MONTREAL, Canada
A Canadian citizen has agreed to wear an electronic monitoring bracelet as part of a "peace bond" in case he decides to join Daesh militants in Syria -- despite the fact he has not been charged with any offense.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police, or RCMP, and 22-year-old Merouane Ghalmi are reported to have reached an agreement on the move under the "peace bond" arrangements brought under a law enacted in 2001, which has since been applied on eight occasions.
The reasons for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police's suspicions towards Ghalmi are not known as the contents of a sworn affidavit relating to the case have been sealed, the Montreal News reported.
Ghalmi will not be allowed access to social websites and his Internet access will be blocked under the agreement.
His passport has also been confiscated by Canadian police and he will be monitored by them for a year.
The move comes after Canada's Conservative government introduced the anti-terrorism Bill C-51 earlier this year, which has made it easier for the RCMP to obtain a "peace bond."
'Reasonable fear'
Under a new, lower threshold, police only have to "fear" a person "may commit'' a terrorism offense for the bond to be used.
Ghalmi has not commented publicly on the arrangement.
The Department of Justice Canada describes a "peace bond" as a "criminal court order which sets out specific conditions to protect the safety of others or property."
It says the bond "can be ordered where there is a reasonable fear that another person will cause personal injury to them or their family, will damage his/her property, or where there is a reasonable fear that another person will commit a sexual offense against them."
Syria and Iraq have been plunged into conflict since June 2014 when Daesh stormed the northern province of Mosul and declared what it said was a caliphate in the two countries.
The Canadian Defense Ministry earlier said that Canada had joined the fight against Daesh, sending 69 elite troops and 600 personnel to Iraq in an "advisory and assistance role."
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