You shouldn't be ashamed, you did a really good analysis. It definitely helped me to see the clear picture. It is frustrating to wait but it is what it is. We can't do anything from our side. There must be several reasons behind difference in processing times.
I applied through a representative and he told me that they will request security clearance from my country of residence (not the country of nationality). But Canada and that middle eastern country don't have agreement for sharing security info, so in this case IRCC people will wait for a certain period time and then issue PR eventually once they will not receive any response.
I also traveled to a few countries before coming to Canada, who knows IRCC would be checking with those countries that I applied refugee in those countries.
Those 2024 applicants might have simpler cases and they got processed quicker than mine. There could be a possibility that mostly complex cases are left from 2023 thats why they are able to process approximately 400 cases.
All these are assumptions except what my representative told me.
I am June 2023 applicant by the way.
I don't have any military background, and I didn't complete military service in my country.
