Damian Clairmont, a Calgary man, has been killed fighting in Syria.
According to CBC News, the 22-year-old man had left Canada for Syria in November 2013 to join the rebel group Jabhat al-Nusra, which fought against Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad.
Clairmont told the National Post last year he decided to join the fight with the group – which Ottawa has labeled a terrorist organization linked to al-Qaeda – on religious terms, working toward an afterlife.
He had converted to Islam after dropping out of high school and attempting suicide, his mother told the National Post, and went by the name Mustafa Al-Gharib.
Global News reports Clairmont was being watched by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) and the RCMP while in Canada, but there was no way to stop him from leaving the country.
CBC News reports Clairmont was believed to be killed by Free Syrian Army forces after being injured in battle near Aleppo.
Foreign Affairs spokesman Jean-Bruno Villeneuve told the Canadian Press they are aware of the reports of Clairmont's death and continue to monitor the situation.
More to come...
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