Ottawa lecturer and alleged Paris bomber denied bail

A university professor facing murder charges from a 1980 bombing in Paris has been denied bail as he awaits hearings for extradition to France.

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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