The Honourable Rob Nicholson, the Minister of National Defence, issued the following statement:
“I wish to offer my deepest condolences and extend my heartfelt sympathies to the family of Corporal Nathan Cirillo, who died while standing guard at the National War Memorial. This was part of a heinous attack upon Canada, Canadians and national institutions. Our brave policemen and women continue to deal with and investigate this act of violence. This is a shocking and tragic event which reminds us of the real threats posed by those who would do us all harm in the name of radical ideas, beliefs and motives.
“This attack reminds us that Canada is not immune to threats to its safety and security, and that these threats require vigilance on all our parts. The Canadian Armed Forces and the Department of National Defence are active, supportive and collaborative partners with our colleagues in Public Safety Canada and provincial and municipal agencies. We support the Government of Canada’s efforts to monitor domestic and foreign threats to protect Canadians.
“We continue to consult with our governmental partners to adapt our force protection measures to the evolving situation in order to protect our men and women in the Defence Team. Our deployments in support of the security forces in Iraq will continue unimpeded. Our men and women in the Canadian Armed Forces will continue to stand on guard, vigilant in their duty to protect Canada and Canadians.”
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