After serving his sentence, he travelled to Syria and joined an extremist group, possibly Jabhat Al-Nusra.ĬSIS and the RCMP are also investigating Damian Clairmont, a Muslim convert from Calgary who left for Syria last year.

But sources suggest it is in the dozens and that Syria has become the biggest attraction for jihadists since Afghanistan.Īmong those killed in Syria was Ali Dirie, a Somali-Canadian who was imprisoned for his role in the Toronto 18 terrorist group that plotted attacks in Southern Ontario. The Canadian Security Intelligence Service declined to say how many Canadians were fighting in Syria. They could also be anointed as heroes in their communities, further fuelling the country’s Islamist radicalization problem, he said. “Most of them will not, but some may,” he said. On Thursday, the head of MI-5, Andrew Parker, testified that the number of Britons fighting in Syria was in the “low hundreds.” He said he was concerned they might turn against the U.K. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.

While Canada has been supporting the Syrian opposition, it has also expressed concern over the growing role played by such extremist groups as Jabhat Al-Nusra, which want to impose their harsh, intolerance version of Islamic law on Syrians.Ĭanadian authorities are also worried that citizens who have travelled to Syria to fight will return home to spread extremist ideology, recruit others and possibly conduct attacks on Canadian soil. Two of the terrorists killed in the operation were young Canadians. “Listing this terrorist entity, which has publicly sworn allegiance to Al-Qaeda, is an essential part of our efforts to combat terrorism,” Steven Blaney, the Minister of Public Safety, said in a statement.Īlso listed was Algerian terrorist Mokhtar Belmokhtar’s faction, Al-Muwaqi-un Bil Dima, which staged the deadly attack on the In Amenas gas plant in January. Jabhat Al-Nusra is one of hundreds of armed groups fighting to topple Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad. The attacks have taken place in Damascus, Aleppo, Homs and other major population centres. Manage Print Subscription / Tax Receipt.

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