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Canadian charged in terrorism case pleads not guilty

A teenager charged in an alleged plot by homegrown terrorists to storm parliament and carry out other terror attacks in southern Ontario pleaded not guilty to belonging to a terrorist group, becoming the first suspect in the case to face trial.

Some of the details in the case that created an international media sensation in 2006 were released publicly for the first time in court documents.

Authorities announced the arrest of 17 suspects in June 2006 after they allegedly tried to obtain 3 tonnes of ammonium nitrate. They accused the suspects of plotting terror attacks in Canada and said they were inspired by al-Qaeda.

One defense lawyer has said his client and some of the other suspects were charged with plotting to attack parliament, take hostages and possibly behead the prime minister if their demands for the release of Muslim prisoners were not met.

His comments caused widespread concern and heightened terrorism fears in Canada.

Since then, five of the suspects have been released on bail pending trial. The press is not allowed to report why because of a publication ban.

The teenager, who cannot be identified because he is a youth offender, pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to charges of participating in and contributing to the activity of a terrorist group. He was 18 at the time of his arrest.

The government said it would present evidence that proved the youth attended a training camp where he participated in military exercises and firearms training, prosecution attorney Marco Mendicino said.

Court documents obtained by The Associated Press said the accused allegedly met some of the other suspects in November 2005 at a banquet hall, where undercover police agent Mubin Shaikh made contact with the group.

They allegedly discussed plans to hold a two-week training camp and potential targets for terrorist attacks, the documents said.

The accused teenager, who is going on trial this week, allegedly attended the camp, where he trained with firearms and underwent winter survival training and combat scenarios. He was also present when another suspect delivered a fiery speech, which was videotaped and later found by police on a suspect's computer, the documents said.

Mendicino asked for a partial publication ban to prevent the media from linking evidence at the trial to the other suspects by name, saying the evidence is "palpably prejudicial" and could destroy any chances of getting a fair trial.

The judge did not immediately rule on the application.

Lawyer Paul Schabas, who represented several media outlets including The Associated Press, said there should be no publication ban at all because the public has a right to know what is going on inside the courtroom, which ordinary citizens are free to enter.
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