OP PROVISION: Mission Details

Published by DND: Current Operations - OP PROVISION

Operation PROVISION is the Canadian Armed Forces’ (CAF) support to the Government of Canada’s initiative to resettle 25,000 Syrian Refugees in Canada by the end of February 2016.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) is the lead department for Canada’s efforts with numerous supporting departments including:

• Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA);
• the Department of National Defence (DND);
• Global Affairs Canada (GAC);
• Public Health Agency of Canada;
• Public Services and Procurement Canada;
• Public Safety Canada; and
• the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP);
• The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) contribution

The requirement for military support, and the extent of that support for this Government of Canada initiative is still being assessed at this point in time.

The CAF is prepared to provide interim lodging for approximately 6,000 refugees at various bases and facilities throughout Ontario and Quebec, and an additional 7,000 at facilities across Canada, if need be.

Accommodations at bases and wings are but one option being explored to provide interim lodging to refugees as part of a broader Government of Canada initiative.

If requested, the CAF is prepared to provide interim lodging for refugees at the following bases/wings in Ontario and Quebec:

• Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Kingston;
• CFB Borden;
• 8 Wing Trenton;
• 4th Canadian Division Training Centre in Meaford, Ontario; and
• Garrison Petawawa; and
• 2nd Canadian Division Support Base Valcartier.

To date, approximately 200 CAF personnel have deployed to Aerial Ports of Embarkation (APOEs) in Lebanon, Turkey and Jordan combined to support the Government of Canada initiative.

While tasks vary at each APOE, deployed CAF personnel are currently:

• Assisting the Canadian Defence Attachés (CDAs);
• Acting as Liaison Officers between the CDA and Canadian Joint Operations Command;
• Assisting IRCC with the administrative processing of refugee applications, including the collection of biometric data; and
• Providing a CAF command and control element.
• Mission Context

Since the outbreak of the Syrian civil war in 2011, millions of people have fled the country seeking safety and resettlement internationally. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, since the beginning of 2015, more than 720,000 refugees and migrants have crossed the Mediterranean, undertaking journeys from Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Sudan, and other regions torn apart by war, hunger and violence.
Canada’s response

On 9 November 2015, the Government of Canada officially announced its commitment to welcome approximately 25,000 Syrian refugees from Lebanon, Turkey, and Jordan to Canada by the end of February 2016, with an initial group of 10,000 arriving by 31 December, 2015.

The Government of Canada plan has five phases:

• identifying Syrian refugees to come to Canada;
• selecting and processing Syrian refugees overseas;
• transportation to Canada;
• arrival and welcoming in Canada; and
• settlement and community integration.

The Government of Canada is also working alongside non-governmental organizations including the United Nations Refugee Agency, the International Red Cross, and Canadian companies, charities, and service providers

Mission timeline:

9 November 2015 – the Government of Canada announced the creation of a new Cabinet ad hoc committee to help bring Syrian refugees to Canada.

Mid-November 2015 – the CAF deploys 12 personnel to assist Canadian Defence Attachés (CDAs) in Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey and to act as Liaison Officers between the CDAs and Canadian Joint Operations Command.

28 November 2015 – the CAF deploys members of 2nd Battalion, the Royal Canadian Regiment based at 5th Canadian Division Support Base Gagetown, to assist IRCC with the screening of refugees in Lebanon and Jordan.

As of 01 December 2015 – the CAF continues to deploy medical specialists and other personnel to assist IRCC in Lebanon and Jordan, as requested.

Previous CAF support to emergency humanitarian evacuations (Historical Precedent) 

Operation MAGNET (1978) - Following the collapse of the South Vietnamese government and the fall of Saigon in 1975, the Government of Canada through the Canada Employment and Immigration Commission and Department (CEICD) and the Canadian Forces arranged for the airlift and resettlement of over 50,000 people from Vietnam. Op MAGNET occurred in three phases from 1978-1981.

Operation PARASOL (1999) – The Canadian Forces was called upon to support the Government of Canada’s efforts to assist displaced refugees from the Serbian province of Kosovo. As part of Operation PARASOL, more than 5,000 Kosovar Albanian refugees were airlifted to Canada and temporarily accommodated at various bases across the country.


External links
Government of Canada

#WelcomeRefugees (Government of Canada)

Announcement of action on Syrian refugee crisis (IRCC)

Conflict in Syria (DFATD)

Canada’s response to the conflict in Syria (DFATD)
External Links

Syria Regional Refugee Response (UNHCR)

OP PROVISION: CAF Aid in the Resettlement of Syrian Refugees

A Canadian Armed Forces CC-177 Globemaster III aircraft departed Trenton in the early morning on November 28 with equipment and personnel as part of OP PROVISION, the CAF’s support to the Government of Canada’s effort to resettle 25,000 Syrian refugees to Canada.

Canadian Forces personnel deploying on Operation PROVISION will assist Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada with the administrative processing of applications including medical screening and the collection of biometric data, as well as providing a military command and control element for Canadian Forces members.‎

Members of the CAF and the Government of Canada's Citizenship and Immigration Board Civil Servants on board a CC-177 Globemaster III en route to Jordan for OP PROVISION. Photo: CF Combat Camera

The Canadian Press wrote this article below about the situation:

A trickle of Syrian refugees seeking to leave Jordan flowed into Canada’s processing centre in Amman on Sunday, the first day of operations at what will eventually become the hub of much of the Syrian refugee resettlement program.

Ninety people were put through a multi-step process, some under the eye of three federal cabinet ministers who travelled to the Jordanian capital to see first hand how their plan to bring 25,000 Syrians to Canada by the end of February actually looks.

“We have learned also there is positive things to report in terms of progress,” said Immigration Minister John McCallum as he stood in the cavernous military exhibition facility now being leased to Canada by the Jordanian government.

“The processing centre had its first day of operation today, that will ramp up over time and get more intense. We also heard the good news that exit permits are not an issue in Jordan, so that’s positive.”

McCallum was joined by Health Minister Jane Philpott and Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan. They flew to Amman late Saturday, spending the day meeting international aid and UN officials and Jordanian leaders on Sunday and then flying straight back to Ottawa.

Canadian reporters were not permitted to report on their visit until they left the country, for what officials said were security reasons, but both the UN and Jordan’s King Abudllah II posted word and photos of the trip on Twitter during the day.

Refugees whose cases are being processed at the Jordanian facility represent only some of the 15,000 Syrians the government is seeking to resettle itself. Applicants are being told to expect travel by the end of February, the deadline the government has set.

McCallum said it’s still an achievable goal.

“Let’s be optimistic,” he said.

Flights will depart from a civilian airport across the way from the centre carrying not just Syrians from Jordan, but also those from Lebanon.

But all the final details of how many and when are still being hammered out, he said.

“This being the first day there are a few kinks to work out and we also want to look at how to improve things,” he said.

An immigration official who briefed the ministers repeatedly noted how plans continued to change and develop, suggesting that while the centre’s goal is to process 500 people a day, that workload will be a challenge.

The reception point is ready, lined with rows upon rows of grey plastic chairs. The interview booths are set up with white tables and blue banquet chairs flecked with gold. The military has 10 biometric machines ready to go, though on day one only four were in operation.

But one key problem right now is capacity for medical screenings.

Officials are currently only scheduling medical appointments elsewhere until they can beef up availability of services on site. One option is getting the International Organization for Migration or the Red Cross to run clinics; the other is to have the military deploy a field hospital.

Privately-sponsored refugees — who make up the majority of the 10,000 people the government says it will resettle by year’s end — will not have their cases flow through the registration centre but are likely to depart on flights from the same airport. Those planes could begin leaving as soon as next week.

Those whose cases are being handled by the hundreds of Canadian civil servants and soldiers now in Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey, are refugees selected by the United Nations refugee agency from a pool the international body is actively looking to resettle. An estimated 4 million people have been declared refugees from the Syrian war.

Some will come from the Zaatari refugee camp, which the ministers visited earlier Sunday. They were briefed by the camp manager and aid organizations on the challenges at hand, including ensuring adequate water supplies and food for the camp’s 80,000 residents.

Philpott said she was struck by the scope of the issue.

“While obviously we’re all thinking about 25,000 who will come to Canada, we need to remember there are more than a million refugees living here in the country,” she said.

She’ll have a personal reminder to take back — both Philpott and Sajjan purchased paintings created by children at the camp.

The one Philpott chose was painted by a 13-year-old boy named Hamza and depicts a woman trudging up a set of stairs, with a yellow sun setting against a blood red sky.

On her back, a burden in the shape of Syria.

Philpott asked Hamza whom the woman represented, and he said no one in particular, just all women.

“Because women do carry countries on their backs,” Philipott said.

Many of the refugees Canada will resettle will be women, some alone, some heads of families.

The ministers observed several families being processed through the system Sunday, telling them through translators that Canada is excited to welcome them but didn’t have time to speak with them in depth.

One surprise confronting Canadians is that the families being referred by the UN are larger than expected. Rather than four or five people, it’s often eight or nine.

McCallum said he viewed that as a positive.

“I think given Canada’s aging population, not only are the children sweet-looking but they’re very good for Canada more generally speaking,” he said.

Since Nov. 4, 153 Syrian refugees have come and another 928 have been issued visas, according to the government.

(The article above was written by the Canadian Press)

Members of the Liberal Cabinet meet with UNICEF Staff at the Refugee Center in Jordan. Photo: CF Combat Camera

CAF Members Brief before deploying on OP PROVISION. CAF Members will aid Citizenship and Immigration Civil Servants in vetting Refugees before being granted access to Canada.  Photo: CF Combat Camera

CAF Can House 12,000 Refugees

Published by CTVNews November 9, 2015.
http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/canadian-military-can-already-house-12k-syrian-refugees-1.2649684

The Canadian military is already prepared to house 12,000 Syrian refugees -- nearly half of the 25,000 that the Liberal government has promised to bring to the country -- by the end of the year, CTV News has learned.

Chief of the Defence Staff Gen. Jon Vance ordered a review weeks ago so that the military could hit the ground running in case the government asked for his support.

Refugees could be housed in cadet summer camps and military training bases.

A View o CFB Valcartier, Qc Army Cadet (although it houses Navy and Air As well) Summer Training Centre. This camp houses 3,500 cadets at a time

"We've got the whole network of bases across Canada -- probably, though I’m just guessing at this stage of the game -- it could probably come back to (Canadian Forces Base) Trenton, where they could be processed and distributed out," said retired Major General David Fraser.

Earlier on Monday, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Minister John McCallum announced that a cabinet sub-committee has been tasked with bringing the Liberals’ goal to fruition.

The chair of the sub-committee will be Health Minister Jane Philpott. Other members include Heritage Minister Melanie Joly, Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale, Foreign Affairs Minister Stephane Dion and Democratic Institutions Minister Maryam Monsef.

McCallum said each sub-committee member has a portfolio that touches on the refugee issue. He singled out Philpott, who has worked with refugees in Africa, and Monsef, who was herself a refugee from Afghanistan.

McCallum said the Liberal government is still committed to bringing the refugees in by the end of the year, but wants to do it “correctly.”

In a statement, NDP MP Jenny Kwan said her party "supports" the Liberals’ goal, but believes that McCallum's announcement was "short on details."

"We believe Canadians were looking for a concrete plan for getting vulnerable refugees out of harm's way, not hearing about new cabinet subcommittees," she said.

"This is the new government's first test on delivering the change they promised to Canadians. We hope that the next announcement on how they will achieve this goal is coming very soon."

McCallum said that Ottawa is relying on support from provinces, territories and municipalities, as well as groups and individuals who want to support refugees to accomplish its goal.

“As long as we do the job right, that is to say with speed but also with due attention to important considerations of health and security,” he said He acknowledged “time is limited” for the government to meet its goal, but said he will have a more detailed announcement “soon.”

In an appearance on CTV's Power Play on Monday, immigration lawyer Jennifer Bond said she believes the refugee target can be achieved and that so far the Liberals have taken the right steps forward.

"I think we should feel confident that a lot of senior people have been put on this portfolio, today's subcommittee is filled with people who have both good portfolios to be at the table but also a lot of good individual personal experiences," she said.

"We need to move quickly and I'm very hopeful that today's announcement is not a stall tactic, but actually a real commitment to actually work together to make this happen."

Bond added that refugees are "dying every single day and the increasing numbers of people are dying as conditions worsen overseas."

"As Canadians we can't only cry over the children that have died but we really have to do what we can do to help those that are still at risk, and I think that's where we’re heading," said Bond, who is also behind the University of Ottawa's Refugee Sponsorship Support Program.

Former Canadian ambassador to Syria Glenn Davidson, who also appeared on Power Play, agreed with Bond's assessment, saying that there's "no question (Canada) can handle" 25,000 refugees.

"I think that the steps that the government is taking -- that minister McCallum announced today -- are exactly right," he said.

"Put the focus of this new team firmly on this, put the resources behind it and move aggressively to make it happen."

When asked how the refugees will travel to Canada, McCallum said that “every option is on the table.”

He said involving the Royal Canadian Air Force, commercial planes, as well as ships, are possibilities.

"We would do what is the most efficient, cost-effective quick way to get those people here, and then we have to welcome them, and we have to accommodate and we have to help them settle into Canada," he said.

However, the air force likely won't have as large of a role as commercial airliners because of its limited capacity.

Air Canada has already offered to help the government transport Syrian refugees “to the fullest extent possible.” A company spokesperson told CTV News that the airline has so far only exchanged “preliminary information” with Ottawa.

McCallum said the government now has to figure out the fastest, most secure and cost-effective way to bring Syrian refugees from other countries that have taken them in. He said Ottawa will focus on Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon.

“We have to clearly liaise with the governments of those countries and with the United Nations.”

McCallum said the government has already deployed "dozens of additional immigration officials" to the region to handle the incoming case load.

Treasury Board President Scott Brison, who is also on the refugee sub-committee, will examine the related costs, McCallum said.

The exact cost of the mission has yet to be determined because all the "variables" have yet to be sorted out, but McCallum said it is going to cost a "penny or two."

"We've put aside some money in our platform for this, but it is not going to be cheap to bring 25,000 people to country and help them settle," he said.

"Don't forget these people come from the most dire of circumstances … this is probably the worst refugee crisis in decades," McCallum added.

The government will also have to find accommodations for all the refugees once they arrive. McCallum said that Canadian military bases are “one possibility” in the "short run," but working with provincial governments, as well as municipalities, non-governmental organizations and will be key.

McCallum said many groups, including the Syrian community, and individuals across the country have also offered to take in refugees.

McCallum said he also hopes to have refugee health care reinstated in line with the same end-of-year deadline.

"I don’t control the parliamentary calendar, and we will not have very much time before Christmas. But I certainly am hoping very much this will be the case," he said.