House arrest handed to Canadian teen who wanted to join Islamic State

A Canadian teenager who wanted to join the Islamic State group and reportedly promoted attacking government buildings was sentenced to six months of house arrest and two years' probation, prosecutors said.

The 17-year-old male will live with his grandparents, wear an electronic bracelet and be subjected to a curfew. The teenager who hails from Manitoba and can't be named under Canadian law will participate in counseling and be banned from using computers.

Active on Twitter, he pleaded guilty last September to encouraging an offense related to terrorism. The adolescent, who converted to Islam, told investigators he would attack targets in Canada if he could not join IS group fighters abroad, the public broadcaster CBC reported.

A juvenile court took into account the 14 months of pre-trial custody he had already served following his arrest in November 2015, the Public Prosecution Service of Canada said. He apologized in court on Monday for his actions, committed at age 16, saying he had been suffering from an identity crisis.