and Nate
Whitling and hires Toronto-based lawyers John Norris and Brydie Bethell.
April 2012: U.S. Defence Secretary Leon Panetta signs off on Khadr’s
transfer.
April 18, 2012: Ottawa
receives an application from Khadr officially requesting a transfer to Canada from Guantanamo Bay.
July 13, 2012: Lawyers file a notice of the application in the Federal Court
to ask it to review why Canada
was delaying Khadr’s repatriation.
July 26, 2012: It’s revealed that Khadr tried to plead guilty to
terrorism charges in Canada
for speedy transfer home. The documents show that the 2008 proposal was
rejected by the U.S.
military.
Sept. 6, 2012: Ottawa is given videotapes and documents assessing Khadr’s
mental health by American military officials. The material includes an
interview of Khadr by a psychiatrist.
Sept. 29, 2012: A U.S. military airplane brings Khadr back to Canada. He is
transferred to the Millhaven Institution near Kingston, Ont.
Now within less than a day, the mainstream media is calling for the release of this convicted killer from our Canadian prisons!
The question remains, did he honestly and transparently actually full-fill his obligations if any and rights to Canadian citizenship when he never truly lived or was permanently homed in Canada, even though he was born here?
Your decision!