Monday, December 16, 2013

Canadian Military Brass Worried About a Repeat of Lee Rigby

I think none of our Soldiers are immune to such barbaric slaughters...

http://news.nationalpost.com/2013/12/16/military-feared-canadian-soldiers-could-also-be-targeted-after-extremists-butchered-british-serviceman-in-london/


Military feared Canadian soldiers could also be targeted after extremists butchered British serviceman in London ~  | 

More from Stewart Bell | @StewartBellNP


A “Secret” intelligence report distributed after extremists butchered a British serviceman in London says Canadian military personnel could be similarly targeted over Ottawa’s role in Afghanistan and Mali.
AP Photo / MOD
AP Photo / MODIn this undated photo shows Lee Rigby known as ‘Riggers’ to his friends, who was attacked and killed by two men in the Woolwich area of London.
Following the killing of Private Lee Rigby in May, and the stabbing of a French soldier in Paris days later, the government’s threat assessment office said Canadian soldiers might also be vulnerable.
“Canadian military personnel are present in a number of locations in Europe. Attackers may or may not be able to distinguish between Canadian military uniforms and those of other nations, but being identified as Canadian would not necessarily make attack less likely,” it said.
“Canadian personnel have served throughout the intervention in Afghanistan and continue to serve — albeit in a non-combat role — in that country. Canada has also contributed support to the French intervention in Mali; prior to the collapse of that nation’s military forces, Canadian soldiers were prominently identified in Canadian media in the summer of 2011 as being present in Mali as trainers.”
The back-to-back attacks in London and France came as al-Qaeda propaganda was promoting “individual jihad” — small scale attacks against the West that use common, everyday weapons.
Military boots are laid in tribute outside the Woolwich Barracks, in London, in response to the bloody attack on British soldier Private Lee Rigby who was killed in the nearby street last May. Together with al-Qaeda ideology that depicts Western military forces as worthy targets, the attacks appear to have raised concerns for the safety of Canadian personnel far from the frontlines.
“While there have been debates on jihadist fora about the legitimacy of attacks on non-military targets, military facilities and personnel appear to be seen as acceptable targets whether deployed or at home,” the report said.
A National Defence spokesman said Monday that Canadian Armed Forces members were trained and equipped to deal with the dangers they faced. “That being said, it is impossible The report was released to the National Post under the Access to Information Act. It was written by the Integrated Terrorism Assessment Centre, comprised of members of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, RCMP and other security agencies.
The attacks in Europe both involved knives and deliberately targeted soldiers. After running over and trying to behead Pte. Rigby with a meat cleaver, the killers said they were avenging the deaths of Muslims by British soldiers.
At his murder trial last week, one of the accused, Michael Adebolajo, a 28-year-old Nigerian-born convert, said he “loved” al-Qaeda and was “a soldier of Allah.” He said the killing was not murder because Muslims are “at war” with Britain.
Justin Tallis / AFP / Getty Images files
Justin Tallis / AFP / Getty Images filesBritish man Michael Adebolajo (left) walks by a line of local people linking arms in reaction to a planned demonstration by members of the English Defence League (EDL) near Harrow Mosque in London on September 11, 2009. Michael Adebolajo, 28, made his first court appearance at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London on June 3, 2013 to be formally charged with murdering soldier Lee Rigby on May 22, 2013.
Three days later, a 21-year-old stabbed a French soldier in the neck. French authorities said the suspect was a Muslim convert motivated by “religious ideology” and that he had “wanted to attack a representative of the state.”
“Small scale attacks offer advantages and disadvantages to extremists,” the report said. “Simple, straightforward attacks using readily available weapons and minimal preparation on undefended  targets are a better match with the actual capabilities of most extremists.”
The Toronto 18 terrorist group dismantled in 2006, as well as the two Ontario men arrested in 2010 following the Project Samossa investigation, had discussed targeting Canadian military facilities, the report noted.
But the only attack conducted in recent years was the work of leftist radicals who bombed a recruiting office in Trois-Rivières, Que., in July, 2010, to protest what they called “the militaristic ideals and policies of the Canadian government.”


No comments:

Post a Comment