Clarify rules for anti-ISIL fighters: study
TORONTO • Governments need to clarify whether their citizens can legally serve as volunteer fighters in armed groups battling the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant ( ISIL) in Syria and Iraq, a study released Tuesday has recommended.
The Institute for Strategic Dialogue report found that governments “appear reluctant to state clearly” whether the hundreds of Western anti- ISIL fighters, many of them military veterans, have broken any laws.
The hazy legality has led to confusion and uncertainty among both volunteer fighters and law- enforcement agencies over whether Westerners joining forces with Kurdish militias could be prosecuted at home.
The Canadian government has sent mixed signals on the issue: while verbally discouraging Canadians from taking up arms against ISIL, Ottawa has not pre- vented them from travelling or arrested them, although some have been questioned by t he RCMP upon r eturning.
“There is a need in some instances for governments to clarify the legal situation surrounding anti- ISIS foreign fighters,” according to an advance copy of the 64- page report obtained by the National Post.
“All governments should be explicit in their communications around anti-ISIS foreign fighters to ensure the legal position and possible sanctions are clearly set out. Law- enforcement measures and prosecutions then need to be applied consistently and proportionately.”
The report also recommends that governments “highlight the state’s existing work on the ground, the potential dangers that anti-ISIS foreign fighters face, and the fact that many local groups explicitly ask foreigners not to come.”
While research on foreign fighters has focused mostly on Islamist extremists who have crossed into Syria and Iraq to join such terrorist groups as ISIL, the British study examined some 300 anti- ISIL combatants in the region.
Canadians made up about five per cent of the sample. More than a third were Americans, 14 per cent British, eight per cent German and six per cent French. About 31 per cent were veterans of their national militaries. A third had joined the Kurdish YPG militia in Syria, while one- fifth were with Kurdish peshmerga forces in Iraq.
About 20 Canadians have made their way to Syria and Iraq to fight alongside Kurdi sh f orces. They i nclude Canadian Forces veterans frustrated over Ottawa’s limited military role against terrorist groups involved in the conflict.
Alex Moreau, who recently returned to Vancouver following seven months with the YPG, said in an interview Monday he believed governments did not want their citizens joining the fight, but were reluctant to say so for political reasons.
The former infantry reservist said he had volunteered as the security team leader for a combat medical unit attached to the YPG because he felt he could not enjoy the good life in Canada while Syrians were suffering.
The all-Western unit distributed first aid kits on the front lines in Syria, treated casualties of gunfire and explosions, and trained locals to provide emergency medical care, said the 36-year-old owner of a Vancouver property management company.
The study found the military veterans were motivated partly by a desire to “finish the job” they had started in their respective armies. “Many fear that their previous efforts, and those of their colleagues that were killed or injured, will be in vain.”
Other factors identified by researchers were disgust over ISIL execution videos, the desire to protect persecuted minorities, thrill-seeking and a search for purpose. Recruitment of anti- ISIL fighters is taking place on social media, the study found, with Facebook being the most popular online platform.
“Social networks should ensure they are aware of not only the various groups that are using their networks or platforms, but also what they are using them for, and consider whether any of their activities violate their terms of service,” the report said.
Laws concerning foreign terrorist fighters are relatively explicit: those who join terror groups or engage in terrorist activities abroad are likely to face arrest upon their return. But what about those who fight with groups trying to stop ISIL?
“Legality can hinge on the state’s current allegiances in the relevant conflict. The complexity of the war in Syria and Iraq creates a situation whereby it is not always clear under what circumstances anti- ISIS fighters could face legal sanctions,” the report said.
The study compared the legal situation in Canada to that in the United States, where it said the federal government’s informal policy has been described as: “As long as you’re shooting in the right direction, at bad guys, they don’t really care.”
Moreau said that when he returned to Canada three weeks ago, he told border officers he had been fighting with the YPG in Syria. “I gave it to them straight,” he said. “And then they said, ‘ Thank you sir, you’re on your way, good job.’”
He said the officers asked if he would speak to the RCMP and he agreed. He said he wanted to pass on what he had learned in Syria but nobody has yet contacted him. “I haven’t heard anything,” he said. “I’m kind of disappointed.”