ISIS threat to Canada real – Harper

U.S. and coalition aircraft have stepped up airstrikes on ISIS. And NBC News is continuing to report that Canada is an ISIS target.

This comes as we learn a third of the Syrian border town of Kobani is now controlled by ISIS. Kobani is located on Syria’s border with Turkey which is a NATO member.

Fighting in Syria continues near the border with Turkey, prompting officials to ask why the Turks won’t join the fight.

Back here at home, questions are also being raised about the threat of ISIS to Canada. The head of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, known as CSIS, says while the threat is real, the agency has no information to suggest it’s imminent.

Back overseas at the Syrian/Turkish border, U.S. airstrikes have not stopped ISIS from pushing forward. Kurdish fighters are trying to hold on to the Syrian town of Kobani as the terrorist group advances. There are Turkish tanks and troops not far from it, but the government of Turkey — a U.S. ally and member of NATO, so far is refusing to fight ISIS. NATO’s new Secretary General met with a number of Turkish leaders today to push the country to get involved in the combat mission. He says NATO has deployed Patriot missiles in Turkey to strengthen the country’s air defenses, but Turkey is not entering into the fight, at least not yet.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg: “I’m making this trip at the start of my tenure to consult with you, and to hear about your efforts and your concerns at these challenging times, to show solidarity of the alliance as we face security challenges both to the south and east of our alliance. I welcome the decisive actions taken by the United States with many allies and partners, and I welcome the recent vote in the Turkish parliament to authorize an even more active role of Turkey in the crisis.

The Muslim Association of Canada is openly condemning the violence of ISIS. It released this statement, which in part reads:

“We cannot ignore global events and fail to speak out against the acts of ISIS which are of serious concern to all Muslims in Canada. ISIS is not a true expression of Islam. The Muslim Association of Canada strongly opposes violence against civilians in any form.”

“We reject any threats against the safety and security of Canadians, and we consider it a civic duty on all to oppose such threats. The safety of Canada and Canadians is the duty not only of the government, but of every Canadian.”

“We therefore stand against any Canadians becoming involved in ISIS, and we urge all Canadian Muslims to reject ISIS and its violent ideology and practices.”

Prime Minister Stephen Harper says the threat of the suspected extremists on Canadian soil is very real and that the government will be bringing in additional tools for security agencies to monitor threats. The RCMP says there are 63 active investigations of 90 suspected extremists who intend to join fights abroad or who have returned to Canada from suspected terrorism-related trips.