Article content

Canadian military personnel who take part in the war in Iraq could find themselves facing a legal grey area where they may be required to kill their fellow countrymen.

Citizens from Canada, the U.S., France, Britain and Arab nations have flocked to join the Islamic State of Iraq and Al-Sham.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Legal grey area: Canadian soldiers could have to kill fellow citizens if Canada joins war against ISIS Back to video

The Canadian government is now contemplating sending CF18 fighter jets to join the U.S.-led bombing campaign against the Islamist extremists.

I know the Americans have gone through this debate and still seem to be tortured over it

But Wesley Wark, an intelligence specialist at the University of Ottawa, says members of the military coalition who take part in the campaign could have to deal with situations where they are called upon to target fellow citizens or be involved in such actions. In particular, that situation might develop as bombing focuses on specific ISIS members or senior commanders, he added.

“It is something … that as an alliance, countries will have to grapple with,” explained Wark. “What they will find themselves doing is pinpointing individuals who are citizens of their own countries.”