Search: “Iraq”

So we continue to wring our hands over the fate of our citizens who fought with Islamic State (IS) and other terrorist groups, primarily in Syria and Iraq but in other conflict zones as well. On the one hand is the crowd that says “let them rot in some Syrian hellhole for what they did: […]

This piece appeared in The Hill Times on October 22, 2018. Imagine if you will the following scenario. In the wake of two successful terrorist attacks in October 2014, in which two innocent Canadians were killed, the Harper government initiated a system of concentration camps for Muslims living in our country. Anyone caught in possession […]

This piece appeared in The Hill Times on October 22, 2018. Imagine if you will the following scenario. In the wake of two successful terrorist attacks in October 2014, in which two innocent Canadians were killed, the Harper government initiated a system of concentration camps for Muslims living in our country.  Anyone caught in possession […]

So we continue to wring our hands over the fate of our citizens who fought with Islamic State (IS) and other terrorist groups, primarily in Syria and Iraq but in other conflict zones as well.  On the one hand is the crowd that says “let them rot in some Syrian hellhole for what they did: […]

With all the talk lately about bringing terrorists who fought for Islamic State (IS) and other groups abroad back to Canada to face charges here one glaring omission is often made: just how hard it is to prosecute people under sections 83.01ff of the Canadian Criminal Code (the sections that deal with terrorist activity).  Cases […]

As the entire world continues to follow the media frenzy over a bunch of probably ineffective pipe bombs sent to a couple of high-profile people – former President Obama, philanthropist George Soros, actor Robert DeNiro and a few more – this may be the perfect time to talk about the nature and frequency of terrorism […]

I am pretty sure I have mentioned this before but here it is again.  When I worked for CSIS and my colleagues and I had occasion to talk to Canadians who had traveled to Afghanistan to join Al Qaeda we would often hear some lame excuse from the returnees as to what they did while […]

Canadians are justifiably angry at those among us who spat on our flag, burned their passports and left one of the world’s finest countries to join terrorist groups like Islamic State (IS).  Not that the numbers are that high – a few hundred maybe compared with thousands from several European, African and Asian nations – […]

Foreign fighters are all the rage these days in Canada (hmm, ‘all the rage’ – kinda describes jihadis to a T doesn’t it?).  Many, many Canadians are going ballistic over reports that some of our citizens who left our land to join Islamic State or other terrorist groups abroad have had a change of heart […]

While this may strike some people as arrogant and dismissive I have to confess that when I listen to ‘experts’ talk about national security issues in the media I first look at who is speaking.  Some of those who offer opinions are journalists, others are politicians or political junkies, still others are academics.  All have […]