Los Angeles International Airport. To Bell, the Ressam case illuminates the significant differences between the ways Canadian and American officials have reacted to terrorists. "CSIS was aware of him since 1995 and was watching him, but they never put him out of business," Bell said. "On the other hand, the second he entered the United States, he was stopped, arrested and turned into a very good government informant. According to Bell, Canadian security officials have good intelligence-gather- ing mechanisms, but until recently lacked effective legal tools to battle domestic terrorists. But he noted that recent counter-terrorism legislation should strengthen the government's hand — provided it develops the political will to act. Francois Jubinville, a spokesman for Canada's Privy Council Office, noted that the government has committed more than $8 billion to enhancing national security since December 2001 and has further demonstrated that it is "coming onstream" by releasing a new national security policy in Ottawa. "Certainly the national security poli- cy is the clearest sign possible of how seriously the government takes the security issue and how committed the government is to tackle any threat to security head-on," Jubinville said. Paul Martin, who replaced Jean Chretien as prime minister in December, recently established a new Ministry of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, and put Deputy Prime Minister Anne McClellan in charge of it, Jubinville noted. Until relatively recent times, fund-rais- ers for terrorist groups have been able to raise millions of dollars in Canada because most Canadians don't realize where their money is going, Bell said. "The primary targets are outside of Canada. We don't see the final explo- sions, so we don't come face to face with the violence," he said. Bell, who grew up in Vancouver, said he was deeply affected by the 1985 Air India terrorist bombing, in which Canadian-based perpetrators blew up an aircraft carrying hundreds of people. The case is still before the Canadian courts. Though he had written about ter- rorism for years, Bell said he never fully grasped the subject until two years ago, when he walked through an Israeli pool hall that had been devas- tated by a Hamas suicide bomber. The bombing killed 16 people and injured scores. "A guy with a green garbage bag was Homemade Soups & Salads 0 Coney Specials a Greek Specialties Omelettes - Daily Lunch & Dinner Specials Homemade Sandwiches vad 6144 " Cafritteoziefrd 2acatien4 Detroit Comerica Park Stadium Birirliraghf.-15n 154 S. Woodward Ave. Bloomfield Twp. 6527 Telegraph Rd. collecting pieces of people," Bell said. "I remember thinking, 'How could someone walk into this crowded room filled with innocent people, look them in the face and just obliterate them?"' During one of several journalistic stints in the Middle East, Bell also vis- ited Hezbollah headquarters in Beirut, but said he was not overly fearful of putting himself in Hezbollah's hands. "You have to remember that terror- ism is a psychological act as much as anything. Those that foster it are inter- ested not only in the killing but in the message," he said. "So it's surprising how open these organizations often are to meeting with journalists and explain- ing where they're coming from. To an extent, I exploit their need to talk." In Toronto, however, the award-win- ning reporter has received enough threats that the newspaper has put security precautions in place to protect Bell and his family. "He sparks controversy among those who believe that anyone arrested on a terrorist charge has been wrongly accused," the National Post's managing editor, Mark Stevenson, said. "There are a lot of people who don't like what he does because he reports the news." Bell's articles also generate many appreciative phone calls and e-mails from readers who regard the issue as one of primary national concern, Stevenson added. "He's a good, old-fashioned news reporter and investigative journalist. He gets it first and he gets it right." ❑ 9845 Telegraph Rd. Livonia Millennium Park (Middlebelt & 1-96) Laurel Park Mall (37622 6 Mile Rd.) West Bloomfield 1735 Canton Center Rd. "Cold Terror" spotlights Jamal Akkal, a former university student from Windsor; Ontario, who was arrested in Gaza last summer for Hamas-related activities. Farmington Hills 30985 Orchard Lake Rd. (between 13 & 14 Mile Rd. Ann AftboT 1235 S. University Dearborn Heights 26540 Ford Rd. (The Heights Plaza) 37580 W. 12. Mile Rd. 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