The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) says it has suspended five active duty members after a video emerged appearing to show them making Nazi salutes.
Lt.-Gen. Mike Wright, Commander of the Canadian Army, said in an Aug. 20 statement to The Epoch Times that he was “deeply disturbed and profoundly disappointed” with the content of the video and that “swift action will be taken” in response.
Wright said the video was filmed in 2023, and he was first made aware of it on Aug. 6 by an unidentified member of the public.
He said the video shows at least seven individuals, one which can be seen performing a drill in front of the flag of the Royal 22e Regiment, which is based in Quebec City, “and then consuming a substance.”
“At one point in the video, other individuals perform the Nazi salute,” Wright said.
Five of these individuals have been identified as active duty members of the CAF and have been suspended from military duties pending an investigation. The five soldiers belong to the 5 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group stationed at Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Valcartier near Quebec City. Wright says they are now being investigated by military police to determine the specifics of the incident and their involvement.
“Once the facts have been confirmed, all appropriate action will be taken,” Wright said, adding that “Hateful conduct and extremism have no place in the Canadian Army. It hurts our ability to recruit the best of Canada, to maintain credibility to deliver on operations, and it erodes public trust in our institution.”
According to the Canadian Army’s order on hateful conduct, any act or conduct including words, symbols or images that a CAF member “ought reasonably to have known” would spread or incite hate against an identifiable group based on ethnicity, religion, age, sex, disability or any other identifier is considered as hateful conduct.
CAF guidelines say this includes harassment, racism, discrimination as well as “microaggression,” a term referring to a “statement, action, or incident regarded as an instance of indirect, subtle, or unintentional discrimination or prejudice against members of a marginalized group such as a racial minority.”
