People with traditional values could be extremists, Canadian police have warned.

Staff Sgt Camille Habel, the spokeswoman for Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), urged people to be vigilant following the arrest of four people in Quebec, who were allegedly involved in “ideologically motivated violent extremism”.

Two of those arrested in a plot to seize part of Quebec were members of the armed forces.

Sgt Habel was asked by CTV what Canadians should look out for in the wake of the arrests.

“Well, radicalisation in general quite often will show by people isolating themselves and changing their behaviour, like changing what they’re saying on a subject, like becoming more extremist,” she said.

“If someone you know believed in equal gender rights but all of a sudden is leaning towards traditional values, that might be a sign that they’re becoming more extremist.

“But we also have to remember that having the most extremist views is perfectly legal in Canada, and that it’s only acting with violence to prove that view that becomes a criminal offence.”