OTTAWA, Canada
Canada’s parliament voted on Tuesday to join the U.S.-led coalition in the fight to eliminate the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and will send fighter aircraft “as part of a strike force” according to a Canadian government statement.
The Canadian Federal Parliament began debating on Monday and the motion was passed on Tuesday by 157 to 143 votes.
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper issued a statement on Tuesday after the debate, saying: “For two days we have debated a motion in Parliament to participate in air strikes against ISIL along with the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Australia, Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and likely others. Canada has committed up to six CF-18 fighter aircraft as part of a strike force.”
The prime minister stated that it was very important for Canada to stop the spread of ISIL along with its allies and “reduce its capacity to launch terrorist attacks outside the region, including against Canada.”
According to PM Harper’s statement, Canada’s engagement in the fight in Iraq was not to be a ground mission, but included targeted measures to prevent ISIL military movements.
A U.S.-led aerial campaign was launched against ISIL targets in Iraq on August 9, being supported by France, the U.K. and Belgium, along with Arab allies Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
www.aa.com.tr/en
