Sunday, June 14, 2026
ADVT 
National

Canada Must Guard Against Terrorism: PM Harper

IANS, 24 Jun, 2015 12:56 PM
    Canada is not immune to the threat of terrorism and so "continued vigilance is essential", Prime Minister Stephen Harper has said.
     
    Harper made the remarks on Tuesday while laying a wreath in the Hall of Honour to mark the "National day of Remembrance for Victims of Terrorism" observed to honour those killed in the 1985 Air India bombing.
     
    An Air India flight flying from Toronto to London crashed off the coast of Ireland on June 23, 1985, killing all 329 people on board. Most of the dead were Canadians of Indian origin. 
     
    Sikh extremists were blamed for the bombing.
     
    Harper said he cannot "help but cast his mind back to the Canadians who perished in Air India Flight 182 and in the World Trade Centre attacks... and to the many terrorist activities foiled by the vigilance of Canadian security agencies.
     
    "The recollections serve as a reminder that Canada is not immune to the threat of terrorism and that continued vigilance is essential."
     
    Addressing a gathering in parliament building here, he said it was a terror attack that killed the 329 passengers and crew members aboard Air India. 
     
    "On this sombre anniversary, we stand in solidarity with the friends and families who lost loved ones in that heinous attack and honour those lost.
     
    "We were deeply moved by this solemn tribute as well as by our meeting the kin of the victims," he added.
     
    Among the kin of the victims present was Susheel Gupta, whose mother Ramvati died in the bombing. Gupta said he regretted that his children would not be able to meet their grandmother.
     
    Meanwhile, a memorial service in Ireland was attended by India's Minister of State for External Affairs V.K. Singh, Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs Charlie Flanagan and Canadian Minister of Justice Peter MacKay.

    MORE National ARTICLES

    Former CBC host Jo-Ann Roberts Seeks Federal Green Party Nomination In Victoria

    Former CBC host Jo-Ann Roberts Seeks Federal Green Party Nomination In Victoria
    VICTORIA — A former CBC radio host hopes to take her fight for the embattled public broadcaster all the way to Parliament Hill.

    Former CBC host Jo-Ann Roberts Seeks Federal Green Party Nomination In Victoria

    RCMP Arrest Fushpinder Singh Brar Of Surrey In Historic Homicide Dating Back To 2006

    RCMP Arrest Fushpinder Singh Brar Of Surrey In Historic Homicide Dating Back To 2006
    SURREY, B.C. — Surrey RCMP say they have made an arrest in a historic homicide dating back to 2006. Mahdi Halane was shot in the neck following a confrontation at a gas station in October 2006.

    RCMP Arrest Fushpinder Singh Brar Of Surrey In Historic Homicide Dating Back To 2006

    Fire Victim In Chase, B.C., Was Charged In 2008 With Killing Husband

    Fire Victim In Chase, B.C., Was Charged In 2008 With Killing Husband
    KAMLOOPS, B.C. — A woman who died in a mobile-home fire in Chase, B.C., last week was the victim in a domestic-dispute case in 2007 and charged with killing her husband less than a year later.

    Fire Victim In Chase, B.C., Was Charged In 2008 With Killing Husband

    Pineapple Express Drenches Vancouver Before Moving On To Central Coast Of B.C.

    Pineapple Express Drenches Vancouver Before Moving On To Central Coast Of B.C.
    The Pineapple Express that drenched the Vancouver area is now drifting north, with heavy downpours expected to pummel the central coast of British Columbia.

    Pineapple Express Drenches Vancouver Before Moving On To Central Coast Of B.C.

    LNG Pipeline Deals With B.C. Nets First Nation Millions Of Dollars

    LNG Pipeline Deals With B.C. Nets First Nation Millions Of Dollars
    VICTORIA — Millions of dollars are expected to flow to a First Nation in British Columbia's northwest as a result of two new deals tied to proposed liquefied-natural-gas pipelines.

    LNG Pipeline Deals With B.C. Nets First Nation Millions Of Dollars

    Crash At Surrey And North Delta Intersection Sends Police Officer, Mother And Tot To Hospital

    Crash At Surrey And North Delta Intersection Sends Police Officer, Mother And Tot To Hospital
    NORTH DELTA, B.C. — A pregnant mother, a toddler and a police officer were all taken to hospital as a precaution after a collision in a Metro Vancouver intersection. 

    Crash At Surrey And North Delta Intersection Sends Police Officer, Mother And Tot To Hospital