Tasha Kheiriddin on Home Grown Terrorists

In the age of the Internet and mass communication terrorism and extremist ideologies can now be exported with a click of the mouse. This creates an unique situation where countries now have to face threats from internal and external forces.

With the advent of the Internet, terrorism is truly a global enterprise. Many terrorist organizations are using complex social media and Internet strategies to reach out and convert their new recruits in western countries like Canada. These sobering facts should make us even more aware of future threats to our security.

Source national Post

As details emerge about the terror plot foiled this week by the RCMP, parts of the story would make a perfect comedy, if the subtext weren’t so serious. From Canadian Idol to radical Islam, the journey of Kurram- Syed Sher is a curious one indeed. One day, he’s moon walking in front of Sass Jordan; fast-forward a few years, and he’s plotting to blow up Ottawa. Gee, had he got to the finals, would things have been different? We can only wonder.

But Mr. Sher is not alone in his new role as a “home-grown” terrorist. Richard Reid, the infamous British-born shoe bomber, converted to Islam after a stint in prison. Three of the four terrorists who carried out the British suicide bombings of 2005 were born in England, and grew up in West Yorkshire. The Toronto 18 hailed from Scarborough and Mississauga.