Jihad becoming ‘as Canadian as maple syrup’ says Calgary man who joined armed extremists in Syria

Cult-like and almost cartoonish. While dangerous, it also marks, like the BC couple that converted and were arrested (Surrey couple charged with terrorist plot against B.C.Legislature on Canada Day), the rise of the amateurs, as in the UK film, Four Lions:

A Canadian foreign fighter in Syria taunted the “evil, despotic and Zionist Harper government” on Wednesday, claiming it was losing the battle against extremism and that fighting jihad was becoming “as Canadian as maple syrup.”

In a blog post, Abu Dujana al-Muhajir, part of a small circle of Calgary youths who left for Syria to join armed extremist groups, said “so-called radical Islamists” were gaining in popularity and the number of Canadian jihadists was growing.

He denounced leading Canadian Muslims opposed to extremist violence, naming writer Irshad Manji and imams Muhammad Robert Heft and Syed Soharwardy, calling them “deviant” and saying they were outnumbered by militants.

“Know very well that for every single sellouts [sic] like Tarek Fatah or Mubin Shaikh, we are gaining hundreds of brave Damian Clairmont and Andre Poulin from amongst you who are willing to sacrifice everything for the sake of Allah,” he wrote.

We know from CSIS and the RCMP that the number of violent extremists is estimated to be around 130, with 30 active in Syria. Still cause to be concerned but certainly not “as Canadian as maple syrup.”

Jihad becoming ‘as Canadian as maple syrup’ says Calgary man who joined armed extremists in Syria | National Post.