A Calgary man is among those fighting with the terrorist cell Islamic State in Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), as experts warn that the well-organized group likely has other sympathizers on Canadian soil.
CTV News has confirmed that Farah Mohamed Shirdon appeared in a recent video released by ISIS. The video shows Shirdon uttering threats directed at Canada and U.S. oppressors.
In the video, he is also seen burning his Canadian passport.
One security consultant and RCMP informant said he’s confident other individuals with “sympathies” towards ISIS are in Canada.
Mubin Shaikh told CTV News on Channel on Friday that if ISIS has “the means and opportunity” to launch an attack on Canada, they would.
Shaikh is well-known for infiltrating the “Toronto 18” – a group plotting a series of attacks against targets in southern Ontario. The case garnered international attention following a series of sensational raids in the summer of 2006.
Shirdon is the third man from Calgary known to have joined ISIS fighters in Iraq and Syria.
While it may seem strange that a Canadian would join these terrorist groups overseas, Shaikh said these individuals don’t typically identify as Canadians.
“Their identity is not constructed on a Canadian definition,” Shaikh said. “They are lost boys, in a sense. Their identity is with something else.”
Considering Shirdon burned his Canadian passport, Shaikh doubts he will attempt to re-enter the country.
ISIS, a well-equipped, well-organized terrorist group has quickly spread across Iraq, seizing key cities and waging pitched battles for the country’s oil resources.
The group has been a steadily-growing problem in both Iraq and Syria since last December, but attacks escalated earlier this month when 800 ISIS fighters captured the Iraqi city of Mosul.
