And Here's Yet Another One

"As a Muslim, I am not interested in interfaith relations with the Christians and Jews other than calling them to Islam before fighting them."
"Watch as the Arab leaders, munafiqeen (hypocrites) and moderates condemn the killing of the American journalist ... yet are too spineless to speak about the thousands of Muslims killed by American aggression."
"[Canada is a country Muslims should] hate for the sake of Allah [because of its] support for the enemies of Islam [particularly the United States and Israel, and its] war against the Muslims in Afghanistan."
"Evil is very prominent in Canadian culture, homosexuality, fornication and adultery are generally accepted, drugs and alcohol are easily accessible and widely accepted as being 'normal', women and men are often not properly covered, music is widespread in public places."
"[Jihad is] obligatory [and] in this situation the son is to go for jihad regardless of what his parents say [to please God] one should sacrifice what he has in the West and make Hijrah (migration) to a land of jihad."
John Maguire, [Yahya Maguire], Ottawa Muslim convert, Syria

"I can't understand. Before he left, he didn't seem like that type of guy."
"Now we're all just confused. What I'm trying to figure out is how it all began. I wish I knew what it was, and I wish I could have prevented it."
"It sounds like the ideology of ISIS for sure. He is not on the right path, there's no doubt he's with the wrong group. In my eyes he was misguided."
Anonymous friend

"He said he's not coming back. My sister doesn't expect that she will ever see him again, and probably won't ever see him again alive."
"John is a very smart kid. But there was always something kind of closed off, and he kept to himself. And, of course, that's exactly what these people are looking for -- a bright guy, kind of a loner, needing a place to fit in."
Allison McPherson, Yahya Maguire's aunt

One day the Royal Canadian Mounted Police showed up at Patricia Maguire's house, several months after her son had left the country for a foreign destination. Such courtesy visits are not undertaken when young university students take a year off studying for a degree to travel the world. There are some destinations that howl out for attention. And John Maguire's decision to surrender to Islam, imbibe in its fundamental demands on the faithful and hie himself off to perform his duty is one of them.

His mother was informed that her son was now in Syria, having embarked on that trip with a one-way ticket. No good news to her, but perhaps a relief to Canadian citizens and the intelligence community that he means never to return since once such young men embark on jihad, taking on all the ideological trappings of hate and violence, who wants them to return to wreak havoc here? Rumours had circulated previously among those he studied with at the University of Ottawa.

It would appear that the multifaith prayer room at the University of Ottawa presented a useful venue for this social misfit to be indoctrinated into Islam, and in the process his willing mind twisted into the contortions of hate, blame, victimhood and revenge that are the fuel for the jihadi element wherever they exist to be recruited as fanatical terrorists. He took on the proud name of Yahya Maguire and wrote online that Canada is "evil", leading him to embrace "the reward of jihad" and "the opportunity for martyrdom".

May his fondest wish be granted.

AFP/Getty Images   A member of ISIS parading with a long-range missile on a street 

in the northern rebel-held Syrian city of Raqqa.

 

In their background search for anything that could be helpful about this newly-minted jihadi the RCMP questioned his family members, and any acquaintances from whom they hoped they might glean useful information. "They wanted to know more about him, what type of individual he was, why do you think he left", explained yet another student, wishing to remain anonymous. He had heard that his erstwhile friend had travelled to Damascus and from there on to Raqqa, under ISIS control.

Where, likely, his immature "bright" mind could be engaged in jihadi revelations and activities to write the observations he posted on his Facebook page such as that he had seen "many dead soldiers from Bashar's army". In Skype chats he entertained his mother with descriptions of the other Canadians flocking to join ISIS from Alberta and Ontario. Presumably the RCMP know all this from their confidential discussions with his mother. "They said", according to his aunt "'When he gets back to Canada, we'll be waiting for him'."