Quebec Muslim activist becomes first woman charged under 9/11 terror laws over Hezbollah gun-running plot

(National Post) A Quebec woman who was once active in a youth group that fought stereotypes against Muslims has been charged with terrorism for allegedly trying to smuggle weapons to Hezbollah.

The RCMP said Friday Mouna Diab, 26, had been charged with a terrorism count after an investigation found she had bought firearms in the Montreal area to ship to the Iranian-sponsored terror group.

Ms. Diab is the first woman to be charged under provisions of the Anti-terrorism Act passed by Parliament in response to the 9/11 attacks.

The case also marks the first time Canadian police have laid criminal charges in connection with Hezbollah; previous cases all concerned pro-al-Qaeda groups or the Tamil Tigers of Sri Lanka.

Public Safety Minister Vic Toews said in a statement authorities were “taking concrete steps to ensure that Canada will not be a source of weapons or other resources for groups or individuals associated with terrorism.”

Ms. Diab was arrested last year at Montreal’s Trudeau airport as she was departing for Beirut. She was charged with export violations but the RCMP said it had now linked the scheme to Hezbollah.

“It is alleged that Diab was acting under the direction of a contact person in Lebanon who is associated with Hezbollah,” the RCMP said in a press release. In addition to firearms parts found in her luggage, she was allegedly shipping other components to Lebanon through travelers destined for Lebanon. The parts were for AR-15 military rifles.

“The victims were unaware of the contents of the packages they were carrying for the accused,” the RCMP said. The new charge followed an investigation called Project Sagittaire by a Montreal-based inter-agency counter-terrorism unit.

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