"Many felt that it was difficult to live as a Muslim in a hostile environment that left them feeling stigmatized and/or marginalized. The Western feminist model of emancipation seemed to clash with their desire to stay home and raise a family. In contrast, calls to build and join a utopian state where one can live as a “true” Muslim without harassment, seemed like a panacea for some."

Is it difficult to live as a Muslim in Canada or any other secular western country? I don't think so. Problem is, I suspect, they're not happy until everyone is living like them, i.e. Muslims.

What was the attraction of Syria? Was it "the Western feminist model of emancipation" clashing "with their desire to stay home and raise a family"? Rather I suspect it was the chance to wipe-out religious and ethnic minorities and transform a secular country/state into a fundamentalist Islamic state. 

ISIS and other Islamist terrorists from all over the earth invaded Syria. The Syrian people did not want them.