"Allah told me to do this, Allah told me to come here and kill people."

CHCH:

Ayanle Hassan Ali, the man accused of attacking three Canadian Forces officers Monday afternoon, made his first court appearance on Tuesday.

Ali is facing nine charges, including three counts of attempted murder.

His bail hearing at a North York Courthouse was pushed back four hours and when he did eventually arrive a whole hoard of cameras were waiting for him.

Ayanle Hassan Ali is accused of stabbing and slashing two Canadian forces officers at the Recruitment Centre on Yonge Street, near Sheppard Avenue in Toronto.

Both officers, Ryan Kong and Jesus Castillo are expected to survive.

Tracy Ann Gerhardt was attacked but not hurt.

While Ali has remained silent throughout the initial investigation, police at the crime scene did hear him proclaim that, “Allah told me to do this, Allah told me to come here and kill people.”

However, Toronto Police Chief, Mark Saunders, is being careful not to call this a terrorist attack.

Police say the 27 year old Montreal native moved to Toronto in 2011 and lived in the city’s west end.

Ali has no previous criminal record and police can’t confirm whether he’s affiliated with any extremist group.

David Burke, Ali’s laywer, says his client is upset, scared and at this point, a mental health test hasn’t been ordered.

The Police Chief is clear on one thing, this appears to a deliberately targeted attack.