His father thinks he’s lost. His brother holds out hope. But no one in Harun Abdurahman’s family knows how to turn around the young Canadian man who has become an unapologetic supporter of the Islamic State terrorist group.
Born in Ontario to a Christian family steeped in military tradition, the Manitoba resident told the Star in an earlier interview that he believed last fall’s terror attacks on Parliament Hill and in Quebec were “justified” retribution for Canadian military aggression against ISIS.
“I think a lot of Canadians need to wake up and understand that we’re doing this and worse to other people in other countries,” said Abdurahman, who agreed to be identified only by an online pseudonym that he has adopted.
He spoke about his convictions, his belief that all Muslims should emigrate to Syria and Iraq, where the Islamic State has declared a caliphate governed by Sharia law and of learning that he was under investigation by Canadian spies who saw him as a potential threat to national security.
But this turn of events has also had a devastating impact on Abdurahman’s family. Beginning last December, Canadian Security Intelligence Service agents interviewed his ex-girlfriend and older brother in Ontario as well as his father, who is a serving member of the Royal Canadian Air Force in Alberta. The agents carried with them a thick file on the young man.
This week, however, the spy agency told family members they had intensified their investigation. » | Allan Woods | Quebec Bureau | Sunday, March 08, 2015
