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Philip Hannan, a Global Affairs Canada spokesman, reiterated earlier comments that the department is aware of the case, but would not say Monday if diplomats have talked to the YPG about Letts.

The government “will not comment or release any information which may compromise or risk endangering the safety of Canadian citizens abroad,” he said.

Photo by Daniel Leal-Olivas/AFP/Getty Images

Hélène Laverdière, the NDP foreign affairs critic, said she would like to see Letts brought back here, where he could face prosecution if any evidence surfaces of wrongdoing. She acknowledged it is “not a simple situation,” as Global Affairs lacks anyone on the ground in northern Syria.

“But I would like to see the government step up its efforts,” said Laverdière. “There have been allegations of torture. It’s a serious situation, so the government should get involved … I think we should provide help, especially since the British government seems to have withdrawn from the file.”

A spokesman for Erin O’Toole, the Conservative foreign affairs critic, said the MP did not want to comment.

The parents also say their son and anyone else who spent time in ISIL territory should be detained on returning home and, if warranted, charged criminally — but ought to be presumed innocent until proven guilty.

The 20-year-old became a sensation in Britain as the first Caucasian from the U.K. to travel to ISIL territory, in 2014, having converted at age 16. But the suggestion that he had joined the organization was the invention of a British newspaper, as was the nickname, say Letts and Lane.

In the letter, they say he “condemned (ISIL) repeatedly” in private calls and on social media, and was detained by the terrorist group and tortured, a claim that is impossible to verify at this point.

John Letts grew up in Pain Court, Ont., near Chatham — where his mother and sisters still live — and met his English-born wife in Midland, Ont., then emigrated with her to England in 1985. They and their two children are all dual citizens, and visit Canada regularly, he says.