A generation of young jehadis with Canadian nationality or residency who have been through terrorist training camps in Afghanistan and elsewhere pose a threat to Canada and its allies, two intelligence reports have warned.

The two declassified reports from Canadian intelligence have highlighted fears that the US' northern neighbour might become a staging post for terror attacks here, reports UPI.

US intelligence officials are worried about the possibility that Canada might be used as a base to plan and organise attacks against America.

"Intelligence reports indicate that terrorist groups locate in Canada in part because of Canada's liberal visa and asylum laws and the country's proximity to the US," Inspector General of Justice Department Michael Bromwich told Congress in 1999.

"The presence of young, committed jihadists in Canada is a matter of grave concern," states one report, titled "Sons of the Father: The next generation of Islamic extremists in Canada."

"They represent a clear and present danger to Canada and its allies and are a particularly valuable resource for the international Islamic terrorist community in view of their language skills and familiarity with Western culture and infrastructure," the report says.

Barbara Campion, spokeswoman for the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, said the situation was "alarming because (in many cases) these are people who don't have any obvious pedigree in extremism or connection to terrorist groups."

In other cases, however, individuals with long and well-known histories of association with terrorist groups are at large in the country, apparently continuing to organise.

Jim Judd, the service's director, told the Canadian Senate that there were "several graduates of terrorist training camps, many of whom are battle-hardened veterans of campaigns in Afghanistan, Bosnia, Chechnya and elsewhere", currently living in Canada.

The intelligence reports were produced in April 2004 but Campion said "the situation depicted ... continues to be accurate."

Campion would not comment on the numbers of suspected second-generation jihadis in Canada, but she said the service was generally monitoring a fluid total of about 350 individuals and organisations - in Canada and abroad - who pose threat of one kind or another.

She said the service was also working "very, very closely" with its US counterparts and that "if we have information we think an intelligence partner needs to know, we pass that right along."

The other declassified report, titled, "Al Qaeda attack planning against North American targets", says Canada is high on the list of the terror group's targets because of its presence in Afghanistan.

The nation was listed the fifth most important target by the Al Qaeda in March 2004, "behind the US, Britain, Spain and Australia".

"Canada is the only country listed above which has thus far not been directly attacked by Al Qaeda," the report notes ominously.

--Indo-Asian News Service