STE-ANNE-DES-PLAINES - A member of the so-called Toronto 18 terrorist cell that planned to wreak havoc on Canadian targets swears he's now a changed man after a sojourn behind bars.
Ali Dirie explained to a parole hearing Monday that he's still opposed to Canada's role in Afghanistan.
And while he still believes in jihad, he says he now favours a political and peaceful version to get his point across instead of using terrorist acts like blowing up buildings.
"I (still) oppose it and I think it's an unjust war," said the soft-spoken, bespectacled man when quizzed on Afghanistan.
"But I don't think I live in a tyrannical country where I'm not allowed to hold those opinions."
Despite the professed change, the 27-year-old inmate said he didn't expect much sympathy from officials at the National Parole Board.
He does expect to be free relatively soon. Regardless of what the parole board decides in its ruling, expected this week, Dirie's prison term expires next year.
"At the end of the day, what I'm trying to say is that I'll be out in a year," said Dirie. He repeated that mantra frequently during his hour-and-a-half hearing.
"I don't have to prove anything to anybody here, I'll have to prove myself to the public and that's all that matters in the end."
Dirie was among 18 people arrested in 2006, accused of plotting to cause bloodshed and panic in Canada by bombing nuclear power plants and RCMP headquarters and attacking Parliament.
A police investigation revealed that the schemes -- which were under heavy surveillance by law enforcement -- were never really close to being carried out.
The Somali-born Dirie was arrested in 2005 and was already in prison when police moved in on the group in 2006. He remained active in the organization even while behind bars.
At his trial, the court heard that despite his incarceration, he tried to recruit inmates for extremist plots while trying to procure weapons and travel documents.
Dirie was sentenced to seven years in prison last October for his role in the plot, which came to two years with time already served.
Dirie expects to serve his full term. He lamented Monday that case workers have failed to note any progress he's made since 2006.
"I wasn't even planning to come to this hearing, but I thought it would have been helpful to me to convey my thoughts to you," Dirie told the board members.
Board officials reminded him that because of his efforts on behalf of the group while in prison, he's spent a significant amount of his time segregated from other inmates.
Most recently, he has languished in the Special Handling Unit in Quebec, Canada's highest super-maximum security prison generally reserved for the worst offenders.
In August 2005, Dirie and an accomplice were stopped in a rental car the U.S.-Canada border in Fort Erie, Ont.
They were trying to return to Canada with weapons and ammunition. Border officials found two loaded semi-automatic guns taped to Dirie's thigh.
Both men were charged with weapons-related offences, pleaded guilty, and were sentenced to two years in prison. During that time, the weapons offences were linked by police to a broader, homegrown terror plot.
Dirie said he resented what was going on in Afghanistan, with the presence of Western troops.
But only after his conviction, he says, did he start believing that opponents of the war could make a difference without violence.
"There are other alternatives. Before, I was deadlocked on a mindset," said Dirie.
"A radical answer is not going to bring about change. Common sense must prevail and that's my mindset now."
The judge who sentenced Dirie noted he was an unlikely candidate for parole. One year later, the case workers monitoring his progress concur: they believe Dirie is unmanageable, still has jihadist ideals and still poses a significant risk.
The parole board members hearing his case also told Dirie he lacked credibility, and the prisoner sounded resigned to that fact.
"Nobody will believe you when you're behind bars," Dirie said.
Dirie said the only people he needs to make amends to are his family and his community. Calling that task impossible from a jail cell, Dirie said he plans to repair relationships when he's released from prison by October 2011 at the latest.
Dirie said he will be politically active when he's released and plans to complete a post-secondary degree in engineering. He vows to be actively involved in his home community of Scarborough, in Toronto, and in the Muslim community.
"I'm in the process of making amends for what I did," Dirie said.
