A man shot and fatally wounded a sentry, Cpl. Nathan Cirillo of Hamilton, at the National War Memorial in Ottawa Wednesday morning, then ran into the Parliament buildings.
More shots were fired inside the Centre Block, resulting in the death of the gunman, Michael Joseph Paul Zehaf-Bibeau.
The Ottawa shootings occurred as Canadians were still pondering the ramifications of the attack on two soldiers in Quebec two days before.
Martin Couture-Rouleau, whom police described as a 鈥渞adicalized鈥� convert to Islam, deliberately drove his car into two soldiers in St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec, on Monday. One of the soldiers, Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent, 53, died and Couture-Rouleau was fatally shot by police after a car chase.
The government had seized the passports of both Zehaf-Bibeau and Couture-Rouleau, an action taken to prevent radicalized individuals from travelling to other countries.
It is too early to say if the two violent incidents are directly linked 鈥� but there is no question that in both cases, the attacks were directed at members of the military, and the military represents all of us.
Both attacks are an assault on sa国际传媒. Our country is known as a peaceful place, but we cannot take that peace for granted.
It is often said that if we change how we live in response to attacks, then the terrorists win. That鈥檚 nonsense. Common sense dictates that we change how we do things, that we acknowledge realities and act appropriately.
We have prided ourselves on living in a safe neighbourhood where we can leave the doors unlocked. Now the burglars have arrived, and it only makes sense to lock our doors at night.
What all terrorists seek to accomplish 鈥� the weakening and destabilizing of those they see as enemies 鈥� will not happen. They seek to sow chaos and disunity; their actions do the opposite.
Such attacks bring people together. When times are easy, we tend to bicker among ourselves; when the nation is attacked, we set aside petty political differences and come together for the national good.
Some might claim that the attacks are connected to sa国际传媒鈥檚 decision to participate in the fight against Islamic extremists in Syria and Iraq, and that we should be using diplomacy, not force.
But the twisted mentality that justifies the atrocities in that region is not amenable to negotiation, not interested in peace or accommodation. Sometimes, the only answer to force is force.
While the Parliament Hill shootings are nowhere near the scale of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, the similarities are unavoidable. Things will be different from now on. Among measures likely to be taken will be tightened security at many places, including military installations here in Greater Victoria.
Visitors from other countries have wondered at the ease with which visitors can enter the Parliament buildings, undergoing only the type of scrutiny encountered when boarding an airplane.
The front door of Parliament is often left unlocked. It is symbolic of the peace and security we have hitherto enjoyed.
But crime has come to the neighbourhood 鈥� and we have to lock our doors to ensure the safety of everyone.
