Repatriating Canadian Islamists

"It is understandable that many Canadians would prefer to see these persons [Islamists with Canadian citizenship supporting ISIS overseas now held in custody] not be returned to Canada and instead remain locked up abroad."
"Unfortunately, that instinctive reaction shifts the burden of dealing with these thugs and ideologues, and their children, to a country that was victimized by them and may not have the resources or stability to do what is needed."
Scott Newark, former government security adviser, Toronto, Ottawa

"Given the security situation on the ground, the government of Canada's ability to provide consular assistance in any part of Syria is extremely limited."
Spokesperson Department of Global Affairs, Ottawa

Men suspected of being ISIS fighters wait to be searched by members of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in Syria's northern Deir Ezzor province on Feb. 22, 2019. (Bulent Kilic/AFP/Getty Images)

The 'security situation on the ground' is no longer the danger it once was. Certainly not in Kurdistan where members of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and their families are being held, guarded by Kurdish fighters, held in Kurdish prisons. You might say in trust that foreign Islamist fighters who left the countries of their citizenship will soon be taken off the hands of courageous Kurdish militias whose exploits on the battlefield largely resulted in the defeat of ISIL.

They have no wish to hold these failed human beings as their responsibility. They vanquished the global threat which admittedly still festers and will continue to -- albeit underground until another opportunity arises where its leaders will once more infest the world with their violent threats, inflicting atrocities on the innocent -- and now they await the eventuality of these human discards being taken off their hands.

Europe doesn't want them, North America is loathe to have them return nor is Oceania anxious to reclaim their presence. An official Canadian presence in Syria is understandably difficult for political reasons, to be sure. But not impossible in semi-autonomous Kurdistan for the singular purpose of arranging that Canadian jihadis be returned to Canada for this is a Canadian responsibility as long as the government insists on not revoking citizenship from these bestial ideologues.

What is perhaps more to the point as far as uneasy Canadians are concerned, is that many of these Canadian-citizen jihadis returned from abroad of their own volition once Islamic State's 'caliphate' disintegrated, scurrying like rats from a sinking ship, to infest Canada with their ongoing presence. These are Islamists who committed themselves to a violent, disgusting ideology that embraced a very public and bestial form of violence against its 'enemies'.

Those currently in detention in Syria include a Canadian who used social media to encourage terrorist attacks in Canada, and another who is believed to have helped produce ISIS execution videos.

As such they themselves were either involved in mass murder, torture, persecution of minorities, rape, training of recruits and collaboration in communication and propagandizing threats, and with their allegiance and their militant skills now walk about unhindered on the streets of Canadian towns and cities, perhaps under RCMP and CSIS scrutiny, perhaps not. Government appears to be uncertain of its responsibility to hold these people accountable for the crimes they were involved in.

Lack of ability to gather 'proof' and 'evidence' of involvement in mass executions, rape, torture and general violence is cited lamely by the federal government as tying its hands under Canada's judicial system in holding them to account. That they are free and unhindered speaks to a lack of responsibility on government's part in not acting decisively, both to exact justice on behalf of those wronged by ISIS, and in protecting the Canadian public from the malign presence of those whose commitment to terrorism threatens Canadian public safety.

"Asked recently why these Canadians remain overseas without charge, the prime minister deflected the question by pointing to RCMP independence. But it is the attorney general who must approve the laying of terrorism charges and offences under the War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity Act (the few that criminalize conduct by Canadians overseas). We also know that the decision to repatriate Canadians is not the RCMP’s. That would fall to the minister of foreign affairs, likely in consultation with the ministers of Public Safety and National Defence if the Canadian Forces were to be involved in their return."
"The Kurds are shouldering the burden of detaining, feeding and clothing these former ISIS members, and have repeatedly said that they do not want this responsibility. As a non-state actor, they lack the authority to hold trials and incarcerate them long-term. The Kurds are also facing their own issues, notably ongoing threats from Turkey to “root out” Kurdish terrorists, and a Syrian government that could seek to reassert control over their territory. In either case, these conflicts could seriously test the Kurds’ capacity to maintain control over the detention centres. Putting a plan in place now, however unpalatable politically, will avoid having to address this issue in an even more insecure environment should a crisis develop on the ground."                                             Leah West, Amarnath Amarasingam, Jessica Davis, June 17, 2019, Policy Options