Canada's spy chief warns of increasing violent radicalization of Canadian children

OTTAWA — The kids aren’t alright, warns Canada’s spy chief, as nearly one in ten of CSIS’s terrorism investigations now involves at least one minor who was radicalized online.  

In his first annual speech, Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) Director Daniel Rogers said he’s increasingly concerned by growing violent extremism in Canada, particularly among those under 18 years old.  

The extremism is motivated by different ideologies such anti-Semitism, xenophobia, misogyny, “extreme interpretations” of religion or accelerationism (the desire to accelerate the collapse of society) that spread faster and easier than ever due to online content, Rogers said.  

That means children and teenagers are much more susceptible to falling into the trap of violent extremists online, he warned.  

“Worryingly, nearly one in ten terrorism investigations at CSIS now includes at least one subject of investigation under the age of 18,” Rogers told an audience of government and police officials, academics and reporters.  

Just this year, two minors were arrested on suspicions they were planning to commit serious violent acts.  

The first was a minor in Montreal allegedly planning an attack on behalf of Daesh, the second was a 15-year-old Edmontonian police suspected would commit attacks on behalf on an online transnational violent community, Rogers noted.  

“Fortunately, only a small number of youth or adults with extreme views resort to violence. But when they do, the consequences are devastating,” he said.  

In the last 11 years, there have been 20 violent extremist attacks in Canada that killed 29 people and injured 60 more, Rogers noted.  

He said CSIS has helped disrupt 24 “violent extremist actions” that led to arrests of terrorism peace bond charges in just over three years.  

A number of those involved individuals suspected of planning attacks either on behalf of Daesh or against the Jewish community, or both.  

Since 2023, Rogers said CSIS assisted in the arrest of two 15-year-olds in Ottawa before they allegedly committed a mass casualty attack against the Jewish community. The agency also contributed information leading to the arrest of a man planning a Daesh-inspired attack on the Jewish community in New York.  

The spy chief also said the agency is focusing more resources on “particularly alarming” cases involving plots by Iranian intelligence to repress — and sometimes murder — critics and dissidents of the regime in Canada.  

“In more than one case, this involved detecting, investigating, and disrupting potentially lethal threats against individuals in Canada,” Rogers said of transnational repression efforts by Iran.  

China and India are also known perpetrators of transnational repression against Canadians perceived to be a threat to their interests, he added.  

China’s efforts to spy on Canada to steal anything from state and military secrets to intellectual property have not relented recently, Rogers warned.  

He revealed that agents of China are increasingly targetting the private sector and former government workers, namely via fake hiring schemes.  

“Chinese spies have tried to recruit Canadians with access to government plans, intentions, information, and military expertise, through social media and online job platforms,” he warned.  

Russia and China are also aggressively pushing for more intelligence and influence in Canada’s Arctic.  

“Both of those countries, and others, have a significant intelligence interest in our Arctic and those who influence or develop its economic or strategic potential. It’s no surprise, then, that CSIS has observed both cyber and non-cyber intelligence collection efforts targeting both governments and the private sector in the region,” he said.

Rogers ended his speech by putting Canadians on notice: the agency will need to collect and use more data than before to keep the country safe.

“CSIS will be challenged to adopt technology and use data in new and more significant ways to keep Canadians safe and to secure an advantage for Canada,” he said.

National Post

cnardi@postmedia.com

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