July 13, 2008

Abstract: (Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Most people in Ontario are convinced that an alleged terror plot foiled in the summer of 2006 was a serious threat, according to a poll by Angus Reid Strategies. 59 per cent of respondents in Canada’s most populous province think that the so-called Toronto 18 really planned to attack the cities of Toronto and Ottawa.

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Most people in Ontario are convinced that an alleged terror plot foiled in the summer of 2006 was a serious threat, according to a poll by Angus Reid Strategies. 59 per cent of respondents in Canada’s most populous province think that the so-called Toronto 18 really planned to attack the cities of Toronto and Ottawa.

In June 2006, 18 people—including four teenagers—were arrested in the Greater Toronto Area in connection with an alleged terror plot. The plan included attacking Toronto’s financial center with truck bombs and storming the federal Parliament building in Ottawa to take politicians hostage and behead the prime minister. The suspects were also charged with attending a terrorist training camp in 2005.

The charges against three of the four teens and four of the 14 adults have since been dismissed or stayed, while the trial against the remaining 11 suspects continues.

In late May, during a trial hearing, defence lawyer Mitchell Chernovsky said he knew why a mole who infiltrated the Toronto 18 group never advised government agencies that they could be in danger of being attacked, saying, "I suggest these people weren’t notified because the plan was always a fantasy."

Polling Data

It is alleged that the plot of the so-called Toronto 18 involved attacks on several buildings around the Toronto area, including the headquarters of CSIS, the RCMP, and the Toronto Stock Exchange, and storming Parliament Hill. Which of the following statements comes closest to your own point of view?

The alleged terror plot was a fantasy	13%
The alleged terror plot was serious	59%
Not sure	28%

Source: Angus Reid Strategies
Methodology: Online interviews with 808 adults in Ontario, conducted on Jun. 24 and Jun. 25, 2008. Margin of error is 3.5 per cent.

 

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