Author: Phil Gurski

It seems that many Canadians, let alone foreigners, have forgotten about the Toronto 18 (I can attest that every time I give a talk on terrorism in Canada and make reference to the 2006 terror cell fewer and fewer people have any real knowledge of what remains the single largest counter terrorism investigation in our […]

If there is one aspect of terrorism that is poorly understood it is the relationship between mental illness and the execution of a terrorist act. All too often the masses agree in the immediate aftermath of an incident that the perpetrator must have been suffering from an undisclosed – or undiagnosed – mental disease.  We […]

When a terrorist cell is disrupted, or an individual is arrested at the airport on his or her way to Turkey to join a group like Islamic State, the media rises to the challenge and splashes the news across all platforms.  The public responds in kind and for a short time the blogosphere and news […]

One of the most central tenets of the ideology that drives terrorist groups like Al Qaeda, Islamic State, Boko Haram and others is the belief that Islam and the West are in a state of war.  This war, they maintain, was not instigated from within or by the Ummah, or Islamic world, but rather is […]

The controversy surrounding the Canadian government’s use of the tool known as National Security Certificates does not seem to want to go away.  A Federal Court judge has ruled that the government’s case against one more alleged terrorist, Mahmoud Jaballah, is not reasonable and the certificate issued against him in 1999 will be set aside. […]

I have come to the conclusion that Westerners – and Western governments – are not very patient.  It is not clear, as least not to me, whether this is due to our 24/7 news cycle, the constant availability of, and distraction from, social media, or the very nature of our capitalist society where results are […]

Yesterday the world was forced to face yet again the possible spectre of terrorism.  An EgyptAir flight from Paris to Cairo suddenly plummeted into the Mediterranean near the border between Greek and Egyptian airspace, after having taken some unexpected turns.  The cause of the accident remains unclear. I have long argued against what I call […]

After years of discussions and calls for action, it looks as if the Canadian government is finally getting serious about establishing meaningful Parliamentary oversight for its intelligence agencies.  Canada is the laggard in this respect since its main allies (the so-called “5 Eyes” community – Australia, New Zealand, the US and the UK are the […]

Foreign policy is tough.  I say that not with any hands-on experience as a former foreign affairs officer but as a former intelligence analyst who worked alongside many people at GAC (Global Affairs Canada, formerly DFATD, formerly DFAIT, formerly EAC, formerly…) on international security issues.  I learned that Canada has a very good reputation internationally […]

A lot of people and a lot of governments are getting tired of the so-called “War on Terrorism”.  More and more attacks seem to be happening all the time.  What we used to think was a problem “over there” is now “over here”: Brussels, Paris, San Bernardino, Ottawa…  We cannot seem to get away from […]