NDP leader Tom Mulcair is forgoing the celebration and raising red flags after reports a Canadian sniper in Iraq broke the world record for the longest confirmed kill.
National Defence says the sniper is a member of the ultra-secret Joint Task Force 2 unit deployed as part of Canada’s mission against ISIL, and that his target was more 3.5 kilometres away.
Get daily National news
READ MORE: Canadian sniper in Iraq makes longest confirmed kill shot in military history
That is more than a kilometre farther than the previous record, which was held by a British sniper who shot a Taliban fighter in Afghanistan in 2009.
But while news of the shot is spreading around the world like wildfire, Mulcair has written to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau raising concerns about what the shot means for Canada’s mission in Iraq.
- Suicide barriers needed on Vancouver’s Granville Street Bridge, advocates say
- Kelowna heritage area residents raise concerns over transit-oriented housing plan
- High winds blow into Saskatchewan, causing dust storms, power outages
- Saskatoon Mamba open at home for 1st game of the season against Vancouver
In particular, Mulcair says the incident raises fresh questions about the Liberals’ promise that Canadian soldiers would not be involved in combat with ISIL.
The government has long maintained that Canadian soldiers in Iraq are not in combat, even though their so-called “advise and assist” mission allows them to shoot and kill ISIL fighters.
Comments
Want to discuss? Please read our Commenting Policy first.