Alleged terrorist released from Canadian Army reserves just days before flying to Israel

Zachareah Quraishi of Airdrie, Alta., was released from the Canadian Armed Forces reserves on July 10, last summer. Within 12 days, he’d bought a plane ticket to Israel, rented a car, and obtained a large kitchen knife.

Israeli authorities say that within hours, the 21-year-old attempted a terror attack on Netiv Ha’asara, a gated village of 900 close to the northern border of the Gaza Strip, on July 22.

Video shows guards firing as he came at them; his body falling just at the edge of the frame. According to Israeli authorities, the guards told him several times to stand down, but they shot him dead after multiple warnings as he yelled, “Free Palestine.”

It wasn’t reported at the time, but the National Post has learned Quraishi was a former Canadian reserves soldier.

“The individual was a member of the Canadian Army Reserve, serving with an Army Reserve unit in Calgary, Alberta. The individual enrolled on 17 July 2023, completed Basic Military Qualification on 6 Dec 2023, and released from the CAF on 10 July 2024,” Kened Sadiku, Media Relations, Department of National Defence, told National Post.

The department did not say why he was released: “The specific nature of the individual’s release (or release category) constitutes personal information and is therefore protected in accordance with the Privacy Act,” wrote Andrée-Anne Poulin from the same office.

On November 11 this year, Remembrance Day, Zachareah’s father Adam Quraishi, who works as a schoolteacher at the Siksika reservation and at the Calgary Islamic School, posted photos of Zachareah’s great-grandfather George Reed, a Canadian war veteran, alongside a photo of Zachareah wearing a Canadian Armed Forces uniform, seemingly implying that his son, who allegedly attempted an act of terror, should be remembered as a war veteran.

He was killed by Israelis, said Adam Quraishi in a video, for “looking too Palestinian.”

This follows a steady stream of posts by Adam claiming Israel wrongfully targeted his son. “He went hoping to save lives, confirmed by so many including our family doctor who talked to Zachareah. He was killed 12 hours after getting to Israel,” Adam wrote on a May 21 fundraiser posted to Facebook.

Adam wrote on Facebook and Instagram: “I’m honouring my grandfather George Reed, who served in #WWII, and my great-grandfather (also George Reed), who fought in the wars as well. And my son, Zachareah, who dedicated his life to saving lives — humanitarian work — and was tragically murdered by a country that perpetuates unimaginable violence and disinformation/gaslighting.

“Perhaps if my son resembled our Irish-French heritage, he would have been sent back to Canada. Our home. Such a beautiful place,” he wrote in the posts.

“War is never a solution … The act of killing civilians and individuals who are not fighting, especially in an AI-driven world where images can be easily manipulated, is incredibly risky.”

Adam Quraishi did not respond to interview requests.

At the time, the alleged attack was called a “wake-up call” over growing antisemitic extremism in Canada.

“The spread of radical Islam and extremist ideologies in Canada has created major cultural challenges for the country, including a plague of antisemitism that has spread, making it unsafe for Jews and Canadians to live their day-to-day lives without the fear of being attacked verbally and physically,” Canadian-born Knesset member Sharren Haskel told the National Post at the time.

The head of Canada’s spy agency, Canadian Security Intelligence Service director Dan Rogers said earlier this month that violent extremism, motivated by religion or political views — “persists as one of Canada’s most significant national security concerns. “Worryingly, nearly one in 10 terrorism investigations at CSIS now includes at least one subject of investigation under the age of 18,” he said in a public address at the National Art Centre in downtown Ottawa.

Most tourists arriving in Israel go straight to Tel Aviv, Jaffa, or Jerusalem, not to remote communities. Humanitarian volunteers typically coordinate with NGOs or religious institutions in advance.

The IDF told National Post: “A suspect arrived at the entrance of Netiv HaAsara, exited his vehicle and threatened with a knife members of the community’s rapid response team operating in the area. The rapid response team responded with fire and neutralized the suspect. No injuries to the security forces were reported.

“The suspect is a foreign national who arrived in the area from within Israeli territory, and not from the Gaza Strip. The suspect is a Canadian national.”

Canadian tourist armed with a knife screams about the war against Hamas, attempts to stab IDF troops outside Netiv Ha'asara, near Gaza. The troops reportedly instructed the individual to drop the knife multiple times but he failed to do so. He was neutralized before he could… pic.twitter.com/O6aTvtAEP2

— Eretz Yisrael 24 (@EretzYisrael24) July 22, 2024

The Department of National Defence would not elaborate on Quraishi’s service and exit from the reserves, citing privacy.

Tom Ellard, a Toronto area veteran and Royal Canadian Legion member, is a retired infantry officer with a graduate degree in War Studies from the Royal Military College.

“To be a veteran in Canada, you must have served a day in uniform. That uniform represents a blank cheque of your person to be cashed as needed by the nation,” he said.

“On November 11, we recognize the sacrifice made by Canadians in uniform as lawful combatants upholding the core value of freedom. We commit to work for peace because we know the cost of war,” said Ellard. “Everyone is free to mark this day as they choose, and veterans know the freedom their friends fought and died for includes people saying things others may find objectionable.”

Netiv Ha’asara is a moshav — a communal agricultural community — in the Negev desert about 60 kilometres south of Tel Aviv, abutting Gaza’s northern border. The community lost about 20 residents among the 1,200 Israelis and foreign nationals killed in Hamas’ October 7 terror attacks.

Photos of the scene show that Quraishi arrived at the scene driving a white Hyundai rental car. Israeli reports say he had arrived in the country the day before, saying he was a tourist. Images on Israeli media showed his passport had been issued at Cold Lake.

• Canadian behind knife attack in Israel was 21-year-old from Alberta
• Canadian knife attack in Israel called 'wake-up call' over problem of homegrown extremism

Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark nationalpost.com and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here.