TORONTO (AP) — Following a request from the U.S., Canada’s Parliament has voted to authorize airstrikes against the Islamic State militant group in Iraq
Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s Conservative Party introduced the motion last week and it was debated this week. Harper has a majority of seats in Parliament so the vote was all but assured. The motion passed Tuesday 157-134.
The motion authorizes air strikes in Iraq for up to six months and explicitly states that no ground troops be used in combat operations.
The combat mission includes up to six CF-18 fighter jets, a refueling tanker aircraft, two surveillance planes and one airlift aircraft. About 600 airmen and airwomen will be involved.
Canada is among dozens of countries that have joined the U.S.-led coalition fighting the Islamic State militant group.
“The threat posed by ISIL is real,” Harper said in a statement, referring to the Islamic State by one of its acronyms.
“If left unchecked this terrorist organization will grow and grow quickly. They have already voiced their local and international terrorist intentions and identified Canada as a potential target.”
The White House welcomed Canada’s deployment.
“Canadians and Americans have fought alongside each other in several major conflicts over the past century, and we are grateful for Canada’s further contribution against terrorism,” a White House statement said.
Canada has more than two dozen special forces advisers already in Iraq and has plans for up to 69 advisers as part of an effort to advise Kurdish forces against Islamic militants after a request from President Barack Obama. The U.S. followed that up with another request for an air combat role.
Although the mission didn’t need parliamentary approval, the government submitted it to a vote to show consensus.
Harper’s government won the support of the opposition parties for air strikes in Libya in 2011 but not for this mission. Opposition New Democrat leader Thomas Mulcair said the Conservatives are plunging Canada into a prolonged war without a credible plan to help victims of Islamic State terror.
Canada’s former Liberal government refused a request to send troops when the U.S. invaded Iraq in 2003, straining ties between the two neighbors. Canada then stepped up its Afghanistan mission.
Harper formally ended Canada’s combat role in Afghanistan in 2011. The mission cost 157 soldiers their lives since 2002, shocking Canadians unaccustomed to seeing their troops die in battle.
Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
That said, they’re going to be the most polite airstrikes you’ve ever seen.
Nice to see Conservatives supporting President Obama. Note to phony US “conservatives”- ground troops ruled out.
“…Canada’s Parliament has voted…”
Meet the new world leader.
The United States Republican Congress, meanwhile, is still vacationing, catching some rays, and hooking up with their mistresses. The things that matter to them.
I happened to see some of the proceedings on C-SPAN. They have a question-and-answer procedure like Britain.
As we might expect, the chicken-hawk war monger conservatives, when confronted with a direct and pertinent question like “Have you considered that international experts consider bombing to be counterproductive because it alienates the population we’re trying to win over?” they totally ignore what was asked and proceed to their inane, jingoistic nonsensical blather about the brave RAF bombing them to death so they’ll be free.
One liberal commented that Michael Isikoff reported that we, the US, have lowered our standards for avoiding the slaughter of innocents from the allegedly high standards we had in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Just wow. So our high standards resulted in bombing a wedding party to ground meat, and now we’ve evidently lowered even those.
They proceed to ask the war mongers whether Canada intended to keep its high standards or lower them to that of the Americans. The conservatives predictably let it in one ear and out the other and pretended it wasn’t asked. “Canada is being threatened!” they boom in response. Yeah, right.
Here, we’re much more advanced, because the question about lowering our standards below deplorable isn’t even being asked. Collateral damage? Why, these ISIL bastards are beheading people, don’t you understand? They’re selling oil for cheaper than market prices for chrissake! They control wells and refineries! That shit’s gotta stop! Not to worry – there won’t be any videos of dead women and children! We keep that shit under wraps with the cooperation of our crackerjack team of embedded journalists.
Hey, wait, that means they’re just like Saudi Arabia, well, except for the discount. Let’s bomb the fuck out of the Saudis too while we’re at it! Yeah, let’s just implement the PNAC vision full balls! Whooo!! Where can I get my “Bibi is right” bumper sticker?
Maybe drop some back bacon on’em eh.