Terrorism expert David Hofmann on how Hamas propaganda likely radicalized the Ottawa teen now in custody

David Hofmann, a professor at the University of New Brunswick, is a terrorism expert and a director of the criminology and criminal justice department. He feels this is probably homegrown terror akin to what happened in 2006 with the Toronto 18 foiled terrorist attack in Ontario in support of al-Quaida. (Submitted photo)

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David Hofmann has seen it before. Hofmann, a terrorism expert and professor at the University of New Brunswick, has spent years researching extremist hate groups operating in Canada, including neo-Nazis but also homegrown Islamic terror sympathizers. He’s published widely, particularly about the case of the “Toronto 18”, a large group of mainly young Muslim men arrested in 2006 in a foiled plot to blow up several Canadian landmarks, then storm Parliament, take hostages and behead then-prime minister Stephen Harper.

Hofmann wasn’t directly involved in the RCMP’s arrest on Dec. 15 of an Ottawa teenager who was charged with two counts of terrorism: instructing someone to carry out an attack against Ottawa’s Jewish community, and giving them material on how to use explosive material. The teen has been held in custody all weekend and is set to appear in court today, Dec. 18.

But while the youth’s young age means the RCMP won’t release his name or any identifying information, Hofmann believes that the kind of charges laid, plus other details, point to something involving a young Muslim man who likely became radicalized online after the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack on Israel.

We have extensive coverage of the story, including Ellin Bessner’s story in print, and also on today’s The CJN Daily, we’re joined by professor David Hofmann for his take. We also hear from Sarah Beutel, the interim-CEO of Ottawa’s Jewish Federation.

What we talked about

Read reaction of the Canadian Jewish community to the terror charges, in The CJN.
See the RCMP media release about the suspect’s arrest and charges, and the force’s concerns about online radicalization
Read one of professor David Hofmann’s scholarly articles about the Toronto 18 and continued threats to Canadian security.

Credits:

The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Zachary Kauffman is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We’re a member of The CJN Podcast Network. To subscribe to this podcast, please watch this video. Donate to The CJN and receive a charitable tax receipt by clicking here.