Michael Zehaf-Bibeau fatally shot and killed Corporal Nathan Cirillo. Corporal Cirillo was a Canadian solider who was on ceremonial guard duty at the Canadian National War Memorial last Wednesday, October 22, in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Zehaf-Bibeau then launched an attack on the nearby Centre Block parliament building, where members of the Canadian parliament were attending caucuses. Zehaf-Bibeau was killed inside the building in a gunfight with parliament security personal. The downtown core of Ottawa was then placed on lockdown while the police searched for any additional potential threats and confirmed that it was only one shooter.
This attack came just two days after another attack on military personnel in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec, Canada, on Monday, October 20, which also killed a Canadian solider. Stephen Harper, Prime Minister of Canada, said that “[these attacks] serve as a grim reminder that Canada is not immune to the types of terrorist attacks we have seen elsewhere around the world.”
A possible cause of these two attacks is that earlier this month, Canada’s Parliament voted to enter into a combat role with the coalition to fight the Islamic State of Iraq, including sending forces over to the Middle East. A video made by Zehaf-Bibeau was recovered in which he states his motives. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said that his motives were “In respect, broadly to Canada’s foreign policy and in respect of his religious beliefs.”
This attack is the most serious security breach at Parliament Hill since the 1966 Parliament bombing. Even though the October 20 and October 22 attacks both resulted in the death of a Canadian solider, there is no direct correlation that has yet been found that links the two, even though there does seem to be similar motivation.
Robert Thacker, chair of the Canadian Studies department, had been planning to take his Intro to Canada class to Ottawa on Friday, October 24. This trip had been planned since August and fit into an appropriate place in the syllabus, allowing the students to observe a question period and take a walking tour of the Canadian Parliament buildings. Professor Thacker said that the shooting actually happened on Wednesday at 10 am, which is the exact time he and his students would have been on Parliament Hill on Friday. The trip was obviously cancelled, and he is attempting to reschedule it.
Professors and faculty members were told to not take students to Ottawa last week after the shootings and over the weekend, as even though the city seemed safe, there was no reason to potentially put any of our SLU community members at risk. Professor Thacker thinks that because of our close proximity to Canada, it is sometimes difficult to think of it as a foreign nation, which it is. Canada may seem innocent, but they have been actively involved in all disputes in the last century serving as a loyal ally to the United States. But they are a foreign country and they do have their own issues and disagreements in their Parliament. While this was a shock because it is not a common occurrence in Canada, it is not so bizarre when thinking of this country as a foreign nation. Professor Thacker also does not believe there will be any change at the Ogdensburg Bridge to get into Canada, and it will be as accessible as before the incident to students, professors, and classes.