Terrorism in Quebec

When most people think about Terrorism in Quebec, their minds turn to the FLQ, the October Crisis, and Pierre Trudeau. A few might think about the Biker Gang wars...but there is a new terrorist threat in Quebec that may have world wide reverberations.

According to a story by CBC News, a Carol Montreuil's vehicle exploded last Thursday, but was attributed to an electrical malfunction. But the following day, a number of news media outlets started recieving emails from a group called Initiative de résistance internationaliste (IRI), claiming it had firebombed the car.

It turns out that Carol Montreuil is Vice-President of the Canadian Petroleum Products Institute, in charge of Eastern Canada. According to the CBC story:

"...the IRI e-mails blame oil companies for holding consumers hostage while making enormous profits, damaging the environment and financing "an imperialist army which is committing barbarous acts" in places such as Iraq."

This is not the first time that the group has acted. Sometime in November of 2004, they bombed a Hydro Quebec transmission tower on the eve of George W. Bush's visit to Canada.

In an email sent to both the Quebec French Media, and to al-Jazeera, the IRI stated:

"We refuse to allow all the weight of resistance to fall on the noble Iraqi people, who are being massacred because they were an obstacle to the American energy hegemony, or to the Bolivian peasants courageously mobilizing against the pillage of their gas resources, even risking their lives," the note said.

"We also refuse to let the Colombian and Palestinian people confront the imperial army alone, whether or not it is hidden behind a national banner." (translation by CTV news)

The IRI seems to be against what they percieve is the US's attempt at energy imperialism through armed conflict.

Who they are, how big, and how long they have been around is currently unknown.