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OTTAWA — The federal government is poised to make it easier to track and arrest potential terrorists.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Thursday the government is planning to give police and national security agencies “additional tools” that would make it easier to monitor threats, as well as charge and prosecute people planning to carry out attacks on Canadian soil.

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Mr. Harper was short on details on the proposal first referenced in his speech to the House of Commons last week where he urged Canada to join airstrikes against ISIS extremists in Iraq. Government officials wouldn’t say Thursday when Canadians would have a look at the measures Mr. Harper alluded to.

An American news report this week said Canadian and U.S. intelligence officials were concerned about ISIS-inspired “knife and gun” attack plans against Canadian and U.S. targets in Canada.

“Our national security agencies monitor these kinds of threats,” Mr. Harper said at an event in Whitby, Ont. “We’re going to bring in additional tools to make it easier for our security agencies to monitor these kinds of threats and to charge and prosecute people when appropriate. We are going to move forward on those matters.”