House Armed Services Committee Chairman Howard P. “Buck” McKeon (R-Calif.) extended his sympathies on Thursday to Canada after the recent terrorist attack in Ottawa, Ontario.
Michael Zehaf-Bibeau fatally shot Canadian soldier Corporal Nathan Cirillo as he stood on ceremonial guard duty at the Canadian National War Memorial in Ottawa on Wednesday. He was later killed in a gunfight with Parliament security personnel in the nearby Centre Block parliament building.
“Canada has always stood with us in troubled times, and we stand with them,” McKeon said. “I commend the Canadian first responders and share their grief for Cpl. Cirillo.”
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police released a statement stating that Zehaf-Bibeau — a recent convert to Islam – had “ideological and political motives” for the attack and Prime Minister Stephen Harper labeled it an act of terrorism.
“I was impressed with the Canadian government’s swift condemnation of what was obviously an act of terror,” McKeon said. “I wish the Obama administration used similar language during the Fort Hood shooting, rather than pretending that ‘workplace violence’ was an accurate description of a tragic terrorist attack.”