Canada will reject single male Syrian refugees

Canada will repotedly only accept whole families, lone women or children as part of its resttlement plan for Syrian refugees, with single men deemed a 'security risk'

Canada will accept only whole families, lone women or children in its mass resettlement of Syrian refugees, while unaccompanied men - considered a security risk – will be rejected.

Since the Paris attacks of 13 November, a plan by new leader Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to fast-track the intake of 25,000 Syrian refugees by the end of December.

“Everyone agrees that Canada must do more and must welcome 25,000 refugees,” Trudeau said after meeting with provincial leaders late on Monday.

Details of how the refugees will be brought over and where they will be houses are expected to be announced Tuesday, but Canada's ambassador to Jordan confirmed that refugees from camps in Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey will be flown to Canada from Jordan starting December 1.

Speaking from Jordan on Monday, Bruno Saccomani said that the resettlement operation would cost an estimated Can$1.2 billion.

However, Canadian public broadcaster CBC reported that the plan will not extend to unaccompanied men.

Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard appeared to corroborate that report ahead of a meeting on Monday with Trudeau and Canada's provincial leaders.

"All these refugees are vulnerable but some are more vulnerable than others, for example, women, families and also members of religious minorities who are oppressed," he said, while rejecting the notion of "exclusion" of single men.

Faisal Alazem of the Syrian Canadian Council, a non-profit group in talks with the government to sponsor refugees described the plans as a “compromise”.

"This is not the ideal scenario to protect vulnerable people –women and children and men too. But I think what happened in Paris has really changed the dynamic and public opinion," he told Radio-Canada.

However, Opposition New Democratic Party leader Thomas Mulcair warned against casting too large a safety net.

"Will a young man, who lost both parents, be excluded from the refugee program?" he said. "Will a gay man who is escaping persecution be excluded? Will a widower who is fleeing Daesh after having seen his family killed be excluded?" he said.

Trudeau broadly outlined his intention to accept Syrian refugees during an election campaign that swept his Liberal Party into office last month, and has mobilized several government ministries to get the job done since being sworn in three weeks ago. However, public opinion has shifted against the new Prime Minister’s plans since the Paris attacks, with a recent poll suggesting that 54% percent of Canadians now oppose the accelerated resettlement timeline.

Trudeau's government has sought to reassure the White House over its plans, and Publiv Safety Minister Ralph Goodale said he spoke to US Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson over the weekend and assured him that "safety and security... remain our highest priority."

"Canada is integrating security throughout the (resettlement) process, and is committed to making sure everything related to security is done without compromise," he said.