An Iraqi national charged in the United States with terrorism offenses has been linked by prosecutors to a shooting outside the US consulate in downtown Toronto in March.
US prosecutors accused Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi and others of being behind the attack in Toronto, as well as a second attack targeting a synagogue in Canada, and also coordinating nearly 20 attacks across Europe linked to Iran-backed militant networks.
The incident, which Canadian authorities deemed a national security case, sparked a major investigation by the RCMP.
A release issued by the US Department of Justice revealed that Al-Saadi appeared in a New York courtroom on Friday after being charged with six terrorism-related offenses related to his alleged role as a senior member of Kata’ib Hizballah and Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
According to the newly unsealed US criminal complaint, prosecutors accused Al-Saadi and others of “planning, coordinating and claiming responsibility” for at least 18 terrorist attacks across Europe, along with “two additional attacks in Canada.”
The complaint specifically refers to a shooting at the US consulate in Toronto on March 10, 2026, in which police said two suspects got out of a white Honda CR-V, opened fire at the building and fled the scene.
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Toronto police and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said shell casings and damage were found in downtown buildings, although no one was injured.
In the US filing, FBI investigators accused Al-Saadi of discussing the Canadian attack in a recorded telephone call with a confidential source.
According to the complaint, Al-Saadi allegedly confirmed that “our people” were behind attacks in Canada targeting “the consulate and the Knesset,” which investigators said referred to the shooting of the consulate in Toronto and the attack on a synagogue.
The filing also alleges Al-Saadi told sources he was “leading multiple teams” and seeking help to carry out additional attacks in Canada and the United States.
The complaint alleges Al-Saadi then explained how agents carrying out attacks in North America could be paid.
“In Europe, we have our people; even in America, for example a few days ago, and in Canada we have our people,” Al-Saadi said in a recorded April 1 telephone conversation cited in the filing.
The complaint details attacks involving explosives, arson and stabbings in Belgium, the Netherlands, France and the UK, including attacks targeting synagogues, Jewish schools, embassies and financial institutions.
Outside court on Friday, defense attorney Andrew Dallek argued that his client was being targeted by a “political prosecution.”
“We want to convey to the court that it is very important for him that the court realizes that he is essentially being subjected to political prosecution and that he is a prisoner of war and should be treated as such,” Dallek told reporters.
Dallek also questioned the circumstances surrounding Al-Saadi’s arrest in Turkey and transfer to US custody, saying that it appeared his client had been brought to the US “without any extradition process abroad.”
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