The Canadian Press
Murray Brewster
OTTAWA—Even though they’re responsible for a string of atrocities and affiliated with the grand-daddy of terrorist groups, al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb largely has flown under the radar in terms of public perception of extremists.
But that could change in the aftermath the slaughter of at least 28 people that ended early Saturday at a luxury hotel in the west African nation of Burkina Faso, an outrage that left six Canadians among the dead.
All six were from Quebec and were in Burkina Faso doing humanitarian work.
It’s not the first time Canadians have been targeted by AQIM, which has claimed responsibility for the attack.
The same faction of the group was responsible for the kidnapping of Canadian diplomats Bob Fowler and Louis Guay in 2009, and its commander—Belmokhtar Mokhtar—is wanted by the RCMP.
Speaking in Peterborough, Ont. yesterday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau led a moment of silence for the victims and condemned the attacks on the Splendid Hotel and nearby Cappuccino Cafe, which left a estimated total of 28 dead, as a “brutal act of violent terrorism.”
Trudeau spoke at a restored mosque that was firebombed in the aftermath of deadly attacks in Paris back in November.
His government is facing increased political pressure as the Conservative opposition tried to link the events in the impoverished nation with the Liberal plan to withdraw CF-18s from the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and refocus Canada’s military contribution.
Opposition leader Rona Ambrose, in a statement, demanded Trudeau “end the ambiguity” about the country’s role in fighting ISIL.
She added the latest attack is “proof that decisive action is required to confront this threat.”
Defence experts say, other than sharing an overall extremist ideology and a loathing of the west, there is little that al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb and the Islamic State have in common.
In fact, they can be considered rivals with some important differences.
ISIL controls territory and wants to take the fight directly to western countries around the globe.
AQIM—other than a brief occupation of northern Mali—is fractured and generally does not appear interested in governing.
It is considered more a regional player interested in ousting or influencing Islamic governments in west Africa, according to experts at the U.S.-based Rand Corporation.
“They’ll attack western interests when it suits them,” said retired colonel George Petrolekas of the Conference of Defence Associations Institute.
France, which considers AQIM a more immediate threat, has been carrying on a quiet, mostly-effective campaign to identify and disrupt the group ever since beating back their advance by in northern Mali two years ago.
Petrolekas said he wouldn’t be surprised if the Liberals—in offsetting criticism for pulling jets out of Iraq—considered some form of contribution to the ongoing French mission against AQIM.
He noted it would be politically saleable in light of the weekend attack and a mission in northern Mali carries with it the added blessing of the United Nations—something that speaks to the Liberal desire to work with multi-lateral institutions.
“This whole terrorism fight is not limited to just one patch of ground,” Petrolekas said, noting the Dutch already are part of a western African mission and that French special forces were brought in to help end the seige in neighbouring Burkina Faso.
“There’s ample room for special and conventional forces, let alone we helped the French with the C-17,” he added, referring to the Conservative government’s use of Canadian heavy-lift transports to move French troops to Mali in the early winter of 2013.
The Rand Corporation, which studies conflicts around the world, has said the successful French intervention in Mali should serve as model for future U.S. expeditionary missions.
At the moment, France has more than 3,000 troops spread across five countries in Africa—Mali, Mauritania, Burkina Faso, Niger, and Chad.
They conduct operations to disrupt potential militants threat across the Sahel region.
