麻豆影视

Skip to main content

Quebec mother left behind in Syrian prison camp as 6 children set to return to Canada

Share

Six children will soon be leaving a Syrian prison camp on a flight for Canada, but delays in their mother鈥檚 security assessment means the Quebec woman will not be able to come with them.

The mother, who hails from Quebec, had until today to decide if she would allow her children to join other Canadians on the repatriation flight, or if they would remain with her in Syria, according to Alexandra Bain of the group Families Against Violent Extremism.

鈥淚'm shocked. It doesn't make any sense," Bain told the Canadian Press in an interview Saturday. "It's not how I expect Canada to behave."

The oldest of the six children are two girls, 14 and 13 years old, followed by four boys, the youngest of which is five years old. They have been languishing in a prison camp in northeast Syria with their mother since 2018. Now, they鈥檙e set to be separated.

鈥淲hat she鈥檚 been told in the last few days is that the children is eligible for repatriation but she's expected to stay in the detention camp,鈥 Lawrence Greenspon, the lawyer of the Quebec woman, told 麻豆影视.

The Quebec woman and her children are among the numerous foreign nationals who are trapped in camps in war-torn Syria run by Kurdish forces who recovered the area from ISIS forces.

Last November, Global Affairs notified the 38-year-old woman that her family qualified for repatriation because of "deteriorating conditions" in the camp and "threats to her children's safety.鈥

She was told officials had 鈥渋nitiated assessments.鈥 麻豆影视 is not publishing the woman鈥檚 name due to the sensitivity of the case. Similar letters were sent to 26 other Canadian women and children, including a group who sued in federal court to get repatriation.

The Quebec woman wasn't part of that initial court case, and four months after getting the letter, her security assessment still hasn't been completed.

When 麻豆影视 inquired about what was missing from the woman鈥檚 application and what the status was, considering that she鈥檇 been told she met the criteria in November, Global Affairs responded that while they were aware of the Canadian women and children detained in Syria, they could not provide specific details 鈥渄ue to privacy and operational security considerations.鈥

鈥淲e continue to evaluate the provision of extraordinary assistance, including repatriation to Canada, in line with the Policy Framework adopted in 2021,鈥 Grantly Frankin, spokesperson with Global Affairs, said in an emailed statement.

Greenspon said that it violates Canada鈥檚 policies to separate the mother and children.

鈥淚t's completely unacceptable,鈥 Greenspon said. 鈥淐ontrary to every 鈥 treaty Canada has signed, and contrary to policy framework of Global Affairs that says thou shall not separate mother and children.鈥

He added that if there are issues with the woman鈥檚 application, there are currently RCMP officers at the camps in Syria, who could interview her in order to clear up whatever is delaying her application being approved.

鈥淭he questions they have for her related to when and where she would go once she returns to Canada are perfectly fair questions,鈥 Greenspon said. 鈥淨uestions about how she got to northeastern Syria, and what she was doing prior to her getting there would be questions outside the bounds of necessity in determining if she should come back to Canada or not.鈥

Bain told the Canadian Press that the Quebec woman had been beaten and attacked while in detention.

Advocates say the woman's husband is missing and she doesn't have relatives in Canada. Four of them were born in Canada, and two were born in Syria. When the children return to Quebec, they will be put in foster care.

"She's doing this for her children. And she's terrified that she's doing the wrong thing,鈥 Bain, whose organization helps families whose loved ones are caught up in violent extremist groups, said.

A flight out is expected any day. On that plane is expected to be the six children, along with six Canadian women and 13 other children who the federal government agreed to bring home as part of the court action.

But the Quebec woman will not be with them, and she has no idea when she鈥檒l be able to see her kids again.

鈥淗er primary impulse is to get them out of harms' way, but she's not getting the reassurance from her government that she will be able to participate in her children's upbringing,鈥 Greenspon said.

News of this Quebec mother's decision to allow her children to fly home to Canada without her comes just days after a group of foreign-born mothers of Canadian children were given an ultimatum to decide if they would relinquish guardianship of their children to bring them to Canada.

Unlike the Quebec woman, they decided not to surrender their kids. 

IN DEPTH

Opinion

opinion

opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike

When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.

CTVNews.ca Top Stories

The British Columbia election campaign is set to officially start today, with Lt.-Gov. Janet Austin issuing the writ for the Oct. 19 vote.

A northern Ontario man is facing a $12,000 fine after illegally shooting a moose near the Batchawan River.

Unusual flippered feet are making their way into the Saint Lawrence River this weekend. Led by underwater explorer and filmmaker Nathalie Lasselin, volunteer divers are combing the riverbed near Beauharnois in Mont茅r茅gie to remove hundreds of tires that have been polluting the aquatic environment for decades.

A sea lion swam free after a rescue team disentangled it near Vancouver Island earlier this week.

Local Spotlight

Cole Haas is more than just an avid fan of the F.W. Johnson Wildcats football team. He's a fixture on the sidelines, a source of encouragement, and a beloved member of the team.

Getting a photograph of a rainbow? Common. Getting a photo of a lightning strike? Rare. Getting a photo of both at the same time? Extremely rare, but it happened to a Manitoba photographer this week.

An anonymous business owner paid off the mortgage for a New Brunswick not-for-profit.

They say a dog is a man鈥檚 best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.

A growing group of brides and wedding photographers from across the province say they have been taken for tens of thousands of dollars by a Barrie, Ont. wedding photographer.

Paleontologists from the Royal B.C. Museum have uncovered "a trove of extraordinary fossils" high in the mountains of northern B.C., the museum announced Thursday.

The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.

It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.

Stay Connected