Canadian Intelligence Report Warns ISIS-Linked Returnees Could Pose Domestic Security Threat

A Canadian intelligence assessment has warned that the potential return of citizens currently held in Iraq over alleged links to ISIS could create significant national security risks, including possible acts of violence and efforts to radicalize others inside Canada.

The assessment was prepared in June by the Integrated Threat Assessment Centre, or ITAC, after Iraqi authorities announced that they had taken custody of an unspecified number of Canadian nationals transferred from prisons in northeastern Syria. According to the document obtained by Global News, their potential return would be highly likely to present a violent extremist threat to Canada.

The intelligence assessment said the individuals could contribute to violent extremism directly by participating in an attack or indirectly by influencing and radicalizing others. Canadian authorities are reportedly monitoring the situation as Iraqi officials investigate the detainees and determine whether prosecutions will proceed.

ITAC is a federal intelligence body that brings together information from security, policing, border and other government agencies to produce threat assessments for Canadian decision-makers. The centre also helps determine Canada’s national terrorism threat level, which is currently listed as medium, meaning authorities consider a violent extremist attack a realistic possibility.

The warning does not amount to a criminal finding against every Canadian detainee. Any prosecution in Canada would require evidence that is admissible in court, while authorities may seek terrorism peace bonds or other judicial restrictions in cases where criminal charges cannot be supported.

Between 2021 and 2023, the federal government repatriated nine Canadian women and their children from detention camps in Syria. Some of the women were charged, while others were placed under terrorism peace bonds restricting matters such as movement and online activity. Ottawa has not repatriated the Canadian men captured in Syria following the collapse of ISIS’s territorial control.

Canada’s intelligence service has issued similar warnings about returning extremist travellers. In its 2025 public report, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service said some detainees could pose national security and public safety risks unless sufficient safeguards were implemented. The agency also reported that two returned Canadian extremist travellers were convicted in 2025 of participating in the activities of ISIS.

CSIS said violent extremism continues to account for a significant part of its work, particularly as individuals increasingly radicalize through online material and sometimes operate without direct instructions from an organization. Since 2022, the service has participated in disrupting at least 24 violent extremist actions that resulted in arrests or terrorism peace bonds.

The intelligence warning places renewed attention on the challenge facing Ottawa: protecting Canadians from legitimate security threats while ensuring that allegations are tested through proper investigations, admissible evidence and the Canadian justice system.