The brother of an Ottawa man charged this week under Canada's anti-terrorism laws said Wednesday their father is being held by authorities in Saudi Arabia. The RCMP laid terrorism charges against Mohammed Momin Khawaja Tuesday, after carrying out a raid on the family's suburban Ottawa home the previous day. Qasim Khawaja said on Wednesday he believes his father, Mahboob Khawaja, is being held in police custody in Saudi Arabia. "It's like a double devastation for the family," Khawaja told reporters after being turned away from an Ottawa jail without being able to visit his brother. "We just found out my dad has been detained in Saudi Arabia. "We don't know exactly what for."
| Hummmm, questioning as a suspect or material witness comes to mind. Being Saudi, it also could be a briefing on his next mission. |
Mahboob Khawaja, 62, has a PhD in social sciences from Syracuse University. He lives in Yanbu, Saudi Arabia where he works as an administrator at a polytechnical school. The Department of Foreign Affairs said it is looking into the case, but has no information about Khawaja from the Saudi authorities. A Pakistani born in the disputed province of Kashmir, the senior Khawaja has written several articles critical of western and Arab leaders.
| Maybe he criticized the Master Race, that can get you in trouble there. |
After moving to Canada, he fathered five children. Mohammed Momin Khawaja, 24, on Tuesday became the first Canadian charged under the country's new anti-terrorism laws. Police say the charges stem from activity in Ottawa and London, England. Officials have refused to comment on whether developments in Ottawa and Saudi Arabia have anything to do with the arrests in London this week of eight men of Pakistani origin, along with material which could be used for making explosives.
Momin is a computer programmer who was working under contract with the Foreign Affairs Department when he was arrested.
| That's very interesting. Wonder what kind of data he had access to? |
Qasim Khawaja said his extended family has hundreds of members in England, and his brother did travel to England last November or December for a few days to find a bride. "Obviously, you don't find somebody. You just meet somebody and see if they're willing to blow themselves up compatible and then go from there." He also said $10,000 in $100 bills found by police under his bed was startup money for Ottawa Jihad Inc a new business. "I had it in a bank, but the thing is, as Muslims we don't take interest and that's why I took it out of the bank."
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