TORONTO - Eighteen people arrested in an alleged terror plot have become the subject of a discussion group on the popular social networking website Facebook.
The 500-member group is arguing for the fair treatment of the men and teens who were arrested in the greater Toronto area last summer in one of the largest counterterrorism operations in Canada since 9-11.
All were charged with various terrorism-related offences amid accusations of plotting to bomb government targets in Toronto and Ottawa.
One 16-year-old Toronto-area boy was freed in February after charges against him were stayed by the Crown. A few others have been released on bail.
The Facebook group is urging members to write to politicians and to officials at the Maplehurst detention centre in Milton, Ont. -- where many of the terror suspects are being held -- to ensure they are being fairly treated.
It has also embarked on a membership drive in the hopes of attracting 2,000 members.
The creator of the group says its purpose is to ensure that the suspects' trials are fair and that the suspects' families are supported.
Adeel Vanthaliwala also says he doesn't want the group to become political, and has asked members to keep their political views to themselves.
Lawyers close to the case say that four of the terrorism suspects have been held in extreme isolation for almost a year even though the courts have never ordered their solitary confinement and their trials are months, if not years, away.
