Alan Neal’s November 17 episode for the CBC radio program All in a Day, “Prominent legal scholar detained at Canadian border for hours while on his way to a conference on Palestine,” discussed the detention of Richard Falk and his wife Hilal Elver by Canada’s Border Services Authority. The pair were detained upon their entry to Canada to attend the ‘Palestine Tribunal’ in Ottawa. He also referred to them as “international law experts” in the segment.

This presented listeners with a dramatically false picture. Instead it framed the event as a ridiculous travesty of justice. Predictably, given Neal’s track record of biased, anti-Israel episodes, the echo chamber only lined up confirming voices.

Click below to listen to the segment:

Neal included a clip of Falk describing the experience thusly: “A young person there came in with our passports but held them and said, we have to determine whether you’re a national security threat to Canada. And, that never happened in my long life. And I was at first rather flattered to be considered important enough to be a security threat. My activities have been limited to writing, speaking, and teaching all my life, and this was a new experience.”

Falk’s ostensible initial amusement at his detention belies the truth. Writing, speaking and teaching are how ideas are spread. And ideologies, such as Falk’s promotion of 9/11 conspiracy theories, can be highly dangerous. Likewise, his suggestion that the Boston Marathon bombing stemmed from “the American global domination project” and from “Tel Aviv.” This was condemned by Canada, among others. His ideas can fuel dangerous extremism.

Falk continued, “and they were specific questions about my involvement with the Israel Palestine conflict, my views on Israel. And he asked me specifically about my association with EuroMed, a North African human rights group.”

Falk chairs the Board of Trustees of Euro-Med Monitor, an organization that routinely circulates fabrications and anti-Israel conspiracies – among them claims that Hamas’s October 7 massacre was staged, that weapons were planted on corpses, and that the killers somehow “got it wrong.” So much for human rights. Had they known this, listeners might have understood why CBSA saw fit to question Falk. But Neal didn’t share it.

Instead, Neal interviewed Yuen Pau Wu, an independent Canadian senator from British Columbia. Listeners might have been interested to know that Pau Woo has downplayed China’s treatment of the Uyghurs, criticized the IHRA’s definition of antisemitism upheld by 30 countries (including Canada), and has defended anti-Israel conspiracy theorist, the UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese.

Pau Wu said of the questions Falk was asked, “Is there a wrong answer that one can give to those questions which would deem him to be a national security threat?”

Since Hamas’ massacres on October 7, 2023, anti-Jewish hate has spiked in Canada, driven in large part by anti-Israel propaganda. So, despite Pau Woo’s feigning ignorance, there are answers that spread hate which can constitute a security threat and the CBSA should be praised for asking them.

Pau Woo also said that “To suggest that anything that was discussed or said at the tribunal should be grounds for national security concern is to say that Canadians should not be speaking the truth about, what they have seen and discovered about in Palestine, and that Canadians should not be seeking justice for the violations of international law that have taken place.”

The “tribunal” was bizarrely named, as it was entirely one-sided, allowing no opportunity for defence. It was heavily publicized by Just Peace Advocates Canada, whose Board of Directors  include Jonathan Kuttab, who has denied Israel’s right to self-defence, and Ali Mallah, who promoted resistance to Israel “by any means necessary.” The JPA has also expressed solidarity with Samidoun, a terrorist organization. This context provides understanding of suspicions about the “tribunal” that the JPA supported.

Additionally, Neal’s acceptance that violations of international law have indeed taken place evidences his bias on this hotly disputed topic. Eugene Kontorovitch, international legal expert, states that Israel has not breached international law.

But Pau Woo continued to question whether Falk’s detainment was due to “any external pressure, external meaning outside of government, whether, from within Canada or outside Canada that led to his detention.”

An astonishing allegation that Neal didn’t question him on.

Neal, on behalf of the CBC, presented Falk and Elver’s detention without important context, giving a one-sided narrative and unchallenged claims. By failing to provide balance or critical perspective, the segment prioritized advocacy over journalism, leaving listeners with a skewed understanding of the events.