Adam Zivo: The Canadian who helped set the stage for the war against Iran

Smoke rises from an area in the direction of Al Udeid Air Base, which houses the Qatar Emiri Air Force and foreign forces including the U.S., in Doha on Feb. 28, following a reported Iranian strike. Photo by MAHMUD HAMS/AFP

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Although Canada officially refused to join the United States’ springtime war against Iran, new information suggests that Canadian personnel indirectly assisted the campaign while embedded with American forces. This is nothing to be ashamed of. If anything, Ottawa’s support should have been more fulsome, consistent and overt.

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When American bombs began to pummel the Islamic Republic of Iran in March, Prime Minister Mark Carney denounced the campaign as “inconsistent with international law,” and claimed that Canada was “not a party to those actions.”

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However, Ottawa and Washington have a longstanding policy of exchanging service members to enhance allied cohesion and intelligence sharing. Through this integration, Canadian personnel have occasionally fought in conflicts that Ottawa is officially uninvolved with — most notably the 2003 Iraq War.

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This spring, a handful of media reports suggested that some of these American-embedded Canadians might have been involved in the Iran war. A former senior Canadian general, Denis Thompson, even told the CBC that it was highly likely that some of these personnel helped plan airstrikes against the Islamic Republic.

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In response, the Department of National Defence (DND) claimed that American-embedded Canadian service members had been assigned other duties that would keep them out of the conflict, despite otherwise remaining at their posts.

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We now know that this statement, even if technically true, was somewhat misleading.

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Late last month, the Government of Canada announced it would be awarding a Meritorious Service Cross to Col. David K. Turenne for his “extraordinary leadership and diplomatic skill as director of the Combined Air Operations Center during the Israel-Iran conflict.” He was specifically commended for “synchronizing multinational air operations and enabling the safe evacuation of 10,000 personnel from the Al Udeid Air Base, Doha, Qatar, June 2025.”

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The medal, according to its official description, recognizes military deeds “performed in an outstandingly professional manner, according to a rare high standard that brings considerable benefit or great honour to the Canadian Forces.”

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This is the first public acknowledgement of Turenne’s involvement in the Israel-Iran conflict, although few details of his service are known. When National Post requested more information on what he did to earn his medal, DND failed to provide it and claimed that an interview with him would not be feasible.

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To be clear: while Turenne’s award confirms that he was involved in last year’s 12-Day War, no evidence suggests he was involved in this year’s expanded campaign against Iran. His actions do not appear to have contradicted Carney’s claim that American-embedded service members were kept out of the ongoing conflict.

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Still, the award illustrates how Canadian talent helped set the stage for the current war, which, in turn, complicates Carney’s moral and political stance.

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To understand why this is the case, one needs to understand the significance of the Combined Air Operations Center (CAOC), which Turenne directed from June to December of 2025.