On Sunday, a mosque in Quebec City, Quebec was attacked by a masked gunman. Six people were killed, 5 more are in critical condition.
The attack came on the heels of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s admonishment of President Donald Trump’s new policy pausing all migration from 7 majority Muslim nations. Trudeau argued that the policy was wrong-headed and that Canada would gladly accept the migrants who would be affected by Trump’s Executive Order.
To those fleeing persecution, terror & war, Canadians will welcome you, regardless of your faith. Diversity is our strength #WelcomeToCanada
— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) January 28, 2017
Interestingly, while was denigrating the President’s order, his government was busy telling the media that Canada would not be accepting more refugees than they had planned. In fact, Canada would only be taking in about 25,000 refugees, which is exactly HALF of the amount that President Trump plans on accepting in the USA.
“Every country has the right to determine their policies. I can only tell you that we will continue our long-standing tradition of being open to those who seek sanctuary,” Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen told the CBC.
Hussen did say that Canada would not be raising the number of refugees it will accept in 2017, despite speculation after Trudeau’s tweet that it would bring in more people, according to the CBC. Canada plans to bring in about 25,000 refugees this year.
Less than 24 hours after Trudeau’s snide comments were directed at the USA, the mosque in Quebec City was turned into a shooting gallery. While the events may not be tangibly connected, they do offer a stark warning of the day and age in which we live.
Almost immediately after the attack the international media turned their sights on “white nationalists” and “neo-nazis” as the probably culprits in the mosque shooting.
One Member of Parliament even blamed Islamophobia and the “demonizing” of Muslims as the reason for the attack.
Quebec MP says deadly shooting at mosque is "a terrorist act that is…the result of years of demonising Muslims" https://t.co/H9PEImfv7Z pic.twitter.com/mBhzq0I3CR
— Al Jazeera News (@AJENews) January 30, 2017
Currently, authorities have one man in custody, a college student named Alexandre Bissonnette. Bissonnette has no criminal history but apparently called the authorities and turned himself in within minutes of the attack.
A witness who asked to remain anonymous told Radio-Canada that two masked individuals entered the mosque.
“It seemed to me that they had a Québécois accent. They started to fire, and as they shot, they yelled, ‘Allahu akbar!’ The bullets hit people that were praying. People who were praying lost their lives. A bullet passed right over my head.
“There were even kids. There was even a three-year-old who was with his father,” the witness said.
While authorities have yet to release a motive, Prime Minister Trudeau is calling this a “terrorist attack” on Muslims.
“We condemn this terrorist attack on Muslims in a center of worship and refuge… Muslim-Canadians are an important part of our national fabric, and these senseless acts have no place in our communities, cities and country.”
The post Canadian Mosque Attacked after Prime Minister Blasts Trump’s Immigration Order appeared first on The Constitution.
