The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) is pushing for the federal government to revoke its $10.5-million settlement to Omar Khadr.
The federation says a petition it launched following Tuesday’s news that Canada will apologize to Khadr has gained more than 52,000 signatures.
“With over 52,000 names in under 48 hours, it is clear this issue has struck a nerve,” CTF federal director Aaron Wudrick said in a press release Thursday. “The notion of giving $10 million in taxpayer money to Khadr is so outrageous that many Canadians are simply beside themselves.”
READ MORE: Here’s why Omar Khadr is getting $10M from the Canadian government
The petition, posted online at Taxpayer.com, is addressed to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. It says the payout to Khadr is “offensive” to Canadians.
“Mr.Khadr admitted to killing an American soldier while fighting with al-Qaeda in Afghanistan in 2002,” it reads. “Canadians should not be forced to pay millions of dollars to a killer.”
Coverage of Omar Khadr on Globalnews.ca
The CTF added in the press release that it will present the petition to the Trudeau government.
The federal government’s decision to apologize and pay Khadr — a Canadian who spent 10 years at the U.S. military prison in Guantanamo Bay — has been largely praised by advocacy organizations and lawyers.
READ MORE: A chronological look at Omar Khadr’s long legal odyssey
“Canada has a history of recognizing and apologizing when it has made mistakes,” Toronto-based lawyer, Warda Shazadi Meighen, told Global News.
“This settlement is a recognition of the fact that we have standards in Canada.”
It has also received some backlash from the Conservative Party.
Tory MP Michelle Rempel tweeted her criticism of the decision Tuesday, saying the government is rewarding a “convicted killer.”
The prime minister, who was in Ireland when the news broke, has been relatively mum on the issue.
WATCH: Getting to know Omar Khadr
“There is a judicial process underway that has been underway for a number of years now,” Trudeau said during a press conference in Dublin.
“We are anticipating, like I think a number of people are, that that judicial process is coming to its conclusion.”
— With previous Global News files