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“The important point there is political intent, and ‘political’ is fairly widely interpreted,” he said. “If we’re talking about (ISIS), for example, they will always justify what they’re doing in religious terms. But as far as law enforcement is concerned, that’s political.”

There has been considerable debate over whether terrorism should be defined separately from other acts of mass violence, said Christian Leuprecht, a security expert with Queens University and the Royal Military College of Canada.

“This is an issue that was raised after 9-11 and this is an issue that continues to preoccupy us,” he said. “Is there a point in actually having terrorism as an offence at all?”

However, Leuprecht said he believes the legal distinction is important.

Is there a point in actually having terrorism as an offence at all?

He said Canada’s anti-terror legislation affords police more powers in preventing planned attacks, but investigations tend to be longer and more laborious. The government also must be able to identify and define terrorist organizations, he said.

“If we simply rely on Criminal Code provisions then we can’t lay out those clear distinctions,” he said.

Leuprecht added there are “mountains of case law” for prosecutors to rely on when it comes to seeking a conviction for conspiracy to commit murder. But terrorism-related offences are a relatively new area of law and only a small number of people have been convicted.

He said the target of the attack is important, pointing out a plot to attack the Nova Scotia legislature would have likely been considered terrorist.

“These are distinct threats to the broader national security of Canada,” he said. “Plotting to commit an attack on a mall in Halifax, while atrocious, is not an inherent risk to the security of Canada.”

The suspects charged in connection with the Halifax case, Lindsay Kantha Souvannarath, 23, and Randall Steven Shepherd, 20, are to appear in court on Tuesday to face the allegations against them.

A third suspect, a 19-year-old teen, was found dead by police in a Halifax area home while a fourth person, a 17-year-old, was arrested but later released without being charged.