Article content continued

While one of the terrorists was killed in the explosion, the Canadian and Australian left the country the day of the attack. A senior Bulgarian law enforcement official said the suspects were currently residing in the same country. He did not name it, but there are strong indications it is Lebanon.

Despite travelling on a genuine Canadian passport, the unnamed Canadian had lived briefly in British Columbia as a child. He returned to Lebanon at age 12 after his mother divorced and has only returned on just two occasions, but he still carried a current Canadian passport.

“My understanding is that he came to Canada as a child, I think at about the age of eight, obtained citizenship about three or four years after that, left Canada at the age of 12. I understand he returned to Lebanon,” Mr. Kenney said.

He said Canada could only revoke citizenship from those who had obtained it by fraud. Since the suspected Hezbollah member was a child when he became a Canadian, there was nothing the government could do under existing laws, he said.

While polling indicated “pretty strong support” for dual citizenship, he said “I think where we might want to make a distinction is among dual citizens who have completely rejected any sense of loyalty to Canada, gone out and committed terrorist crimes, committed acts of war against Canada.”

Europol, the European police agency, said in a statement a forensic investigation had traced the false U.S. driver’s licences used by the suspects to Lebanon, and that Bulgaria’s claims of Hezbollah involvement were consistent with Europol findings.

The allegation that Hezbollah had staged an attack on European soil has put renewed pressure on the European Union to add the group to its list of terrorist groups. The matter will likely be discussed at a gathering of EU foreign ministers on Feb 18. A spokesman for German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Hezbollah would face “consequences” if its involvement in the bus bombing was proven.

National Post

• Email: sbell@nationalpost.com | Twitter: StewartBellNP