Borealis Threat & Risk ConsultingAnother Canadian has been arrested on a terrorism peace bond. Mohammed El Shaer, a 28-year old resident of Windsor, Ontario and a business graduate, had served time for falsifying information on a Citizenship and Immigration form that he filled out while in Turkey but was released only to be re-held on terrorism allegations. It is […]
There is little doubt that Islamic State is under tremendous pressure in Iraq and Syria. Kinetic action carried out by airstrikes and ground forces have whittled away at the group and and the same time the group’s sources of financing are being targeted. The size of its so-called “Caliphate” is smaller than it was and […]
As we continue to get more information on the terrorist who killed 50 people and injured as many more in Orlando yesterday we find ourselves yet again in the murky world of “Why?” Why would someone kill dozens of innocent civilians? Why was he not being followed? Why was he able to get a gun […]
We are getting all too used to this. A man (usually, but very occasionally a woman) walks into a theatre/school/office/restaurant with a weapon that has no place other than a war zone and kills dozens. Sandy Hook. Aurora. Columbine High School. San Bernardino. Now Orlando. More mass shootings in the US than there were days […]
There is obviously a difference between thought and action. While it is generally true that most actions are preceded by thought, save I suppose rash emotional or instinctive/involuntary acts, it is also true that many thoughts do not lead to action. If you think about all the thoughts you have in a given […]
It sometimes seems that we have a love-hate relationship with our law enforcement agencies. We want to feel safe and we expect our men and women in uniform to protect us from serious crime, save women and children from domestic abuse and be human enough to engage with the homeless and destitute on on streets […]
Bangladesh is a country born in the paroxysms of violence 45 years ago and one that is teetering on the abyss of more bloodshed day by day. As the country finally deals with the massacre of thousands in the early days of independence through the trials and, in some cases, executions of the perpetrators of […]
Over the past few years we have been informed that a significant number of Canadians – probably close to a 100 according to the latest data (i.e. the CSIS Director) – have decided to travel to Syria/Iraq and join terrorist groups such as Islamic State and, to a lesser extent, the Al Qaeda-affiliated Jabhat al […]
Canada is a pretty good place to live. We constantly rank high on every conceivable list (quality of life, happiness, opportunity, openness…) and it is no secret that millions who live elsewhere would give anything to move here. Sure, we are not perfect and we have a few skeletons in our closet (first and foremost […]
A truly astonishing statement came out of a recent OSCE conference on countering terrorism hosted by Germany. Astonishing not for its insight but for the fact that it was made in 2016. Here is what happened, according to a report in Deutsche Welle: For a long time, there was an assumption that the internet was increasingly […]