Convicted terrorist Said Namouh still poses risk of violent extremism: parole board

MONTREAL — A Quebec man convicted in 2009 of plotting international terrorist attacks with a group tied to al-Qaida has not deradicalized and would still pose a risk to society if released, the Parole Board of Canada says.

The board denied parole to Said Namouh on Dec. 9, saying there remains a risk that he will violently reoffend for ideological reasons if he is let out of prison.

“The 2022 psychological report indicated that your political and religious beliefs had radicalized during a period of psychological distress at the moment of your offences and noted the absence of deradicalization and the persistence of an extremist ideology, concluding that there’s a worrying risk of violent recidivism motivated by an ideology,” the report said.

“The psychological evaluation of risk completed in October 2025, based on information in your file, confirms these conclusions.”

Namouh’s values and ideologies are “essentially similar” to what they were at the time of the crimes, the board said.

Namouh, 52, was handed a life sentence in 2010 for four terrorism-related charges in a vaguely defined plan to bomb targets in Germany and Austria. It was only the second time in Canadian legal history that a person was sentenced to life for terrorism charges.

The Moroccan-born man was involved in an organization called the Global Islamic Media Front, which was described during his trial as a terrorist group involved in propaganda and jihad recruitment.

Namouh spread jihadist propaganda and conspired with the group’s members to set off an explosive in a public place. The parole board said he had been “ready to accomplish all the necessary tasks” involved with an attack, including setting off the bomb himself.

The parole board decision notes that Namouh has continued to deny taking part in any terrorist plot, and to insist that the Global Islamic Media Front is not a terrorist group. The board noted he has made some progress but remains unwilling to address the underlying causes of his radicalization and still justifies the use of violence in some circumstances.

He has also verbally lashed out at guards and broken rules in prison, including those around smoking and prayer times, the report said, leading to concerns about his ability to respect laws.

The parole board decision notes that Namouh faces deportation upon release.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 23, 2025.

Morgan Lowrie, The Canadian Press