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Or sign-in if you have an account.The phrase "Jew free" appears in a word cloud submitted by at least one member of a Muslim youth session when asked what kind of community they wanted. The session took place in Toronto at the Muslim Association of Canada convention on May 18. Photo by Melanie Bennett /Juno NewsIs Canada’s systemic anti-Israel bias and preoccupation with political correctness and “anti-racism” preventing it from taking action against radicalization happening right under our noses?Enjoy the latest local, national and international news.Exclusive articles by Conrad Black, Barbara Kay and others. 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Plus, special edition NP Platformed and First Reading newsletters and virtual events.Unlimited online access to National Post.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword.Support local journalism.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one account.Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.Enjoy additional articles per month.Get email updates from your favourite authors.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one accountShare your thoughts and join the conversation in the commentsEnjoy additional articles per monthGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an AccountorThe recent revelation that some attendees at a youth-focused talk at last week’s Muslim Association of Canada (MAC) convention in Toronto wrote “Jew free” in answer to a question about “what kind of community” they want to build, and that it was then prominently projected onto a screen with no objections from the audience or organizers, is not the first time the charity has been engulfed in controversy.For years, MAC has been the subject of a Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) investigation, with the agency accusing it of being involved in an “apparent Hamas support network” and having ties to the Muslim Brotherhood. Its conferences regularly feature speakers who oppose Canadian values and support terrorism. While the CRA has stripped eight Jewish non-profits of their charitable status over the past three years, MAC continues to operate as a registered charity and receive significant funds from the federal government.This newsletter from NP Comment tackles the topics you care about. (Subscriber-exclusive edition on Fridays)By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try againIn late 2022 and early 2023, MAC led a concerted media campaign arguing that it was being persecuted by the CRA; that it and other Islamic charities were being targeted by the tax agency’s review and analysis division, which handles terrorist-financing investigations, simply because they’re Muslim.Yet in October 2023, Global News uncovered a CRA audit letter from 2021, which alleged that MAC “maintained a working relationship” with IRFAN-Canada, helping it raise funds even after it was listed as a terrorist organization for funnelling $14.6 million to “organizations with links to Hamas.” It further alleged that many of the charity’s “members, directors and officials” had ties to “a network of charities that appear to have been used to propagate and fundraise for Hamas,” along with IRFAN-Canada and the Muslim Brotherhood.In particular, the letter raised concerns over support the organization’s former president, Wael Haddara, and his successor, Sharaf Sharafeldin (who now serves as president of strategy), had given to the campaign of Mohamed Morsi, Egypt’s short-lived Muslim Brotherhood president, and their relationships with “high ranking Muslim Brotherhood officials.”None of the allegations were proven and MAC vehemently denied most of the charges. It did, however, acknowledge Haddara and Sharafeldin’s involvement in the Morsi campaign, though it claimed they were simply engaging in a “pro-democracy movement in their home country,” and that their actions do “not mean that MAC … is advancing the interests of the Muslim Brotherhood.”Yet MAC’s own website does not shy away from its adherence to the Brotherhood’s ideology, noting that the charity’s “modern roots can be traced to the Islamic revival of the early 20th century, culminating in the movement of the Muslim Brotherhood,” and that the organization “strives to practice Islam” as understood by the “late Imam Hassan Albanna, the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood.”Albanna was a proponent of “jihad of the sword,” and called upon Muslims around the world to rise up and wage a holy war against colonial powers and non-believers. Yet he was being held up as a “pioneer” who worked to revive political Islam and an example that young Muslims should emulate by Khaled Al-Qazzaz, who also served as a senior aid to President Morsi, at last week’s MAC convention. And this is not the only problematic guest who has been invited to speak at a MAC conference.In 2022, my colleague Terry Glavin, along with numerous Jewish organizations, called out MAC for inviting Mohammed Rateb Al Nabulsi, who has defended using the death penalty against gay people, Muhammad al-Shinqiti, who called slain Arab-Israeli police officer Amir Khoury a traitor for being a Christian after he died in a terror attack, and Jamal Badawi, who claimed suicide bombings were heroic acts, to speak.Its 2023 convention featured speakers with a history of supporting violence against women, denying the Jewish people’s history in the Land of Israel, questioning the loyalty of diaspora Jews and comparing the Jewish state to Nazi Germany. In 2025, its lineup included people who celebrated the October 7 massacre and called for “jihad in Palestine.” This year, the convention’s keynote speaker, Anas Altikriti, wasn’t even allowed into the country due to his ties with Hamas.In total, B’nai Brith Canada said it had “identified 11 scheduled speakers or participants” at this year’s conference “with documented links to five organizations that have been criminally prosecuted, terrorist-designated or formally cited by foreign governments in connection with Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood or other extremist activity.” So many of the guest speakers had connections to the Brotherhood that Michal Cotler-Wunsh, CEO of the International Legal Forum, dubbed it “the Muslim Brotherhood conference.”Despite its insistence on inviting antisemites and terrorist supporters to speak at its conventions year after year, including one this year who preached the virtues of the Muslim Brotherhood to high school students, and concerns raised by the CRA over its youth programming, last year alone, MAC and its regional chapters received $20,000 from the federal government to support “exhibitions and conferences” and over $666,000 for youth summer jobs programs.It’s important to note than MAC fiercely denies having links to terrorism or engaging in any financial wrongdoing. But it does seem to have been given the benefit of the doubt by federal authorities, even as the CRA wages its own jihad against Jewish charities.National Post jkline@postmedia.comTwitter.com/accessdThis column was originally published in the Channel Israel newsletter. Sign up now. Get the latest from Jesse Kline straight to your inbox Join the Conversation This website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. Read more about cookies here. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.