(Global News) The federal government has quietly adopted a policy that all but closes the door to repatriating Canadians from detention facilities in Syria for captured ISIS members and their families.
The secretive policy document on the detainees obtained by Global News said the government had no obligation to repatriate them and would only assist them under limited circumstances.
Those include if a Canadian child was left unaccompanied because of the parents’ death, or if a detainee’s “situation had changed significantly” since the policy was adopted last year.
While the policy acknowledged the “unique context” in Syria could prompt Ottawa to help the detainees, it said that would amount to “extraordinary assistance” and would only occur if a list of criteria were met.
