Wajeehullah Arain, vice-president of community affairs for the Markaz-Ul-Islam mosque, says Fort McMurray’s muslim community condemns terrorism and urges anyone with information regarding extremism to contact police.
“As Muslims and as Canadians, we stand against this extremism, ignorance, hatred and violence,” he said. “The best course of action in combating extremist beliefs is to be proactive by educating our members, giving back to our community of RMWB and to identify and report all extremist activities to law enforcement authorities.”
QMI Agency reported the death of Farah Mohamed Shirdon of Calgary on Friday.
In his final days, Shirdon did not shy away from his beliefs. In April, a video featured Shirdon and several other foreigners burning their passports.
Shirdon came from a privileged family - his uncle was prime minister of Somalia - and attended SAIT.
“We are coming and will destroy you … this is a message for Canada and for all America,” he said. “I left comfort for one reason alone, for Allah.”
On June 23 a Twitter account bearing his name proclaimed: “Martyrdom is what I seek.”
Damian Clairmont and Salman Ashrafi are two other Calgarians who have recently died fighting Islamist jihad abroad.
Last August, Andre Poulin, a Timmons, Ont. man who converted to Islam several years ago, was killed fighting in Syria. He arrived in Syria in 2012. A video posted online in July shows where Poulin’s convictions led him: lying dead in a field in Syria.
“Like most Canadians, it is hard for us to fathom why anyone would do this,” said Salem Al-Ahmad, a board representative of the Alberta Muslim Political Action Committee and a Fort McMurray resident. “We strongly condemn the actions of this young man, and those who recruited and trained him.”
Last February, CSIS director Michel Coulombe told a Senate committee that about 130 Canadians had travelled overseas to fight with guerilla groups in the Mideast and Africa.
He also said CSIS was monitoring as many as 80 Canadians who may have fought with terrorism groups and have returned to Canada.
Both Al-Ahmad and Arain said Fort McMurray’s muslim community maintains a good relationship with the RCMP to bridge cultural gaps, and cooperates with the police on many community safety initiatives.
“As a community we collectively strive to uproot any extremist views. We have an open line of communication and a strong relationship with the RCMP,” said Arain. “Education is the best tool to combat extremism; which is a by-product of ignorance.”
However, Fort McMurray’s transient population still has some fearing a Fort McMurray connection to a future terrorist attack.
“So far thankfully we have not encountered any issue involving extremism in our community,” said Arain. “We understand the need to be proactive because the RMWB is a region with a transient demographic.”