| An Egyptian-born Canadian has been detained in his homeland for suspected al Qaida connection, and the Egyptian government is refusing to release him, media here reported Saturday. Elsherief, 63, is believed to have connections with Ahmed Said Khadr, who has been accused by Canadian security officials of being a member of al Qaida. The Egyptian government says Elsherief was held at the request of a foreign government. The Canadian government will formally approach Egypt’s ambassador to Canada this week. Elsherief was returning to Egypt from a religious pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia and was detained on Feb. 5 during a stopover in Egypt. He came to Canada in 1976 and became a Canadian citizen three years later. For a brief period, he was a principal of an Islamic school attached to the Salaheddin Mosque in the eastern Toronto suburb of Scarborough. |