Canada delivers rare rebuke to U.K. over terror suspect
Goodale ‘disappointed’ over choice to revoke jailed man’s citizenship
Canada said Sunday it is disappointed the United Kingdom has decided to “off-load their responsibilities” after its close ally revoked the citizenship of a British-Canadian man who is imprisoned in Syria.
Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale confirmed in a statement that Jack Letts, who is dubbed Jihadi Jack by the media, has been stripped of his British citizenship.
“Canada is disappointed that the United Kingdom has taken this unilateral action to off-load their responsibilities,” Goodale said.
A statement from the British Home Office said revoking British citizenship is one way it counters terrorist threats. It said it does not comment on individual cases.
“Decisions on depriving a dual national of citizenship are based on substantial advice from officials, lawyers and the intelligence agencies and all available information,” the statement said.
Letts has been behind bars in a Kurdish prison since 2017.
In 2015, Letts posted on Facebook that he would like to perform a “martyrdom operation” on a group of British soldiers. But by the end of that year, he was indicating that he wanted to come home.
The man’s parents are from Oxford and were found guilty earlier this year of sending him money. They received a suspended sentence.
Organic farmer John Letts, 58, and ex-Oxfam fundraiser Sally Lane, 56, said they were acting as any parents would have when they tried to send their son cash after he begged for help.
They say they believed the 23year-old was in mortal danger and trapped in Raqqa, Syria.
Police warned the family that “sending money to Jack is the same as sending money to ISIS.”
Goodale said terrorism knows no borders, so countries need to work together to keep each other safe.
He also said Canada is under no legal obligation to bring Canadians detained in Syria home, and the government would not expose consular officials to undue risk.