All Posts Tagged With: "Hassan Diab"
Accused terrorist’s replacement takes over at Carleton
New instructor says it became “difficult” to have Diab in the classroom
Carleton University says Hassan Diab, an Ottawa professor who was released on bail after being arrested in connection with the 1980 bombing of a Paris synagogue, has been relieved of his teaching duties of a summer Carleton course.
On July 30, Karen March, a sociology professor at Carleton, took over as the summer sociology course’s class instructor. She and students addressed the controversy surrounding Diab’s dismissal as part of their class discussion on “social problems.”
Some students enrolled in the first-year sociology class Diab taught since mid-July say they are not happy he has been replaced
“They knew who he was when they hired him. What’s the point of changing it because the media found out?” said one student in the July 30 class, the first scheduled class since the professor’s dismissal.
“Three weeks of class, three profs and I need this courses to graduate,” said another former student.
Diab started teaching the class after the instructor who was originally scheduled to teach, George Pollard, became ill one week into the summer course, which started the first week of July.
For complete OnCampus coverage of this story, including commentary, click here.
March says she took over from Diab because it became “difficult to have him in this class,” but that she was “not coerced” into teaching.
The reasoning for the professor’s dismissal, according to Carleton’s release, was “in the interest of providing its students with a stable, productive academic environment that is conducive to learning.”
The announcement came following reports from several media sources, including the July 27 Ottawa Citizen article, concerning Diab’s new teaching assignment, and criticism from the Canadian national office of B’nai Brith, an international Jewish human rights advocacy group.
The group issued a statement July 28, saying, “the conditions of Diab’s bail do not even allow him to leave his home alone or to own a cell phone, but Carleton officials believe that it is fine for them to make him a member of their faculty? The last place in the world where this man belongs is in a university classroom, in front of impressionable students.”
CUPE Local 4600, the union representing Carleton teaching assistants and contract instructors, said in a open letter addressed to Carleton president Roseann Runte, obtained by the Charlatan July 29, that they are “extremely concerned” about Diab’s dismissal.
“Mr. Diab has the right to be assumed innocent until proven guilty,” it read.
In the letter CUPE also raised the fact that Diab was fired after he had already been teaching the course under contract; his sudden dismissal may go against the collective agreement the union has with the university.
CUPE 4600 said they are urging the university “to balance public opinion with the law and a sense of professional integrity.”
The Canadian Association of University Teachers also said in a release July 29 that it “condemns in the strongest possible terms” the change in professors.
It goes on to say that Carleton’s actions “represent a serious violation of basic rights and procedures” and that they are calling for the school to reinstate Diab.
The department of sociology and anthropology at Carleton has said they will not be releasing the name of the course’s new professor until July 30, after the class is scheduled to begin at 2:30 p.m.
On Carleton Central — Carleton’s course registration website — the instructor for the class has changed from Hassan Diab, who was still listed July 28, to “TBA.”
Diab was arrested in November 2008 and accused of killing four as a result of the 1980 terrorist blast which was blamed on the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-Special Operations after no one claimed responsibility.
As part of his bail conditions granted on March 31 of this year, Diab has been outfitted with an electronic monitoring bracelet, is under house arrest when not attending work and must obey a curfew and refrain from owning a cellphone, among other impositions.
According to the Citizen, Ontario Superior Court Justice Robert Maranger said the strict conditions were necessary to prevent the risk of Diab fleeing the country before he is to appear at an extradition hearing to face murder and destruction of property charges in France.
The Citizen also reported Diab was to be allowed to travel to Carleton accompanied by court-appointed surety and his common-law spouse, Rania Tfaily, also a Carleton sociology professor, to teach the course that is scheduled twice a week.
Diab told French newspaper Le Figaro during an interview in 2007 (as translated by the Citizen): “I am a victim of mistaken identity not based on anything . . . I have never belonged to any Palestinian organization, nor have I been militant politically.”
Diab has previously taught courses at both Carleton and the University of Ottawa.
The university has said it is not commenting further on the issue.
Neither Diab’s lawyer or Tfaily, were available for comment.
Diab faces his extradition hearing Jan. 4, 2010.
— a version of this story appeared in the August edition of the Charlatan, Carleton University’s student independent newspaper
Professors work for you
A call to take back your education
Poor Carleton. From the embarrassing Shinerama fiasco to the more recent Hassan Diab hiring/firing controversy, media attention certainly hasn’t been the university’s friend.
As reported by Dean Tester, my OnCampus colleague, Hassan Diab was recently hired for, then fired from, a summer position teaching introductory sociology at Carleton University in Ottawa. Diab is accused in the 1980 bombing of a Paris synagogue that killed four and injured dozens more. He is under virtual house arrest and faces an extradition hearing in January.
Carleton released a statement Tuesday saying their decision to remove Diab from the position was “in the interest of providing its students with a stable, productive academic environment that is conducive to learning.”
I’m not going to debate the integrity of their decision. I’ll let you assume what side I’m on. Here’s what’s of more immediate importance to me:
Carleton has faced criticism from the Canadian Association of University Teachers for removing Diab from the post. James Turk, the association’s executive director, chastised the university saying, “They did this solely because of external pressure. It’s an abdication of the responsibility of universities to be insulated from these kinds of pressures.
Now, obviously I’m incredibly naïve and misinformed, but I was under the impression that students, you know, pay for their university education.
Oops, I’m sorry; am I going too fast? I’ll back up a bit. You see, “money” is exchanged for “goods” and “services.” With said exchange comes an expectation of the standard and/or quality of benefits received. So, to be specific, university tuition is paid with the expectation of receiving a level of post-secondary education befitting certain quantitative and qualitative standards.
To use a different, kindergarten-level example: if I pay a barber to cut my hair, I’m allowed to tell him how short. If I give money to a restaurant in exchange for a meal, I expect the cook not to spit in my food. And if I pay a university $5k+ a year for an education, I expect administrators to consider my opinion when I give my two cents about their hiring decisions. They don’t have to take my opinion—just consider it.
With that idea in mind, Turk’s expectation that universities be “insulated” from “external pressures” is not only misguided, but simply put, it’s unreasonable. Whether directly or through representative organizations, students should have their voices heard.
Diab saga continues at Carleton
OnCampus blogger tweets live from former professor’s classroom
One of my colleagues at Carleton University and fellow OnCampus blogger, Jennifer Pagliaro, is live-tweeting from the former classroom of Hassan Diab, a professor accused of bombing a French synagogue nearly 30 years ago. Diab was hired to teach introductory sociology at Carleton University, then quickly replaced following public outcry. This is the first class being taught by his replacement, and they reportedly will discuss Diab’s situation as part of the lesson.
You can follow the updates at http://twitter.com/CharlatanLive
For background, you can also see Pagliaro’s piece that appeared in today’s edition of The Charlatan (Carleton’s independent newspaper) at http://charlatan.ca
Man accused in bombing hired, then fired at Carleton
Carleton University removes professor accused of attack on synagogue one day after he was hired, citing concerns about a “stable, productive academic environment”
A man accused of bombing a French synagogue nearly 30 years ago will not teach at Carleton University, as originally planned.
Yesterday, the Ottawa Citizen reported that Hassan Diab, a former professor at Carleton University and the University of Ottawa, was hired to teach a sociology course for the rest of the summer.
However, a spokesperson for Carleton University now says they have replaced Diab “in the interest of providing its students with a stable, productive academic environment that is conducive to learning.”
Several Jewish groups spoke against the hiring, including the Canadian Federation of Jewish Students.
“It was a questionable decision to welcome him back in the first place,” said Ariella Kimmel, vice president external of the CFJS. ”To have somebody charged with such a horrible offense would be incredibly distracting.
“But we commend Carleton for recognizing their mistake quite quickly.”
B’nai Brith and the Canadian Jewish Congress also released statements questioning the hiring of Diab.
Representatives from the Carleton University Students’ Assocation declined to comment.
Diab is charged with the murder of four people in a 1980 bombing in Paris.
He is on strict bail conditions which prevent him from leaving the house alone and force him to wear an electronic monitoring bracelet, but had made special arrangements to teach. He will face an extradition hearing on January 4, 2010.
Ottawa lecturer and alleged Paris bomber denied bail
French authorities claim prof belonged to a terrorist group, lawyer calls it a case of mistaken identity
A university professor facing murder charges from a 1980 bombing in Paris has been denied bail as he awaits hearings for extradition to France.
Also read: Ottawa U instructor maintains innocence in Paris bombing
Hassan Diab has been in custody since his arrest Nov. 13 at the request of French authorities, who allege he was involved in the explosion that killed four people outside a synagogue in the French capital.
Canadian government lawyers had argued Diab would be a flight risk if he was allowed to go free before the extradition proceedings begin, likely next month.
The judge agreed, saying “all the ingredients exist to spur a flight in this case.”
French police affidavits claim evidence links Diab to the purchase of a motor scooter that was used to place the explosives in front of the synagogue. French authorities allege he belonged to a terrorist group backing an independent Palestinian state at the time.
But Diab’s Quebec-based lawyer, Rene Duval, argued it was a case of mistaken identity and said Diab was attending university in Beirut, Lebanon, at the time of the attack.
Diab has been a part-time sociology lecturer at Carleton University and the University of Ottawa for the last year.
His wife, who offered to put up bail and vouch for Diab’s release conditions, is a full-time professor at Carleton University.
- The Canadian Press
Wife says accused prof is innocent in Paris blast
French police allege U Ottawa, Carleton prof played a role in synagogue bombing
The wife of a university professor accused in a 1980 Paris terrorist bombing says she is confident her husband had nothing to do with the attack.
French police allege Hassan Diab played a role in the blast at a synagogue that killed four people. They are seeking his extradition.
Diab’s wife, Rania Tfaily, herself a university professor, told an Ontario Superior Court hearing on Friday she believes the charges against him are a mistake.
She says she’s prepared to post thousands of dollars in bail.
Diab has been in custody since his arrest last week and is seeking bail as part of his extradition hearing.
Tfaily says their relationship has been strained in the last year, but she still supports him.
“I believe he’s innocent, I’ve known him for some time,” Tfaily told Justice Michel Charbonneau of Ontario Superior Court.
Questioned by federal lawyer Claude Lefrancois, she said she and Diab had discussed political events throughout their relationship including terrorism, the deaths of innocent people and mass murder.
“I know enough of that to realize he would never do such a thing,” she said.
“It is not going to be the first time or the last time that innocent people are accused,” she said.
The RCMP arrested Diab, 55, at the request of French authorities, who submitted affidavits to back their claim of Diab’s involvement in the deadly attack.
The evidence includes claims by French police that Diab used an alias and a false Cypriot passport to enter France in 1980 before buying a motorscooter that carried explosives that detonated outside the synagogue.
The evidence also includes police sketches of the bombing suspect based on witness descriptions, and old passport photos.
- The Canadian Press
Ottawa U instructor maintains innocence in Paris bombing
French officials have 45 days to back up their extradition request
A publication ban has been ordered in the bail hearing for a sociology instructor facing extradition to France in connection with the fatal bombing of a Paris synagogue in 1980.
Ontario Superior Court Justice Michel Charbonneau ordered the ban at the request of federal lawyers in the case of Hassan Diab, who was arrested by RCMP officers at his Gatineau, Que., home Thursday at the request of French authorities.
Under Canadian law, French officials have 45 days to provide further legal details to back up their extradition request.
Diab’s name first surfaced in French news reports last year in connection with the 1980 attack that killed four people and injured 20 others.
Diab, who teaches part time at the University of Ottawa and Carleton University, has told the Paris daily newspaper Le Figaro he is a victim of mistaken identity.
Diab, 55, is said to hold Lebanese and Canadian passports and to have lived in the U.S. for several years before moving to Canada.
The investigation traces its roots to Oct. 3, 1980, when a bomb hidden in the saddlebags of a parked motorcycle exploded outside the synagogue of the conservative U.L.I.F. group as hundreds of worshippers gathered inside for a Sabbath service.
Three French men and one Israeli woman were killed.
The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-Special Operations was blamed at the time. Diab’s name is alleged to have been found on a list of former members of the group obtained by German intelligence.
- The Canadian Press
