Close X
Wednesday, November 27, 2024
ADVT 
International

Mother Of Canadian Killed Fighting ISIL Questions Delay In Returning Son's Body

The Canadian Press, 07 Feb, 2017 01:38 PM
    TORONTO — The mother of a Canadian man killed fighting Islamic State militants in northern Syria is questioning why her son's body still hasn't been recovered when the remains of a British fighter who died on the same day were on the way to the United Kingdom.
     
    Nazzareno Tassone, 24, was killed on Dec. 21 in the city of Raqqa, while fighting alongside the Kurdish People's Defense Units, a U.S.-backed group also known as the YPG.
     
    His family in Niagara Falls, Ont., only learned of his death in early January, when they received a letter from the YPG, which also said that his body had been seized by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, known as ISIS or ISIL.
     
    "I just want him home. I need him home," Tassone's mother, Tina Martino, said in an emotional interview. "I haven't been at work. I just sit here, day after day, waiting for the phone to ring and hope."
     
    The Toronto Kurdish Community Centre, whose leaders delivered the YPG letter to Martino, has said negotiations are underway between the YPG and ISIL to retrieve Tassone's body.
     
    The centre has also said that the YPG was simultaneously negotiating to recover the bodies of other fighters killed in combat on the same day as Tassone, including a British volunteer fighter named Ryan Lock.
     
    Martino said she recently learned Lock's body was recovered, making her wonder why her son's body has not.
     
    "I asked why wasn't Nazz with Ryan and the only thing they could say was that they believe the two boys were not together at the same time," she said. "(The Toronto Kurdish Community Centre) told me at the beginning I was going to have to wait four to six weeks. And now I don't understand, he passed away on Dec. 21."
     
    Martino said she's calling on the Canadian government, the Kurdish community and anyone who can help in the matter to do what they can to bring her son's body back to Canada.
     
    "All I want to do is get my word out in asking to get my son home," she said. 
     
    Ihsan Kaya, co-president of the Toronto Kurdish Community Centre, said he's been in contact with the YPG regularly about Tassone and noted that the Canadian man and his British co-fighter may have been separated but were believed to be fighting in the same area.
     
    "The YPG doesn't have (Tassone's) body yet but I hope we get the good news soon," Kaya said, adding that the region the YPG is fighting in is a volatile one with fast-shifting boundaries.
     
    Global Affairs Canada said officials were in contact with local authorities to gather information and were also providing Tassone's family with consular assistance.
     
    A spokeswoman noted, however, that "due to the unpredictable security situation" the Canadian government's ability to provide consular assistance in all parts of Iraq and Syria is severely limited.
     
    Tassone left Canada in June, telling his family he was headed to Iraq and Turkey to teach English. His family had suspected, given Tassone's long-standing interest in the military, that he might get involved in the Middle East conflict, but it was only after his death that they learned he'd been fighting in Syria.
     
    Martino said she's vowed not to have a funeral for her son until his body was repatriated.
     
    "I said that there would be no funeral, there would be nothing. But now I don't know."

    MORE International ARTICLES

    Isolated, Nawaz Sharif Wants Action Against Jaish, Lashkar

    Isolated, Nawaz Sharif Wants Action Against Jaish, Lashkar
      Sharif's blunt demand came at a high-level meeting of civilian officials with the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief, Gen. Rizwan Akhtar, the influential Dawn newspaper reported on Thursday.

    Isolated, Nawaz Sharif Wants Action Against Jaish, Lashkar

    I Don't Love Or Hate Putin, Says US Presidential Candidate Donald Trump

    I Don't Love Or Hate Putin, Says US Presidential Candidate Donald Trump
    US Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has shrugged off allegations that he would be too close to Vladimir Putin if elected, saying he was unsure of his relationship with the Russian President.

    I Don't Love Or Hate Putin, Says US Presidential Candidate Donald Trump

    Pakistan Politician's Son Dies Due To 'Excessive Use Of Steroids'

    Pakistan Politician's Son Dies Due To 'Excessive Use Of Steroids'
      Ali, 26, the son of Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) Chairman and Pakistan Mulsim League-Nawaz leader Siddiqul Farooq, died on tuesday at his home.

    Pakistan Politician's Son Dies Due To 'Excessive Use Of Steroids'

    Ghana To Relocate Gandhi's Statue From Legon University Campus

    Ghana To Relocate Gandhi's Statue From Legon University Campus
    The Ghanaian government has decided to relocate a statue of Mahatma Gandhi from the University of Ghana near Accra, following a move by a group of lecturers to have the statue pulled down over alleged 'racist' views expressed by Gandhi.

    Ghana To Relocate Gandhi's Statue From Legon University Campus

    Christy Clark Names Surrey Lawyer Puneet Sandhar As 2017 Candidate For Surrey-Panorama

    Christy Clark Names Surrey Lawyer Puneet Sandhar As 2017 Candidate For Surrey-Panorama
    Surrey, B.C – Premier Christy Clark and Today’s BC Liberals have named local lawyer and community leader Puneet Sandhar as the 2017 candidate for Surrey-Panorama.

    Christy Clark Names Surrey Lawyer Puneet Sandhar As 2017 Candidate For Surrey-Panorama

    Bangladesh Court Clears Canadian Man Tahmid Hasib Khan Of Terror Attack Charges

    Bangladesh Court Clears Canadian Man Tahmid Hasib Khan Of Terror Attack Charges
    A Bangladesh court has cleared a Canadian university student of all allegations related to a restaurant siege three months ago in which 20 hostages and five attackers were killed.

    Bangladesh Court Clears Canadian Man Tahmid Hasib Khan Of Terror Attack Charges