When calling terrorism by its name becomes controversial

On September 11, 2001, Canadians, along with much of the rest of the world, were shocked as they watched the second plane, at 9:07 a.m. EST, fly into World Trade Centre Tower 2 that fateful morning. What came next was a response by America and its allies that would change the world forever. The ensuing War on Terror has been documented for the past 25 years, and yet the war on terror and jihadi fundamentalism continue today. In fact, as Phil Gurski, a former senior counterintelligence analyst who worked on the Iran and jihadi terrorism desks at the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), says, “the battle is far from over”. But another battle is taking place in Canada over how a news organisation might somehow soft-pedal the truth and rewrite the narrative about the terrorist attacks of 9/11. The CBC then reclarified its position by suggesting that, if the term ‘terrorist’ is used, it should be attributed to a government, military or commission findings, as if a journalist could not determine on his or her own that an incident qualified as a terrorist attack. This sparked an angry tweet from FBI Director Kash Patel and, for a short period of time, may have jeopardised security inside Canada. The CBC did issue another clarification, but the damage was already done. With a full-scale trade war taking place between Canada and the US, tensions are high as Pete Hoekstra heads for Gander, Newfoundland, where thousands of stranded travellers landed on that fateful day. With that in mind, I offer you a column by Phil Gurski, who has just launched his new book his ninth 9/11: The Unfinished Battle, Why Jihadi Terrorism is Stronger, Wider, and Far from Over.