The Decibel - How the Parliament Hill shooting changed Canada

Episode Date: October 22, 2024

On October 22, 2014, a man named Michael Zehaf-Bibeau entered Parliament Hill, killing Canadian soldier Nathan Cirillo and catching security off guard.On the 10th anniversary of what was later deemed a terror attack — and with security risks for politicians only growing — the Globe’s national affairs reporter, Kristy Kirkup, joins The Decibel to revisit the events of that day, sharing stories of responders, and explaining how Parliament Hill changed because of it.Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at [e-mail]

Ten years ago today, there was a fatal shooting near Parliament Hill in Ottawa. Corporal Nathan Cirillo was one of two reservists on guard at the National War Memorial. It was a ceremonial posting and their guns were empty. A man named Michael Zahaf Bebo approached them from behind and shot Cirillo in the back. Three times. Zahaf Bebo fled in his own car and then stole a cabinet minister's limousine

and drove toward the Peace Tower at Parliament. He got into the main building, centre block, and shot a security guard in the leg. MPs and journalists barricaded themselves inside meeting rooms, including then-Prime Minister Stephen Harper, while Zahaf Bebo was chased through the building. He was killed in a shootout with RCMP officers and House of Commons Sergeant at Arms. Meanwhile, civilians rushed to help Corporal Cirillo. He died in hospital later that morning. The downtown core went into lockdown. Businesses were in lockdown. It was an extremely tense time. Christy Kirkup is a national affairs reporter with The Globe. She'll tell us how that

day changed security on Parliament Hill and the impact it has a decade later on the people who were there. I'm Menaka Raman-Wilms, and this is The Decibel from The Globe and Mail. Christy, thank you so much for joining us again. Thanks for having me, Menaka. Christy, can you take us back to 2014? This was a decade ago now, right? What was the political landscape in Canada like at that time? So Minika, it was an extremely different political landscape than the one that exists today.

Back in October of 2014, Stephen Harper was still the prime minister of this country. And Thomas Mulcair was the leader of the official opposition. The NDP was in opposition at that time. And the liberals were in a much reduced state in the House of Commons. And there was a tremendous concern, I should say, about members of the military being targeted because just a couple of days prior, Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent was targeted along with another member of the military in Quebec, and Patrice Vincent ultimately died as a result of being targeted. You know, people were a bit on alert that the military was being targeted in this country. And ultimately, we did see that with Corporal Nathan Cirillo being deliberately targeted, being shot three times in the back. As a member of the military, he was on what's called sentry duty at the Tomb of the Unknown

Soldier at the National War Memorial in Ottawa. It's right in the hub of downtown Ottawa. Really, you could very quickly make your way from the Cenotaph, the National War Memorial, to Parliament Hill. And in fact, we saw that with Michael Zeehaf Bebo, the gunman who was quickly able to make his way from the National War Memorial to Centre Block on Parliament Hill. It's kind of the heart of Canada's parliament, right? And there were members of the government, including the prime minister, at very close by. Yeah, it's honestly almost surreal to describe it because he was able to get right through the front door of Centre Block. And they were having meetings, as political parties do, on Wednesday. It was caucus day. And so the conservatives were meeting on one side of that hallway. And on the other side of the hallway, the gunfire, multiple shots that were ringing out, like directly outside of these

meeting rooms. And there was, you know, you talk to people who were, you know, in the NDP caucus room, and they describe how there was a security guard inside the room that day that put their back up to the two doors. And there was bullets that hit that door, like penetrated the door. They were worried it was a hostage taking. They were just trying to figure out what the heck was happening outside of the door. You know, the RCMP had been trailing him, diving and shooting at Michael Z. Half Bebo. There were 31 shots to Michael Z. Half Bebo, who was ultimately killed in that hallway outside the caucus rooms. And Christy, you mentioned that Stephen Harper, the prime minister, basically was in a room kind

of on the other side of a door to this hallway. Do we know what happened at that point? What were the precautions to protect the most senior members of government? You know, there was an effort to obviously try and protect the prime minister during an active shooting situation on Parliament Hill. And it wasn't like, okay, you know, the shooter is killed. And that was the end of the situation. It was far from it, there was a lockdown that took place. And so there were other people within centre block, you know, in the basement or other places that, you know, some of them were like hiding under desks for hours. And many people, Menaka, did not know if there was, you know, in the basement or other places that, you know, some of them were like hiding under desks for hours. And many people, Manika, did not know if there was, you know, a second shooter. There were so many questions about what was happening. You know, I remember people were

tweeting inside what was happening. This was all coming out in real time. There was just this tremendous fear, you know, is this a coordinated attack? What's happening? Are there other people? And so, you know, when you talk to people today, when they talk about kind of the trauma response, it was, of course, like the events of that day, but it was also, you know, what wasn't known for so many hours. Yeah, as you're describing, Christy, a lot of confusion, a lot of terror, it sounds like for people to be feeling. And you're saying, you know, people in center block didn't really know what was going on. And they didn't really know what was happening at the Senate half the National War Memorial, which is where we started describing where Corporal Nathan Cirilla was shot. So while all of this action was happening in Parliament, what was happening at the National War Memorial? Well, Kyle Button, the other member of the military who was on sentry duty with Corporal Nathan Cirillo, he was part of efforts to save Nathan's life, along with five other people, three civilians and three members of the military in total six people who came to the aid of Nathan Cirillo in what would be his final moments they rushed to his side Martin Magnin who was working for the Department of National Defense at the time of the shooting he was walking in downtown Ottawa and he was one of the people that I spoke to recently. He describes hearing the shots,

three distinct shots. And ultimately, he ended up running to Nathan's aid. And he and the other members of really this resuscitation team that were coming together, strangers from different walks of life coming together in this moment, when they themselves did not know if there were other shooters or what was happening, placing themselves in danger, Manica, to be there to try and save Nathan. And we all just kind of got into motion really close. I held up his legs and held his hand and squeezed a little bit. We all kind of did our thing.

And the rest of the day took its course. And he was holding Nathan's left hand in what would be the final moments of his life. Barbara Winters is a government lawyer. She herself was a former reservist, and she was heading to a meeting nearby when she heard the shots. And I started running towards the cenotaph and I remember I couldn't run as fast as I wanted to, but I remember when I was running, clearly thinking, if I can see them, if they're standing,

if I can just see them, they're okay, they're okay. And as I got closer and closer, I couldn't see them. They weren't standing. And I kept thinking to myself, oh my God, oh my God, oh my God, because I knew what it was. I knew what had happened. She rushes to Nathan Cirillo's side. She was involved in the resuscitations as well. And she also is really remembered from a very memorable interview that she did at the time where she described trying to comfort Nathan Cirillo. She figured that he could hear what was going on around him. And so she made this deliberate decision to talk to Nathan in this extremely tense moment. I think you're referencing, this is an interview she did with As It Happens on CBC, right,

where she spoke about what she did in that moment. That's right. And I think even now, Menaka, when I talk to people, again, who were on Parliament Hill that day, parliamentarians, people like the NDP's Charlie Angus. He was really moved by Barbara Winter's words during that interview because she described in those final moments of his life telling him that he was loved. And that he was a brave man and that he was a good man. And I said, just think of what you were doing when this happened. Just think you were standing a brave man, and that he was a good man. And I said, just think of what you were doing when this happened. Just think you were standing at the Senate desk.

You were honoring others. Just think of how proud that would make your family. Of course, this is very real for her today, 10 years later, where she thinks about, you know, on the 10th anniversary of Nathan, of the efforts to try and save his life, and how this, again, team of individuals who did not know each other came together to try and save him. And Christy, even though there was all this chaos and confusion that you've been describing, on that day, Corporal Nathan Cirillo was the only person that Zahaf Bebo killed. Can you tell us more about Nathan and who he was? So Nathan Cirillo was a 24-year-old reservist from Hamilton, Ontario.

We also know that Nathan loved dogs. There were a lot of pictures that emerged afterwards of him being this dog adoring father to family 10 years ago that they did not want to talk to the media. But I think, I guess I would just mention one thing is that they, I think, are touched by the fact that people still remember Nathan. You know, because he was a father. He was a brother. He was a son. He had his whole life ahead of him. And he was murdered that day. We'll be right back. So, Christy, we do have a sense now of the events of October 22nd, 2014. Let's talk about what we know about the shooter who was involved that day.

What did we learn about his motivations? Well, we learned that Michael Z. Half Bebo was 32 years old. He was essentially described as a petty criminal. And he had recently applied for a passport and authorities were under the impression that he was trying to go to Syria. There was a video that Michael Ziaf Bebo that was later released in the spring of 2015. And it was essentially described by police authorities as an unseen manifesto. There were reports that were done as a result of this incident. Ultimately, it was determined to be a terrorist attack.

When you mentioned Syria, Christy, of course, this is the time when ISIS was making news. That's right. And it was learned that Michael Z. Hafbibo had converted to Islam. And ultimately, he was determined to be aiming at the military in retaliation for the Canadian military's action in Afghanistan and Iraq. It was learned that he was living at a shelter, the Ottawa Mission, at the time of the attack. And there were lots of questions about, you know, how he was able to access the Winchester rifle that he was able to use on that particular day. Because Michael Z. Half Bebo was killed, there wasn't a legal process that played out where he was asked additional questions about his motivations. And so, you know, really, it's this, the video, that manifesto that I mentioned, that kind of gives us a window into some of his thought process ahead of what happened.

But because he was ultimately killed, there's a certain limitation on on some of the information, you know, just specifically from Michael Z. Half Bebo about his frame of mind at that particular time. It does seem that this attack caught Parliament Hill and Ottawa really off guard, though, right? So I guess I just want to ask you about security here, Christy. What was the state of security on Parliament Hill? Yeah, so it was a very different situation on Parliament Hill 10 years ago. There were different police services. There was the RCMP's Parliament Hill detachment that was responsible for safety on the for streets around Parliament Hill.

Wellington Street is kind of the famous street outside of Parliament Hill. That remains of jurisdiction for Ottawa Police. And there have long been questions, Manika, about kind of this patchwork nature of security that was at play at that time in particular, that allowed for the gunman, Michael Z. Half Bebo, to enter the building. And then ultimately, what's called the Parliamentary Protective Service was created as a result of this shooting. But there are still kind of concerns about jurisdiction that remain. This came up again during the recent Ottawa convoy that saw big rigs become entrenched on the streets of downtown Ottawa right near

Parliament. So these kind of security questions are still coming up to this day. Well, maybe we can just kind of clarify the situation now. So as you say, Christy, as a result of the attack 10 years ago, the Parliamentary Protective Service was created. So how does this jurisdictional issue work now? Who has responsibility for what part of this environment around the Hill? So the Parliamentary Protective Service is in charge of the security that's on Parliament Hill. So when MPs, for example, are going in to do their parliamentary business, that is the jurisdiction of the Parliamentary Protective Service. And the Ottawa Police remain in charge of the streets near the hill.

But there are some changes that are going to happen where the Ottawa Police has been given money through the federal budget to beef up their security right near parliament because there have been concerns about safety of members of parliament for example trying to just physically get in the building because of some of the evolving security threats and so the prime minister always gets what's called access to the PMPD it's the prime minister's protective detail. And so that is an RCMP detail, you know, directly responsible for the prime minister. But there are cabinet ministers now that have protective details themselves because of some of the serious security threats that are being directed at parliamentarians. And so those RCMP officers are now able to enter Parliament Hill and be with, you know, the individuals that they're tasked with protecting.

Yeah, the jurisdictional issues do seem to cause some problems or some confusion sometimes. So it seems like they've tried to figure out the best way to do this now. You mentioned about current politicians kind of being accosted sometimes on the Hill, and we are seeing this more now, Christy. Politics are more divided than ever, right? So we are seeing things like this. I think a lot of people will remember a video of Jagmeet Singh being accosted by a couple of people and actually turning around and talking back to them. Corrupted bastard. Want to say something?

What? Want to say something? Say nothing? What did you say? You got something to say? I didn't say corrupted bastard, but I said... Is that what you said? No, no, I did not say that.

How is stuff like that being addressed when it comes to safety of parliamentarians? Are we actually seeing this being handled and being addressed? I was reflecting because, again, there were security concerns, of course, at the time of the shooting that happened in 2014. But now when you talk to parliamentarians, again, veteran MPs like Charlie Angus, they'll kind of describe the way that the security threats have evolved. Politicians are really facing, and there's evidence to bear this out, but more than ever, they are specifically kind of being targeted online, targeted in person, and there's increased threats to parliamentarians. You know, during the convoy and the response that

came after, there were questions then as well, you know, MPs kind of describing how they felt concerned at that time. I'll just mention Maneca this fall. MPs were returning to the House of Commons after a summer break. And there were a lot of protesters that were set up right at the base of Centre Block. And MPs have offices that are nearby. Not all of their offices are like physically on the hill. And so they have to walk from their offices on nearby Spark Street or, you know, locations nearby to physically get onto the hill. And so as they were crossing the street, you know, they were having people yell at them or get up close in their face and to film them. And, you know, Angus and other MPs were speaking out when the House of Commons resumed to say, like, you know, this is frightening and there needs to be more in the way of supports in terms of security. And so the Ottawa police talked about, again, how they are getting this money from the federal government. This was already announced in the budget, but

they're going to be bolstering their security posture in what's called the federal division. This division kind of dedicated to the streets around Parliament Hill. Because the Ottawa police are responsible for those streets. They're not on the hill yet. Yeah, exactly. And so different context, different time. But yet, you know, these jurisdictional issues keep coming up. There's kind of this tension, right, where we live in Canada, we like to think about, you know, living in a democracy where politicians want to, you know, be accessible, they want to be able to talk to people, and yet they're increasingly facing threats, even just to physically get into, you know, the House of Commons in order to get there and to make it there safely. Just lastly here, Christy, I'd like to go back to the people who you're talking about before, who were with Corporal Nathan Cirillo in his final moments, who really, I imagine, must have been severely impacted by the events of that day. I know you had the chance to speak with them. What did they tell you about the kind of impact that these events had on them?

I think speaking to people who were there at the National War Memorial that day, for them, this is not something that they will ever forget, you know, and it hasn't been easy following the shooting. Martin Magnin, you know, he was working for the Department of National Defense at the time of the attack. He later went on to work for Aaron O'Toole when O'Toole became Veterans Affairs Minister in early 2015. But privately, he was struggling. My head at that time was like, it's as if you're sitting in a library, all your thoughts are all there in little books. And you reach out and you grab them, phone bill, laundry, car, kids, you know, all this stuff. You just pull them out and you put them exactly back in their spots when you need them. But the shelves weren't there. And the ideas, everything that I had to do was just all scattered inside my brain.

And I just couldn't take it anymore. Like I just wanted to sleep. I just want it all to stop. He never took time off work, he says. In fact, he felt like work was kind of an anchor during this, you know, very difficult time. But he was struggling to function, trying to get through his day-to-day life, but clearly having tremendous difficulty. And, you know, of course, this has also been tremendously difficult for people like Barbara Winters as well. I think that this really changed the course of their lives. One thing that I guess I also just want to mention that I think is kind of touching is that the Cirillo family has, to some extent, maintained contact with those who were there for Nathan, you know, and even on this 10th anniversary, you know, they'll be coming together to remember Nathan, but also those who

touched his life in those final moments. And I think there is kind of a sense that, you know, Nathan wasn't alone in those moments. And so that is a comfort to those who love him, that people stepped up and were brave and compassionate and were there for him. Christy, thank you so much for your reporting here and for taking the time to be here today. Thank you, Menaka. That's it for today.

I'm Mainika Raman-Wilms. Our producers are Madeline White, Michal Stein, and Ali Graham. David Crosby edits the show. Adrian Chung is our senior producer, and Matt Frainer is our managing editor. Thanks so much for listening, and I'll talk to you soon.